How does the server decide skill by matchmaking?

I don't think it's publicly known how Trueskill works exactly, but most likely it's some combination of your kills, deaths, assists, and is probably weighted by the skill of the opposing team (a close win against evenly-matched teams will boost your trueskill more than a lopsided win against noobs).

The reason you aren't able to steamroll little kids anymore is because the system actually has enough data to be effective now, and is actually matching you up with similar players.

 

I'd argue that a spread of +5 to -1 (average of about +3) is pretty solid for an evenly-matched competitive game.

It's also possible that your streak of early wins has boosted your trueskill a touch higher than it really should be, and you're being matched with players slightly above your skill level. Somehow I doubt that they're all pros, though.

 

quite honestly I'm surprised to see that there is any rumor that skill & rank play into matchmaking at all, because every match (save for a few) seem to be about 50% noobs, 40% average, and 10% pros.

Everyone runs out in the open and doesn't move when they start being shot. people rarely show any intelligence whatsoever.

And match after match, even though I am always positive w/ KDR, and usually in the top 2 or 3 in a big team match, I am still matched with the same type of player over and over again.

Can anyone prove there is actually a scheme at work here at all? Just curious if it's a rumor or fact.

EDIT: to add... because Halo has been "COD'd" so much and experience points are the only thing that level you up, I don't think the spartan rank has anything to do with skill anyway... just how many matches you've played in total. When finishing a match awards you more points than winning a match or performing above and beyond the.... COD, then the emphasis appears to be on keeping games mixed with lots of different types of players, rather than using rank or skill to match people... I miss Halo 2 & 3's ranking system, personally.

 

interesting, but so far I have seen nothing that would lead me to come to the same conclusion. i'm not trying to brag, but seriously my KDR just seems to be going up rather than down from being matched with better people...

I think this true skill rank should be displayed so we can see how we progress.

I think they are following the COD model too much, though some of it is nice... in COD there is no consideration of who you should be playing with at all, in favor of instantly joining a match in progress or a pending match.

 

I know what people say about hitting a threshold of skill. The first week or two I was constantly matched against very unskilled people, and I knew I was too. People would run out into the middle of the map on Ragnarok, or run into the centre of Haven, or just continue walking when getting shot and make no attempt of fighting back whatsoever.

In this time, my KD shot up to a solid 2.5 and I was like, "Eh?" because in previous Halo games I'd never gone above 1.6. I was wondering if I was now a pro.

Then I hit the threshold and was losing almost every 1v1 fight (lol). However, I quickly learned and just stuck with my team. Now, my play style has changed since the first two weeks. I now shoot people from afar with my BR and always stick with my team - the risk of people spawning behind you is too great in Halo 4.

At the moment, my KD is hovering around 2.0, but that's due to playing extremely carefully and never putting myself in a CQC situation. Boltshot's OP.

 

I guess I haven't hit it yet. I'm a complete newb at halo and had a ratio of about 1 at the beginning, and now I regurlarly finish matches with ratios of 3 or 4 (my kill count is usually average, but I have few deaths) in another hand, I don't think I ever hit the 1st place, even though I often have the best ratio, so that might prevent me from being put in an upper league maybe?

 

I probably don't play enough matches in a period of time to hit that threshold. I spend probably 90% of my time in Halo 4 in forge... so

 

I mostly play team matches and use the most logic tactic, trying to die less than I kill. otherwise that means you award more points to the enemy team that to your own. of course it can be hard to make more kills than those guys who rush mindlessly and end the game with 25 kills, but 25 deaths as well.
most players seem to be rather stupid, which makes it easy to kill them even with average skills.

 

Perhaps I can shed some light on the situation with a diagram.



This is a graph of your Trueskill rating over time. It started at zero at the game's release, and quickly climbs as you win lots of easy games. Eventually your skill rating gets so high that you're matched with far better players, at which point you lose and your rating drops back down. Over time it bounces up and down like a spring, slowly getting closer to its steady-state value, which is your actual skill level. Once you hit that point, you're playing evenly-matched players most of the time and your Trueskill rating will fairly accurately track your actual skill level.

Now, it's important to note that the time it takes to reach a steady-state value can be rather large, in the range of hundreds and hundreds of games. I'm an SR-58 and I've only completed 220 games, so it's likely that neither my Trueskill or yours has really stabilized yet.

 

thanks for the explanation. if that's true though, I think they have it set to take too long to reach that steady state.

 

They don't choose how long it takes... You do.

When you start the game knows nothing about you starting from there, If your winning to much they put you with better players if your losing to much they put you with worse players If your doing average they keep you around that level.

Then the graph just shows the natural progression of things.

There is one major contributing factor missing though imo, You could have the most perfect matchmaking system ever but if there is only a choice of 2 other people to play with say a first time halo player or MLG pro then it doesn't really matter. (Specially since true skill takes time to hit a steady state and Halo 4 is losing players pretty fast)

 

I guess there was a glitch on the 14th november.

and winning means being in the winning team, or scoring the most kills?
I wonder if deaths are taken into account since you lose no points for them?