Skill-Matching and Tier Movement

[sponge]

The last few updates have brought some change within our skill matching system, so we thought we'd spend a few paragraphs going over a bit more specifically how it works, and hopefully dispel some of the confusion and misconceptions.

The first big change occurs when you register. No longer must you play Crash, or select a skill before playing matches, everyone starts off on equal footing and able to play online. If you check out the "Welcome" tab in home, you'll notice some new phrasing below the Best Pick servers, and a countdown. This countdown is just an estimate of how long until you are removed from a probationary period. While in this probation period, your skill is calculated differently.

As many have discovered, we measure skill in QUAKE LIVE per gametype, so how exactly is one countdown derived from all game modes? It is actually just a good guess based on an average player's gameplay patterns, with a little extra buffer. The actual count is 10 games per game mode; that is you will have to complete a total of 10 games in each separate game mode before you are considered out of the probation period for that game type. Players who never play certain modes may never get out of this status, so rather than constantly reminding them of this, we opted to simply remove the message after 20 games no matter what.

Now, what does this probation period actually mean? From the player's perspective, not much. They can play the game as normal as everyone else. Their probation status only comes into play when the game ends. The amount of tier movement is initially very high, and decelerates as you approach 10 games in that game mode. This is done in an attempt to as quickly as possible separate players, and hone in on what skill tier they should be in.

Which direction, and how much you move, is not dependent on wins and losses, but actually is a function of score over time, after meeting a minimum time played. The top third of the server will go up, the middle third will stay the same, and the bottom third will go down. Basically, if you are one of the more productive players on the server, you will move up, and if you aren't, you will move down.

None of this is permanent, and it is possible even after hundreds of games to still move around if you're having a hot streak or a run of bad luck. And certainly the system itself can be improved over time-- this is the main reason we are hesitant to prominently display your raw skill numbers on your profile, if they change due to a tweaking of the method, people may feel they unfairly gained or lost skill as a result.

[Marklar]

This system is definitely better than having to play against a bot to measure tiers.

[DEADTimE]

Thanks for the clarification sponge.

[poop_flusher]

The top third of the server will go up, the middle third will stay the same, and the bottom third will go down.

Maybe this explains why I'm stuck up in high tiers finally. I assume that the top third in, say CA, is determined solely by number of points and not kill/death ratio?

[sponge]

Maybe this explains why I'm stuck up in high tiers finally. I assume that the top third in, say CA, is determined solely by number of points and not kill/death ratio?

The thirds are calculated by score over time, so as not to penalize people who only play say 15 minutes of a 20 minute game. If one player gets 200 points in 10 minutes, and another gets 400 points in 20 minutes, they will have the same score over time.

[BONFIRE]

Yea.. aint buying it. or wait. If this actually works. The browser must be broken. Because the "skillmatched" serverthingy does NOT work.

[poop_flusher]

The thirds are calculated by score over time, so as not to penalize people who only play say 15 minutes of a 20 minute game. If one player gets 200 points in 10 minutes, and another gets 400 points in 20 minutes, they will have the same score over time.

ah ok this makes sense

[BONFIRE]

ah ok this makes sense

yea if the time you have to have played is calculated as percentage of the gamelength - as i know CA games sometimes are shorter than 10mins

edit: just had one which lasted 4 and half min ..

[Orgazmo]

How many tiers are there? And can I understand from the posts above that we can't see in what tier we are? I would like to know, because I feel like i'm in a too high tier :P

[Dr_Mr_Ed]

This all makes sense, especially for new users. But how does it affect those of us who have already been playing? Specifically, I feel like I'm somewhat over-ranked right now, especially in CTF. If I play a down-level server and do well, are my stats going to go even higher? Should I start playing tougher servers and end with 12 points and people yelling at me?