Heavy Assault - 2014

I wonder about the sheer usefulness of the HA, and wrote this article for reddit:

Planetside 2 is a game of classes, classes that were originally strongly objected to by the community when first announced. Quick history lesson: the original game did not have classes, instead an RPG style inventory grid you could fill up how you wished. Despite being a veteran of the first game I did not mind the move to classes as the old system was flawed with almost every player able to heal and repair themselves as well as carry rocket launchers and heavy weapons. The class system we have been using for the past two years works, but bubbling away is dissatisfaction with the usefulness of Heavy Assault.

The classes we have all excel at one particular aspect; MAX is defence, Infiltrator stealth, Light Assault mobility, Medic reviving/protection and the Engineer resupply/repair. The Heavy Assault is the exception to this rule as it excels at many roles all at once. The HA class most obviously has its special shield, a device which steps on the toes of the MAX and its defence aspect. It also has launchers, making it the only class to always have a direct counter to vehicles at range. On top of these it also has the LMGs, weapons that can mow down multiple enemies without reloading with a much higher capacity for kills than any other infantry weapon with the exception of an anti-infantry dedicated MAX.

The fact is that in any fight pulling Heavy Assault is almost always the best choice for every player, as you have the firepower, versatility and tenacity to deal with anything that comes your way. If you consider ideal squad compositions you may perhaps see a couple of Engineers and Medics in an effective squad, and perhaps one infiltrator per platoon to lay down motion sensors (although with the crossbow any class can potentially do this job). MAX units need to be mentioned as they are of course powerful, yet only truly effective when backed up with a squad and cost resources to boot.

So what do I suggest is done about this problem… well first I ask is it actually a problem? Does it matter that one class is played more than others if the others are still used and play a role in combat? Would breaking the existing Heavy Assault class up into a couple of new classes such as a Machine Gunner and Anti-Vehicle be worthwhile? I am not sure, but perhaps it is worth a discussion.