General Gaming Activision secretly experimented on 50% of MW3 players by decreasing their SBMM factor and nearly everyone hated it (25 page research paper posted)

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

Activision's researchers reckon skill-based matchmaking is better for everyone

WWW.EUROGAMER.NET

---

Activision has published a 25-page white paper exploring the impact of skill-based matchmaking (SBMM) on its multiplaye…

 

Quote

 

Activision has published a 25-page white paper exploring the impact of skill-based matchmaking (SBMM) on its multiplayer lobbies, determining that SBMM is better for all players.

 

As spotted by indie game developer and consultant Rami Ismail, the report – which can be read in full on Activision's official website – outlines an "amazing A/B test" where Activision "secretly progressively turned off SBMM and monitored retention… and turns out everyone hated it, with more quitting, less playing, and more negative blowouts".

 

 

The matchmaking research paper can be found here as well as an earlier one that discusses the impact connections (ping) and Time to Match have on online play.

[Spawn_of_Apathy]

No shit. 
 

Bungie has gone back and forth with SBMM because the die hard PvP players don’t like while the filthy casuals and dad gamers prefer it. The issue always comes down to 2 things. High skilled players want to stomp people and get 50+ kills a game and with SBMM on their are not enough players in a given region to have lag free matches that doesn’t take 10 minutes to fill a lobby. 
 

Bungie inevitably gives in to those that detest SBMM and thus start bleeding players even faster. But hey, all the youtubers are happy.
 

the benefit COD has is a much larger player base making for much more vast pools of players in given skill brackets.  

[Xbob42]

All this shit is so lame and kills any sense of community in shooters, and has for years. Gimme my fuckin' server browsers back!

[Paperclyp]

2 hours ago, Spawn_of_Apathy said:

No shit. 
 

Bungie has gone back and forth with SBMM because the die hard PvP players don’t like while the filthy casuals and dad gamers prefer it. The issue always comes down to 2 things. High skilled players want to stomp people and get 50+ kills a game and with SBMM on their are not enough players in a given region to have lag free matches that doesn’t take 10 minutes to fill a lobby. 
 

Bungie inevitably gives in to those that detest SBMM and thus start bleeding players even faster. But hey, all the youtubers are happy.
 

the benefit COD has is a much larger player base making for much more vast pools of players in given skill brackets.  

I remember seeing some videos or tweets or something of high skill players complaining they have to play people in the general ballpark as them a few years back. It actually blew my mind.