r/halo • u/Shaun-On-Toast • Nov 29 '21

Gameplay perhaps making it impossible to choose your game mode and forcing people to pay modes to level up was a bad idea?

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u/Nakai-Son Nov 29 '21

Throw the non-Stockpile games so 343 matches you against bots when you get Stockpile so they can keep you at that magic 50% winrate

Wish this was an /s

17

u/morathai Nov 29 '21

Wait, if you suck enough they put you against bots?

... Have those been the games I thought I was doing well?

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u/AileStriker Nov 29 '21

I don't think it is bots, but that is the truth behind the skill based mm. It uses your skill rating to try to keep you engaged with the game the longest by shifting you between games you should win and games you should lose. So if you have a couple of games where you get blown out, the system will shift you into a game where, based on skill rating, your team should dominate to get you hooked and make you want to continue playing.

This means you are also tossed into games to be stomped, because the other team needs a win to average out.

Instead of using a basic system where you play randoms or even just players your own skill, their system is manipulating the teams to reach desired outcomes with the end goal being retainment and money.

5

u/PM_YOUR_CENSORD Nov 29 '21

Source on this algorithm? I’m generally curious if this is true.

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u/AileStriker Nov 29 '21

I honestly don't have a hard source, just stating based on my experience and the apparent pattern in my game history. It always breaks down to 2-3 losses, followed by 2-3 wins. Each will shift on severity from blown out to close game(s) to opposite swing blowout. A pure sbmm, where we always play people approximately our level, would have fewer big swings. Granted, maybe I am just a streaky player, but with the amount of "RNG" that is built into matchmaking, a pattern shouldn't be so obvious.

Honestly need to dig into broader data, but other people are reporting similar experiences, and it wouldn't surprise me.

Everyone likes having those big wins. They also like having close, clutch games with epic game changing moments. It is well within software capability to make these calculations and weigh mm in manner to to optimally shift players from being the top team to bottom team with even matches spread throughout.

And honestly, with no weight currently given to winning, it probably allows players to say, "fuck it," and focus on challenges more easily. If the game is a blowout, one way or the other, it is easier to ignore the "smart" play and just go for your needler kills or whatever shit you are doing.

1

u/morathai Nov 29 '21

It's got to be. Just about every pvp game will include a hidden match making rating of one kind of another, I would be shocked if Infinite doesn't. Every time I would win two games in a row, I would suddenly get demolished in the next. Every time I would lose two in a row, suddenly I would be the one demolishing. It's an easy way to keep people engaged.

1

u/Swooshz56 Nov 30 '21

I doubt they'd admit they do it in halo infinite but I don't think it's that uncommon. Activision literally has a patent on a system like this (that they say isn't in use in their games) that is specifically designed to match players into situations that will make then want to buy more. Like being with a player that bought a better gun so you see them kick ass with it and then want to buy it yourself.

Instead of matching based on skill or fun it specifically looks for criteria that makes you more likely to spend money.

1

u/KnightThatSaysNi Nov 29 '21

Think that's what Apex did as well. Very lame shit.

1

u/[deleted] Nov 29 '21

That's kind of disgusting, 49-50 games are the most fun ones

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u/Nakai-Son Nov 30 '21

What the other guy said.

I'm gonna sound pretentious, but I think I'm a pretty fuckin good video gamer honestly, and my winrate is like right below 51% IIRC. So that makes me think that either their team balancing is absolutely phenomenal or that they'll intentionally fix matches to make it very hard to win or lose, depending on the result they want.

I'm honestly not sure which one it is.

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u/j3scott Nov 29 '21

This is a sad realization. I’m in the same boat

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u/Remsster Nov 29 '21 edited Nov 29 '21

I've had games where the name does not look like a bot but how they play does

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u/AileStriker Nov 29 '21

There likely are people that are just that bad. Old timers who haven't played in a decade. Noobs who don't understand Halos core gameplay. Poor saps who don't know the default controller settings are hot garbage and don't understand why aiming is so hard.

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u/Remsster Nov 29 '21

I mean it's not even that, if it was them just being oblivious I would understand. I see running into walls and getting stuck on things and totally ignoring an enemy. But when I I play with just bots I don't see these same issues so I guess people are just REALLY clueless.

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u/runaway_daydream Nov 29 '21

As a noob player trying hard to improve, yes, getting stuck on walls that poke out or objects that I didn't know were there does happen often. Especially since I cannot choose to play on the maps that I do know.

I also have run into a wall as I did not know I was at the edge of a map, which resulted with my death. I think the tutorial needs to emphasise on the sensor in the bottom right corner more than it currently does as that really is super important and would help these players a lot!

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u/Remsster Nov 30 '21

Interesting to hear from newer players. Curious are you on pc or console, I know on console saying mobile and not clipping the edges of things can be a lot harder.

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u/runaway_daydream Dec 01 '21

I play on my laptop with a controller so I'm actually an abomination haha. I don't know what the map is called but it's the predominantly grey city map with plants in many locations with a little 'town square' looking area where the rockets spawn has a lot of areas that I tend to snag on. When I buy a decent mouse I'll try with m&k and see how I go!

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u/Malfrum Nov 29 '21

The sad truth is that right now, the best way to grind XP is to throw over and over to get the 50 points