Chess also didn't have suppression in the game so maybe we can take that out of CoH 2.
Seriously though, chess is always balanced because it is symmetrical field with only mirror matches (only imbalances is regarding who gets the first turn) and because of this highly competitive nature, chess is one of the most followed sport- oh wait, no people don't want to watch chess because it's boring. They'd rather watch poker that is based on chance.
The most important thing for a game is for it to be entertaining. If I love to look at it and play it, nothing else really matters. It will attract an audience and an audience will attract people who'd spend 12 hours a day on acquiring fleeting internet fame.
I'm sceptical towards the idea of IBs, but then again CoH is so much about chance that I don't think slight percentages will make much difference.
