For those interested... ESB ran a 5v5 test cup on PC. Their update on community servers back in december brought some peeks at upcoming cups, including 16v16 CQ which could be interesting to watch depending on the ruleset.
Can't say this 5v5 is too exciting though, very limiting for variety and no tanks, in combination with the strict weapon restrictions it's just a bullet hose fest. 3 medics per team, assault using 1907 and support running FG-42. TTK is still very, very quick at all ranges when aim is on point as demonstrated here. Kills are nearly instant as players work together and aim for headshots. I'd actually wager that players go down quicker post-patch as recoil became even easier to control.
8v8 is however a much better fit and more fun to watch IMO, but of course smaller player counts are always preferable for organizational reasons.
Post patch weapon usage still seems to lean towards ZK for medics though there were a couple type-100s and even a mp-40 in the mix (I think thompson and suomi are still banned, obviously the unlockable isn't in). Supports ran FG-42 as it was pre-patch but a KE7 got in as well. Assaults ran primarily 1907 with STG-44 and Sturmgewher as exceptions. These patterns were common before but with 3/5 players per team running medic the close quarter rifles will be more preferable. Keep in mind that semi-autos are banned. Not sure about Commando and Jungle though, I think only the trombone is banned because of the nade launcher.
Spectator view is still veeeery buggy and recoil still isn't represented properly causing player aim to be misaligned with sights. Something must be up with the way incendiaries are represented as well. It's a real shame because they obviously put a large amount of work into their spectator mode and the lack of solid first person representation really brings it down.
Still I feel DICE could help drum up some excitement for competitive BFV by hastening some community server customization (maps, player counts, time limits). Screw the curated nonsense and let players do what they want on isolated servers.
I'd love to see spectator mode fixes, community server extensions, and throwable collision adjustments in upcoming patches.
Anyway, always interesting to see competitive aspects in unusual games, not expecting anyone here to really care. :)
Round 2 - Provence:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=xJrTlJKE_lc