Perhaps not, though with the way people act as if the Summer beta 1 nerfs weren't harsh enough, I can't imagine vanilla berserker being viable if the anti-zerk crowd gets their way. I think the current state of Zerker is at the lowest point that he CAN be while still being in a playable state.
I agree that there are 2-3 anti-zerkers who would petition to have the zerk removed if they felt like they could get away with it. I think it seemed like there was a camp of them because they were very vocal and the zerk really did need a nerf, so some fans of the zerk put the health of the game above their love of the zerk and joined the discussion.
I was bummed when the nerf was announced but it was for the best. I reached for the zerk when the completionist in me wanted to fulfill an HoE-related daily challenge (which I usually do solo). I'd use other perks from time to time but I usually chose the zerk because it was the easiest. I don't consider myself to be an expert at this game and I wouldn't consider myself to be proficient at parrying, yet one hand would be spamming LMB and the other would be shoveling a snack into my face and I'd win. Prior to the nerf I had very little fear of death with the zerk.
The zerk has to put itself in harm's way in order to be effective, so now that it is nerfed he is much less fun. There is that fine line where it is effective for a short period of time before having to retreat. That time in HoE is so short that, without the medic, it is a poor HoE choice (unless you enjoy kiting, which I don't, but that's on me). It's viable but requires patience that isn't needed with other perks so I agree with your concern.
I don't want to see the zerk go but I wouldn't be surprised if it doesn't make it into KF3. What makes them a good tank also makes them prone to uncooperative tactics and what promotes cooperation further devalues the zerk to obscurity in high-difficulty teams. The pre-nerf zerk was that Wolverine character who doesn't need a team even though they're on one and the post-nerf zerk is akin to Meg's, uhm... super amazing ability to grow her fingernails...
Which is to say that you could choose zerk, but... why? The other options retain efficiency in a wider variety of scenarios. Instead of removing or salvaging the KF2 zerk, I would like to see a restructure of the skill trees in KF3 that promotes cooperative play while retaining the toe-to-toe gibfest that makes it fun.
Assuming that KF3 will end up like KF2 with better graphics, I threw together an example as an attached PNG. You can have the drug-induced, speedy, "it's just a flesh wound", rage killer (LLLLL) that is more consistent with the historical beserker or the ability to clog a lane while taking a hit for the team (RRRRR) as more of a support character. The former is a glass cannon that gets more dangerous as they're damaged and the latter is a low-maintenance iron wall who makes HVT killers' lives easier and comes to teammates' aid when called... at least that's the idea.
Each option provides a lot of unique and powerful characteristics—moreso that any other perk—so passive perks might be next to nothing (eg, stomping on zeds causes damage; you explode if you die; zeds are drawn to you; damage bonus to prone zeds; you can fling the blood off of your weapons at zeds, causing them to stumble on headshots, but does not work with eyeless, eye-covered, or enraged/rallied zeds) and the base zerk would be underwhelming.
I uploaded
this gameplay shortly after the nerf proving zerk is still viable
I can't tell you enough how much I appreciate that you took the time to make and share the video. A lot of claims on here go unproven and come across as though the claimant is snooty. To actually see techniques in action, working, but also still challenging, is very helpful.
By any chance do you have any video showcasing a team-friendly zerk playing their role in HoE? I see a lot of videos on YT that are zerk guides or zerk solo captures, but not very many that include zerks in teams at higher difficulties.
I still believe both the Teslauncher and Vlad-9000 were huge mistakes for the perk.
It sounds like you've talked about this before. Would you mind sharing a link to your previous statements? Ranged weapons never bothered me with the zerk, but then again I choose the zerk when I'm in the mood for toe-to-toe violence, so my evaluation of the zerk's ranged arsenal is superficial. The vast majority of my zerk experience is solo, so ranged weapons are something that I consider more when the boss comes around. I think I've used the Tesla twice.
What are your thoughts on weapons like the javelin, spear, or throwing ax, which could be used in melee or thrown (and retrieved)? Short range, some penetration, small ammo pool, low cost... could fit in nicely.