Wardogs Devs Aim to Balance Lonestar as Season 2 Arrives

If you have spent any time playing Wardogs since its September launch, you have almost certainly seen the memes. The game’s blue team, known as Lonestar, has developed a reputation for losing—frequently, comically, and consistently. Developers at Bulkhead have now confirmed that the perception is backed by data, but they are looking to turn the tide when Season 2 launches on October 15.

The Stats Behind the Struggle

Bulkhead co-founder Howard Philpott confirmed that Lonestar’s win rates were hovering at a dismal 10% during the alpha phase. This created a cycle where competitive players flocked to the green and red teams, effectively starving the blue team of experienced players. While Philpott notes that the win rate has climbed to approximately 20% in recent weeks due to players choosing Lonestar specifically to take on the ‘underdog challenge,’ the team acknowledges that a genuine imbalance exists.

Map Overhauls and New Incentives

To fix the disparity, the development team is implementing significant changes to the map Bakurani. Senior producer Kane Allard explained that data suggested the blue team was suffering disproportionately on that map, prompting a full reset of spawn points for all three teams. While the central hot zones of Bakurani remain the same, the goal is to create a more balanced playing field.

Beyond technical adjustments, the team is getting creative with ‘PR’ efforts to help Lonestar. Players on the blue team will see changes to their uniform saturation to improve stealth and camouflage. Additionally, the developers are introducing in-game XP and cash bonuses for those who play—and win—as Lonestar. Perhaps most notably, players on the green and red teams will encounter new posters in their spawn areas encouraging them to defect to the blue side, complete with a cheeky nudge from CEO Joe Brammer regarding the team’s reputation.

Why it matters

For players, these changes represent a shift in the meta that goes beyond simple balance tweaks. If you have avoided playing as Lonestar to keep your win rate up, the introduction of XP and cash bonuses provides a tangible reason to switch sides when Season 2 drops next week.

Whether these adjustments will fundamentally fix the win-rate disparity remains to be seen, but the update demonstrates that the developers are listening to the community’s feedback regarding the game’s current team imbalance. Players should keep an eye on how these new spawn points affect the flow of combat on Bakurani, as the repositioning could completely change the viability of the blue team in competitive matches.