This week, developer Respawn published ablog postpulling the curtain back onApex Legendsskill-based matchmaking, or SBMM.
Activision has never explained Call of Duty’s SBMM.
Indeed, it seems at pains to admit it even exists.
This is a real shame.
Developers do not willfully set out to create negative experiences for their players.
Of course they don’t!
We just don’t know what those levers do.
Hell, Activision doesn’t officially acknowledge their existence.
When it comes to COD, some players say SBMM has no right being in casual playlists.
“SBMM is one of many many tuneable parameters in a matchmaking system,” Donlon added.
This tweet was subsequently deleted.
“Fustratingly little influence on those corp decisions despite their impact on our games and the COD community.”
Never directed into COD from me.
Fustratingly little influence on those corp decisions despite their impact on our games and the COD community.
“Your skill rating is dynamic and always adjusting.
When you’re on a win streak, your skill rating increases.
The opposite is true when you’re on a loss streak.
Either way, this is the system accounting for your recent changes in skill.
This process tends to be slow, so you should only feel these changes from long streaks.”
And this bit I love from Respawn:
“Is matchmaking built to directly optimise retention and engagement?
Our matchmaking algorithm is only concerned with measuring skill and arranging the fairest possible matches in a reasonable time.
The hope here is that this process creates the most fun matches.
But, there is a clear problem here… you’re free to’t actually measure fun.
This is where retention comes in.
Respawn’s blog post makes a lot of sense to me.
I’m sure a similar explanation would make a lot of sense to Call of Duty players.
So come on, Activision!
Take a page out of Respawn’s playbook and dish the dirt on SBMM.
