Last week Bungie confirmed the skill-based matchmaking feature in Destiny 2’s PvP was not working as intended. Players had begun noticing that Crucible was “more fun” in recent days and it turns out now we know the reason.
But when Bungie revealed that Destiny 2 skill-based matchmaking was bugged, they never said if there were any plans to fix it. In fact, many players would rather Bungie keep things the way they are since matches are less “sweaty” than they have been in the past.
Why Skill-Based Matchmaking is Bad
On the one hand, keeping skill-based matchmaking off gives players the opportunity to enjoy Crucible with a little more freedom. Their opponents won't always be on the same skill level so it’s possible to experiment with different loadouts and still perform.
Additionally, more skilled Destiny 2 PvP players can group up with their less-skilled friends and everyone can enjoy the experience. With skill-based matchmaking, that less-skilled friend would have to face opponents that are out of their league. The general feeling among anti-SBMM players is that turning the feature off makes Crucible the way it should be.
On its face, this seems like the preferred solution for PvP, even if it is limited to the Quickplay playlist. Since competitive needs to match similar skill players it makes sense to have SBMM turned on for that playlist, but Quickplay should be more casual.
Why Skill-Based Matchmaking is Good
The counterpoint to leaving SBMM off is that it can negatively impact those less-skilled players that group with teammates of similar skill or run solo. Skill-based matchmaking was a way to protect those players from getting matched up against players with high skill, or getting "pub-stomped." No one likes to get hit by the Mercy rule match after match and SBMM can protect against that.
There is always another side to every coin. Where top Destiny 2 PvP players are now posting montages filled with high skill streaks, there are opponents on the other side that feel as if they have no chance against these opponents and shouldn't be matched up with them anyway. They are seeing the downside to skill-based matchmaking being bugged, and in turn, their experience is not as fun. They feel like the top tier players only want SBMM off because it boosts their ego.
Granted, without skill-based matchmaking, it’s also possible that these players will face off against similar opponents or even those with less skill, so it can’t be all massive defeats.
Ultimately, Bungie has a lot of discussing to do internally and hopefully, with its community. No question the discovery that skill-based matchmaking is off has boosted interest in Crucible and made it more enjoyable for many. But there are certainly those that hope to see the feature turned back on, so that they don’t have to worry about facing off against Destiny 2’s elite.
Destiny 2 is available now for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.