Both the leveling out of manpower and the higher manpower is a definite plus. If you notice, the only complaints are about the commanders, which while are a big impact, are a separate issue.
The problem with the early game is that you didn't have enough basic resources and units to counter the super specialized openings that some commanders gave, for both sides. And even if there weren't those commanders, it still meant there was a razor's edge line that you could experiment for starting builds on. The reason why there was the Soviet 1st and 2nd building changes is for that very reason.
It's funny how these trollers have graduated to trying to insult the entire community, then acting like people should listen to them after doing so. Dave and his ilk clearly have little else to do with their time.
I say instead of constant whining and wasting people's time on these forums, I suggest we band together, instead of acting childish and polarizing like Dave, and start demanding things of Relic as part of a united front. That front would recognizes the positive changes, as well as denouncing the negative.
So with that, I say, very good job on the balance changes, but the commanders are getting out of hand.
I will no longer be recommending the game, and will actively deter people from buying it or any DLC until Relic and Sega slow down the commander releases to give time for the balance team to work on them.
There is a problem with the lets all get along idea. Most people in this forum get offended when someone argues against something they like and seem to take it personal. So banding together over coh2 will never happen. Another thing Ive seen from the coh series is pushing the devs hard always leads to even more divisive results to eventual neutering of unit/abilities in question. How can you please 2 different sides when one side that has a tractor beam considers the other side having smoke canisters on tanks op?
I agree though the best way to balance is with variety. The coh2 base army and commander system just feels so restrictive after the previous games. Both armies are missing core elements that any basic army needs and the restrictive commander system patches up some holes but also exposes weaknesses. I am more a fan of making sure there are counters opposed to just making things weaker. Variety would go a long way in giving people back the feeling that they are in control of their own fate when playing.