Yes the SBMM makes some people happy, it especially makes others unhappy in Call of Duty. Present in the Battle Royale Call of Duty: Warzone, but also in other opuses such as Black Ops Cold War, Modern Warfare or Vanguard, it has been a very touchy subject within the community for many years.
First of all, what is SBMM ? SBMM, which stands for “Skill Based Matchmaking”, is a system based on player levels. It allows during matchmaking to group together those who have roughly the same level, and takes into account your different statistics such as playing time or ratio.
At first glance, we might think that the SBMM is a good way to progress but also to play with players of our level, but the reality is not really what we hoped for, and the players suffer from it. However, a glimmer of hope seems to be emerging for a category of players if we are to believe the latest Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 leaks.
SBMM system reworked for Modern Warfare 2?
You are used to it, but once again we prefer to tell you that this is a rumor and not yet official information. This one comes to us from one of the biggest insiders in the Call of world since it is Ralphs Valvemore precisely of one of his relatives who would work on Call of Duty.
According to him, MWII’s SBMM will therefore have been reworked, so some players may end up with low-level bots. For this, the player’s statistics will have to be eligible to access these lobbies, and thanks to the total AI overhaul, they will be “able to track a player’s skill level throughout a match, leveling up and countering “Smurfs” or removing the player from matches altogether“.
Still according to the partner of Ralphs Valve, this system would not be aimed at all players since it will above all be set up and reserved for players with disabilities. This is aboutprogress towards accessibility for all, and so this option is one of them. With this new system, the developers want them to be able to have a real gaming experience, like able-bodied players. We can only welcome this initiative.
However, it is to be hoped that some players do not take advantage of this new system since it will adapt to all skill categories, whether high or low. “The latter would become less debilitating for the best margin of players, instead of penalizing them, while allowing the coexistence of a protected game for less skilled players.“.