Ranked mode for the Arena

  • Firetail8433
    Ship Mate
    Insider

    The arena being an inherently a competitive place, it is only natural that there should be a ranked mode for people who want to play more seriously, and be paired with an open crew that is their rank and skill rather than take a shot in the dark with a random open crew who can be extremely new to the game that it legitimately hinders the gaming experience of the Arena.

    Some replies to this will likely be that you should find a crew on places like the sea of thieves discord, but some times you don't want to take that time getting a crew ready and getting everyone in the right discord call as well as trying to navigate the horrendous Xbox invite system that works when it wants to and not when it needs to, which is a whole other topic I'm not ready to delve into right now.

    I don't care how the Ranked system is created and what rewards or whatever additions come with it, as long as I know that if I choose open crew in a ranked match I am matched with someone close to my skill that won't try to shoot a ship that is miles away.

    That or perhaps lock the Arena behind a level requirement with the trading companies or some such, that will wash out the extremely new from the main party pool, or perhaps create two modes that are open casual and closed casual, the latter of which is for people who have hit a certain requirement.

    If anyone thinks this is flawed in some way or perhaps has something to alter or add onto please do, im open to conversations about this as I feel very strongly about this subject as its been a sore spot in the game for me for a while now.

    Thank you for reading.

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  • Yunaaa3548
    Marauder
    Insider

    Yes A ranked system would be something I would definitely want.

  • Greengrimz
    Marauder

    @firetail8433

    While I do agree that Arena needs a bit more love, not only in terms of competitiveness, but also in variety (more formats), I admit that your reasoning is kind of infuriating me. And I am just a user, I can't imagine how devs would feel about it.

    Asking developers to do something because you're too lazy to spend 10 minutes (that's really how much it takes) to do it yourself is childish, to say the least. Not to mention that this game really should be played with people you know, as playing with randoms (despite from Discord or built-in system) will NEVER guarantee you any consistency.

  • mferr11
    Vanguard
    Insider

    @firetail8433 Arena definitely needs a level cap. The amount of Maiden Voyagers and full sailor sets I've seen that join in, stare at you while you raise the anchor by yourself and then do nothing for the rest of the game is astonishing.

  • Firetail8433
    Ship Mate
    Insider

    @greengrimz you have a good point, and while I don't agree, this is only MY situation and anyone else whos in the same boat. Some out there don't want to make a discord just to find people who aren't sub-par in the arena, nor should they NEED to, the game shouldn't rely on any outside interference like having to create a whole other thing to make another thing work, the entire thing should be a closed system that works without the need for outside assistance, which by the way is the reason they decided to make an in-game system that doesn't require you to check the sea of thieves website for the weekly events; this system was supposed to be introduced in the most recent monthly update but was taken out for reasons and will be added at a later patch.

    Also, Sea of Thieves doesn't HAVE to be played with friends, some times they're not online, sometimes they don't wanna play, there so many variables in this situation that can be fixed by just joining an open crew, which is why that option exists, and that's why it exists in Arena, but the fact of the matter is, joining Arena means you are serious about the game mode and want to win, so when you are paired with someone who has no clue how to play this game, it really takes away from your desire to keep playing it.

    I respect your opinion but the fact of the matter is that sea of thieves shouldn't require additional outside systems to function correctly and efficiently.

  • One Eyed Curly
    Master

    For me what is more important than finding a decent crew, is finding decent opponents, so anything to help with that is certainly appreciated. The player base is obviously a concern especially in less populated regions, whether a system along these lines would help to grow that(due to better player experience) or just divide it into unsustainably small segments, I'm not sure.

  • Xultanis Dragon
    Sailor

    @firetail8433

    Ranked match making is a horrible idea and is not all that great.

    In the higher ranks it takes forever to get matches and you are always playing against the same exact players. If the players that you play against aren't online, then you aren't getting a match. Its bad.

    In the lower ranks you have to deal with smurfs or angry trolls. I mean you have to deal with trolls in every portion but more so in the lower ranks.

    In the middle area you have to deal with horribly imbalanced matches that have groups where 1 person is super high in MMR and another person is super low. So now the game has to find an even match up which never works. Its never the same composition.

    You put 1 pro, with 2 average mediocre, and 1 brand new player - the game will match them up against 4 above average mediocre players.

    The issue is the 1 pro is almost always good enough to destroy over half of the other team and the 2 mediocre players act as good support. So you have the pro just rolling through the other team and he can't be stopped because hes just too freaking good.

    You are thinking that you are going to match up with players that are exactly or close your level. That is never how match making works for team based games.

    The only time MMR matchmaking works for any thing is when the game is 1v1. Even 2v2 is somewhat doable because of frequent close ranks of the 2 players when they join.

    Except when you get to 3 or 4 or even 5 players per team then the MMR matchmaking system is a joke.

    Also, its a good way for rookie or low level players to face against good players. Seeing different tactics and different ways to play the game.

    Sorry, I just completely and utterly disagree with this.

  • Greengrimz
    Marauder

    @firetail8433

    ...Some out there don't want to make a discord just to find people...

    You don't need to. The official SoT Discord is already there for you to freely use. It's stacked with loads of people, and has game-ready channels (capped per team). You really need about 10 mins and you will have a team of like-minded pirates. And not only for PvP too, you can search for all kind of folk for all kinds of things over there.

    ...the game shouldn't rely on any outside interference...

    The game does not rely on outside interference in any way, shape or form (with the exception of that pesky invite system). The fact that outside interference can be useful, specifically in your situation, is a whole other topic.

  • Awyrlas
    Ship Mate
    Insider

    @greengrimz

    I don't understand this 'pull up your bootstraps,' 'ride it rough or not at all' sort of attitude. Skill based matchmaking is a feature of pretty much every semi competitive to competitive game on the market for a reason. It's quicker than grouping up with like minded folks through discord or the microsoft LFG and it makes certain that players of similar skill levels are matched with each other for a fair fight.

    There doesn't even have to be a ranked mode, just some assurance that they're trying to track my skill and pair me with similar competitors. Playing with maiden voyagers on your crew and on opposing crews isn't fun, neither is it fun being that maiden voyager joining a lobby of legends and day one players.

    Open Crew is also a legitimate feature of the game, it's absolutely the responsibility of the Devs to ensure that the given feature is actually enjoyable to use and failing that is a failure of the team, not the player for not wanting to find outside solutions for an in client problem.

  • Greengrimz
    Marauder

    @awyrlas

    Matchmaking often groups people with big skill difference. Some get carried, others just have a bad streak. The moment it is implemented the whine will simply shift, from "why am I matched with Maiden Voyagers" to "why am I matched with people who are obviously weaker than me" . Result? Nada...

    I play enough games with MMR and I suppose you do too. Skill based matchmaking will not solve the problem. Only finding people with whom you continue to play regularly and grow stronger together will.

  • Awyrlas
    Ship Mate
    Insider

    @greengrimz

    Having consistent crewmates doesnt completely solve the problem that the poor matchmaking in Arena poses.

    There are still 4 other ship that range from premades, to matchmaking disasters.

    The quality of a round isn't founded entirely in whether you win or lose a game, but the quality of that win and the people you play against.

    Dumpstering lobbies because a ship is loaded with maiden voyagers, crews at half capacity, or both and being dumpstered yourself because of such things isn't fun. It's just sad.

    It's in every lobby too, the mode is littered with half full lobbies just waiting for the paint to dry. Break these players apart, reinstance them, we need not be tied to our Arena crews. Let us decide if we want to rematch or stick with particular players. My fury on the subject of matchmaking in Arena runs hot and deep.

    When 7/10 lobbies are like this or become this, it's honestly no wonder why players moved on and left Arena so deserted.

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