A thread on Reddit started by user PixelatedCloud is one of the places where the community is torn about skill-based matchmaking. The original poster is claiming that they are now paired with “full, communicating squads” where most players are using what he describes as the two best weapons in the game: the MP5 and the M4A1.
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The user continued by saying that the Modern Warfare skill-based matchmaking is being prioritized instead of a connection-based system, leading to “unfair and random gunfights,” ending with a suggestion for Infinity Ward: make regular matches randomized and add a competitive or ranked mode with skill-based matchmaking for those who want them. Another user chipped in by saying that skill-based matchmaking “punishes you for getting better.”
Not everyone sided with the poster on this subject. Some players are saying that the lack of skill-based matchmaking would turn Modern Warfare into a “pub stomp,” and that everyone should “play with people [their] skill, there’s nothing wrong with that.”
Most Modern Warfare players seem to take kindly to the removal of skill-based matchmaking, a feature that Infinity Ward hasn’t officially confirmed to exist, but the future should bring us some news from the front. A ranked mode is probably in the works; the question is when it will be deployed.
Some players are fine with the introduction of skill-based matchmaking in Modern Warfare, something that allegedly was also present in Advanced Warfare. However, another part of the community claims that the Call of Duty games always had this casual, non-competitive feel to them. These changes are reportedly crippling the experience, making it “increasingly difficult to enjoy.”
Skill-based matchmaking (also known as SBMM) is a feature that matches you against other players according to your performance. If you frequently deliver great performances, you’ll end up paired with the best players. On the other hand, poor performances will match you up with weaker players.