Hail!
To get right to it, spears in the game as they are, are not viable on foot. Unless you are far more skilled at the game than your opponent, especially in multiplayer, they have little to no use aside from stopping the occasional horse charge. Im sure we are all aware of this.
So before I begin game wise, I would like to talk about the spear historically.
Look at near any time period in history and you will see the most prominent weapon used on the battlefield to be the spear, and not only because they were cheaper to make than swords, but also far more effective for a variety of situations. (Aside from self defense, especially within enclosed spaces.) Spear men could cover each others flanks, strike enemies not paying attention to them, and were more effective against a variety of armors when compared with swords. And when compared with one handed axes, they were longer and more versatile. However to be fair, spear men often carried BACK UP weapons, such as axes clubs or swords, for when the spear formation broke up and they were required to get stuck in.
This is not to say the spear was bad in one on one combat. This is far from the truth, especially when shields and heavy armor are not part of the equation, and/or the skill level of the opponents were similar. Wielding a spear two handed allows the wielder to deliver extremely quick and powerful thrusts, as its tiny point focuses the force of the blow very effectively, hence why it was so useful against a variety of armors and generally KILLED or WOUNDED with EASE. Many spears were also able to cut or bash, but lets stick with the basic pointed "stick" for now.
Closing in on a nimble spear user without a shield or heavy armor is near suicide, though skill levels do play a part and wielding a long sword or a great sword with the half sword grip allows for a more even playing field. (Look up Lindybiege, Schola Gladiatora, Skallagrim, Etc... on Youtube) A skilled spear user could also handle themselves quite well in close combat, though once stuffed the shorter weapons do have a distinct advantage, especially if both parties are equally skilled in the martial arts.
Anyways on to the game, as of right now spears are more useless in one on one combat than a dagger, if you are skilled with the combat system it could help a bit but even then, damage numbers for landing a blow with a spear EVEN on the HEAD are quite low. There is low reward for a currently high risk precision weapon, and once they get within one handed distance it becomes incredibly hard to do much of anything as distancing options are limited. Compared to a great sword, great axe, or swing able pole arm that can do 100 damage at the START of its chop/slash, this is sort of ridiculous. (I personally feel bad using a two handed axe, sword, or glaive just because of how easy it is to do vast amounts of damage even against the best of armors, which would be okay if it were required to pick up speed first... Though it CAN be fun to chop through a horde of rabble.)
I suggest spears get both a damage and speed buff. Plus I think they should, by virtue of the weapon itself, provide some sort of push back if a hit is landed or blocked (regardless of how close the opponent is), to make it harder to close the distance and spam the spear men to death. If not this then allow some moderate damage to be done from close range as well, though I believe the push back would be a more exciting option for the combat system and allow for a more historical feel.
I know balancing a game, especially one so ambitious, is very difficult. But I believe these changes could help make spears, which if I were to be honest are one of my favorite weapons (just look at my username) far more thrilling and fun to handle and fight against. Because to be honest, fighting spear users feels sad rather than exciting.
Oh, and I understand the game is early access. These are merely suggestions to make a personal favorite weapon usable in the game.
