The post-release deployment for Crucible has been a bit shaky, something that the team acknowledges in its latest preview for players; no one has failed to note the status of the game’s playerbase. But before there’s a focus on bringing in new players, the team wants to make sure the game reflects what it should be, and that includes some big changes like the addition of voice chat coming very soon. Voice chat was almost ready to go already, but it developed a few last-minute bugs that caused it to be held back a little longer.
The team is also taking aim at people going AFK in matches, with particular measures in place to make challenges more active and ensure that there’s a way out of immediately lopsided fights. Equally important are changes to the Heart of the Hive mode, the design players have responded to with the most interest; upcoming changes include altering spawn and respawn points, changing how events work (including possibly limiting them to one event per match), and how creatures on the map interact with one another. So while it’s clear the game does need more players, it’s also clear that there’s work being done to improve the game first. But, uh… more players sooner would also be very good.
