Call Of Duty Needs To Do Something About Skill-Based Matchmaking

It’s no revelation that Call of Duty is predominantly known for its multiplayer experience, although it’s not always the highlight. Back in the early 2000s and late 2010s, this series was every gamer’s go-to for exploring the online gaming community, specifically because of how engaging the multiplayer was.

That aspect ultimately became Call of Duty’s identity, and so each subsequent entry focused on making the multiplayer unique and accessible. Unfortunately, Activision decided to tarnish a working formula somewhere down the line by introducing features nobody wanted or supported. From aggressive monetization to controversial matchmaking, the once beloved gamemode became a soulless chore.

The “Evolution” Of Skill-Based Matchmaking In Call Of Duty

As the name implies, Skill-based matchmaking (or SBMM) assesses your recent performance in the multiplayer and teams you up with similar-skilled players in future matches. This, in theory, should work fine—playing with people having the same expertise would create a dynamic yet balanced mode with no obvious outliers.

SBMM has been a thing in Call of Duty since its multiplayer became mainstream with the original Modern Warfare in 2007. Although the system was new and needed refinement, players felt it was unintrusive and didn’t adversely affect the multiplayer experience. For almost a decade since its inception, the consensus towards this system remained the same, though the multiplayer itself gathered some other issues.

The real trouble began with the release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare in 2019. Skill-based matchmaking received a major overhaul, and although the exact details were never cleared, the lobbies showed it was something totally different. There were two extremes, depending on how you performed—low-tier lobbies with casual players, and high-tier lobbies with focused professionals.

Skill based matchmaking ruins the fun I have in this game
byu/JonWood007 inModernWarfareII

If you “accidentally” gathered kills slightly higher than an average in a lobby, you would go into those high-tier lobbies with a tremendous skill gap, ironically. The system felt it was taking itself too seriously, failing to gain a middle ground and essentially putting players into one of two boxes: casuals or eSports veterans.

The Feel Of Matches Became Unfun In 2020 And Onwards

Players generally tamed their resentment for SBMM in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019). After all, it was a fantastic game with some of the biggest changes the series ever went through. The community felt Activision was trying different algorithms and techniques, giving them the benefit of the doubt and hoping they would learn from their mistakes.

Unfortunately, they were wrong—not only did skill-based matchmaking see a return in every subsequent Call of Duty without any major changes, but there was a growing problem with cheaters. After all, the release of COD: WarZone, the first free-to-play battle royale title in the series, saw the largest influx of active players in Call of Duty.

The skill level diversified with more players, yet the two “boxes” felt unchanged. The community couldn’t even play casually without fearing they might perform too well, as their next match would be a complete bloodbath. On top of that, the game’s infamous Ricochet Anti-Cheat system kept failing to stop cheaters, so you were facing people who either surpassed the average skill or disregarded it entirely.

Black Ops 6 ranked is already full of cheaters and console players aren’t allowed to turn off crossplay to try and avoid them
byu/Leananddopamine inCoDCompetitive

One of the ways players continue to mitigate these issues is with a VPN, like using ExpressVPN for gaming. It works as you’d expect—use a VPN and connect to a region with lower skill levels, server latency, regional traffic, and so on. 

Of course, there are several other benefits to doing this, like better security and protection, ISP restrictions, and other things, but the main reason the Call of Duty community uses VPNs is to escape the game’s oppressive matchmaking. This solution became extremely popular after Call of Duty: Black Ops 6’s release, which practically had a broken ranked mode.

Conclusion

Instead of fixing the SBMM’s algorithm, Activision is continuing to stay ignorant, and even going out of their way to disband efficient solutions. This will usually leave you with two choices: stop taking matches seriously or prepare to fight in lobbies far beyond your skill ceiling.

What’s really unfortunate is seeing how the team barely recognizes this as an issue. While Ricochet, the anti-cheat team, is acknowledging cheaters’ existence and revamping their in-game investigation, Activision is so out of touch that they won’t listen to players’ feedback on their current matchmaking system. 

With the way Call of Duty is introducing new mechanics, like omni-movement in Black Ops 6, the aforementioned skill ceiling is increasing. You’re forced to learn and master every new combat mechanic to have fun, even if you don’t want to play competitively. It’s a crying shame, too, especially because of how addictive the gunplay is and how massive the community can be.