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Player consultants almost never help when balacing a game. Very few of them can put aside self-interest enough to give effective feedback, and often their asks are extremely self-serving. It CAN work (I've used them) but requires the right player choices and a confident, strong balance director.

Balance, like other design aspects, requires vision. Many teams try to use statistics and math to guide balance, and this is also a mistake. Balance isn't factual. It's emotional. Without a leader that understands the game, the players, the psychology of it all, its blind darts.

Good balance has a lot more in common with musical composition than it does AP Statistics. It requires harmonious choices, purposeful imbalance of volume and frequency, and tempo to achieve the desired emotional effect. What works in one song won't necessarily work in another.

I dont believe most players see competitive balance this way, and Im sure most game devs responsible for game balance dont see it this way. And I feel this is why we see so many big misses in the game balance space. Manipulate emotions, not numbers. Lead, don't follow.