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Zacian, the latest addition to the roster of characters in Pokemon Unite, has sparked controversy among the game's playerbase. Even before the creature was officially released on live servers, many were concerned about the potential issues it could bring.
Balancing Pokémon has always been a challenge for the free-to-play MOBA. Ever since the game's launch, newly released playable characters have usually been considered to be overpowered, resulting in vocal protests from some players online.
Unfortunately, history has repeated itself as Pokemon Unite players are currently frustrated by the negative impact that Zacian has had on the game.
Zacian breaks the internet: Pokemon Unite's latest addition allegedly ruins the game
A lot of the problems with Zacian in Pokemon Unite stem from its base stats. Since it is a Legendary Pokemon that does not evolve, Zacian's base stats are much higher than the rest of the roster during the early game. This can lead to a very unbalanced start to a game where every opponent is forced to play safe, which does little to counter Zacian anyway.
Although high base stats can be a challenge for any balancing team, what truly sets Zacian apart is that it is not simply a glass cannon, as many players had anticipated. The character also possesses impressive defense and HP, which can leave little room for opponents who choose creatures that evolve (such as Charizard or Garchomp) to make counterplays.
Pokemon that do not evolve like Lucario and Pikachu are typically very oppressive if they can get ahead of the competition early. This is balanced out by them typically scaling a lot worse than picks that require evolution, often peaking around the mid-game. However, for some reason, this is not the case for Zacian as its stats continue to grow at alarming rates at all stages of the game.
Considering how powerful Zacian's base stats are and how well they scale, it may seem like there is no hope for the future of Pokemon Unite as long as this creature has free roam of the servers. However, there is hope in the form of future patches as well as the game's next addition having qualities that may directly counter Zacian.
The best course of action that the developers can take to balance Zacian is to reduce its defensive stats as well as its HP. The other attackers in the game are generally more fragile, and this is consistent with the game's overall design philosophy. By nerfing Zacian's defensive capabilities, the developers could bring it more in line with other characters in Pokemon Unite.
Goodra may offer a solution to this problem. Set to release on March 16, Goodra is a melee defender with exceptional crowd-control abilities. A skilled Goodra player could potentially immobilize Zacian, making it more vulnerable to attacks, and this could be an effective strategy to prevent Zacian from escaping risky plays.
