orobouros

Rank only helps so much. It's a decent indicator of probability of a win or loss, but says next to nothing about consistent play. Experience works to a degree, too, but really says more about how often you play, not how often you play well. The best solution I can think of is to expliticly punish chronic quitters. Not that this would solve all the problems, but it would sure motivate people to take the game seriously.

Computer systems used by retailers are now capable of figuring out somebody is pregnant before they know themselves, based on their purchase history. All the big internet companies make their money by data mining. And yet, matchmaking seems like an impossible task to get right. I've been playing online games since before consoles had modems (it's like wifi, but for your telephone). I've played some great games, and I've had some greater games. I've also had far more bad games. The greatest games are the ones where victory, or defeat, was not certain until the game actually finished. Bad games are the ones where the game is decided before it even starts. People quit, and with few exceptions 5-on-4 just isn't a fair game. People have no concept of even basic teamwork. Communication? Forget about it. Thing is, as often as this has made me lose a game, it's one me a game, too. But really, where's the challenge in that? I can't believe that ater all the games played, there isn't some way to match up players that doesn't result in a low probability of a challenge. There's all kinds of great detection for cheating. Why can't there be something that matches up players not just of comparable ability, but cooperation? I remember well that shortly before Halo: Reach came out, a bunch of us got online for a few last games of Halo 3 Multiplayer. We hadn't played in a long time. We were rusty, forgot parts of the map, couldn't remember where the spawn poins were... but it was fun. We had some great victories, since a bit of coordination will beat great aim any day. And even when we lost, it was because we were beaten by superior players, not because it was an unfair match. Is there no way to match up players that doesn't toss you into a game almost randomly? "Play with a team" is a fair enough response. If that's the way forward, then why isn't there in-game support for it? Ten years ago, Halo introduced a whole new kind of multiplayer to the gaming world. Halo has a legacy of innovation. 343, if any of you read this, think about it. The single most important aspect of any multiplayer game is providing a fair challenege. Do this right, and Halo will be one of the best franchizes for another ten years.