CounterSide – January 2026 Preview

Check out what new update is planned below!

CounterSide [Dev Notes #42] December 2025

Dear CEOs,

This is Kim Hyun Soo, the Head PD of CounterSide.

We thank all our CEOs for the support and love shown to CounterSide during 2025.

Spending the year 2025 together with our CEOs has been a great source of encouragement for me and the entire development team.

As we welcome the new year, we will continue to carefully consider and strive to deliver an even more satisfying experience.

Due to the year-end schedule, this December Dev Notes is being shared a little earlier than usual.

We kindly ask for your understanding.

Now, we would like to introduce the January update, which marks the beginning of 2026.

[Omen – ???]

The first news we would like to share is an introduction to Omen Episode 5 which will be updated on January 27 (UTC-5).

This time, a message about the upcoming Omen has been left behind through a fan letter addressed to you.

(This text was restored by a Class 1 Administrator.)

It has been some time, ■■■■■■■■■■■■. Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say this is our ■■■■■ ■■■■■■■.

Just before the Old Ad■■■istra■■n’s ■■■■ Protocol was triggered, I sent ■■■ this f■■ ■■■■■■.

The fact that you are receiving this me■■■ge now also means that y■■ and the Admi■■■■■tion have already ■■■■■■ to defend the ■■■■ multiple times.

Still, I am certain those ■■■■■■■■ became the d■■■■ng fo■■e that set you in m■■ion.

I don’t dislike ■■■■■ who struggle desperately to break free from a ■■■■■■■■■■■■■ ■■■■.

And for so■■■ne like y■u, I will le■■e you a s■■■■er.

The Omen’s ■■■■■ script is titled .

A wo■■n who wa■■ered for many lo■g y■■rs comes to m■■t a ■■■ in a c■ty by ch■n■■ and thr■ugh ■■■ real■zes what she tr■ly des■res.

The ■■■■■■■ she rea■hes beco■es a sto■y of its o■n, one that over■■rns the f■t■s of ev■ryo■■ b■und to that c■ty.

In ■■ ■■■■■■■■, the Z■d■■c ■ni■■ts seek to pro■■ct Cha■■de for the peo■le, the ■■■■■■■ moves to pur■e its in■■r dis■idents, and the ■■■■■does not miss the op■■rtunity brought fo■th by the 「Omen」. And at the cen■er of it all, a ■■■■ is caught in an ine■■table con■lict.

Even if this me■■age has been par■■ally dis■orted by da■a co■■■u■tio■…

If it is yo■, I am ce■tain you will gra■p the true mea■ing hid■en within this sp■iler.

And now, as y■u stand today…

I believe you can st■p the 「Omen」 and save the six ■■■■■■.

Because I am your biggest fan, after all.

-■■■■■ ■■■■■-

[New Counter Pass – Doctor Macy]

Doctor Macy, who received strong positive feedback from CEOs following her appearance in the Main Stream story, is joining the roster as a new employee.

Doctor Macy is a Counter Fury Supporter who moves on the ground and performs all-around attacks.
She excels at dealing powerful damage to enemies with high HP while effectively supporting allied firepower.

Please look forward to the impact Doctor Macy will bring as she stabilizes and supports the flow of battle.

◆ Doctor Macy

[Gauntlet Ban Rules]

Ahead of the upcoming season, we would like to provide a detailed overview of the ban rules that will be applied starting next season.

• First, in Ranked Battles, employees selected as ban will be unavailable for use throughout the entire season.
• No bans will be applied during the first two weeks of the season, and starting from Week 3, two employees will be added to the ban list each week.
• As a result, by the latter half of the season, approximately 20 employees are expected to be banned in total. This is a level similar to the number of employees affected by weekly bans in the current season.
• The selection scope for the employee with the highest number of wins will follow the existing Rotation Ban criteria, and the voting will be conducted within the same scope as the existing Casting Ban system. In addition, ship ban rules will remain unchanged.
• Meanwhile in Strategy Battles, the Bans & Ups will be removed to allow for more flexible squad compositions.
• Through this overhaul of the ban system, we hope to encourage more diverse employee usage and foster long-term meta changes.

We appreciate your continued interest and feedback regarding Gauntlet content.

[Balance Adjustment Targets]

• As previously mentioned, balance adjustments will be carried out after the end of the Gauntlet season, targeting employees who have seen relatively low usage during the season.
• Please refer to the list below for the balance adjustment targets. 
• Detailed adjustment directions will be shared separately through the patch notes.

■ Balance Patch Target Employees

• Christina Brecht
• Aura
• Sonya
• Levia Tannis
• Space Cat Felicette
• Free Agent Seo Yoon
• Galahad Roy Burnett
• Six-Wings Amy Firstwing
• Griffin Rider Christina Brecht
• Ace of Wings Lee Sooyeon
  

In addition, to better counter stealth skills possessed by Albion and certain other employees, we are currently reviewing the addition of stealth detection to the Enterprise.

If further countermeasures against stealth are deemed necessary, stealth detection may also be added to other ships in the future.

Based on the wide range of feedback provided by our CEOs, we are preparing balance adjustments aimed at delivering a more satisfying experience. Please look forward to the detailed patch notes that will be shared in a future update.

[Grand Expedition – Regular Season]

The Grand Expedition, which received great interest from our CEOs, will return as a Regular Season on January 27 (UTC-5).

• For this Regular Season of Grand Expedition, we have actively incorporated the improvement feedback shared by our CEOs.
• First, a list displaying the employees that may appear during the season will be added, and the battle information panel on the right side of the stage selection screen will be improved to provide more detailed information.
• In addition, to provide more opportunities to obtain Artifacts and employees, the number of stages within each zone will be expanded from 10 to 15.
• To further ensure smoother progression, Artifact stats will be enhanced, and new features such as reward reroll and reward popup hide functions will be added.
• Furthermore, when an assigned employee is equipped with a skin, the skin will now be applied during the Grand Expedition.
• We also made efforts to include additional story content requested by many CEOs in this season. However, we sincerely apologize that development could not be completed within the schedule due to time constraints.

Please rest assured that Grand Expedition related story content will continue to be developed and added in future updates, and we kindly ask for your patience.

[Other Improvements]

In addition to the items mentioned above, we are carefully reviewing various suggestions shared by our CEOs and considering multiple improvements.

First, we are reviewing the introduction of a Strategy Battle skip function to allow CEOs to earn Gauntlet Points more easily and quickly.

We are also examining ways to reduce the time required for World Map Branches to reach Level 10.

In addition, we value all feedback provided by our CEOs and will continue to thoughtfully consider directions that help us build a better CounterSide. Please feel free to share your ideas and suggestions with us at any time.

This concludes the January update information. As CounterSide approaches its fifth year since initial launch and welcomes a new year, this journey has only been possible thanks to the unwavering support from our CEOs.

Your valuable feedback, constructive criticism, and warm encouragement have allowed CounterSide to continue moving forward step by step. In 2026, the entire development team will do its utmost to create a CounterSide filled with even greater enjoyment together with our CEOs.

Thank you, as always.

Hyunsoo Kim, Head PD of CounterSide.