Many think that the WoT PC MM is better then ours, especially the latest installment. I would like to point out that this is not the actual case.

Introduction.

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How the new MMer works?

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The new algorithm balances the “perfect” match against the speed of matching. First, it tries to create what it considers a perfect ±2 match using the 3/5/7 template or one of its variations. The variation you get depends directly on the queue composition. Whichever template you end up with,

it’ll always have:

No more than three tanks at the top of the list

No more than five in the middle

More vehicles in the middle than at the top

More vehicles at the bottom than in the middle

If the search for the “perfect” match will leave you queuing too long (for example, if there are too many vehicles of a certain tier queueing at the moment), the matchmaker loosens the restrictions a bit to make sure you get into a match quicker. In this case, you can get a two-level or a single-level battle. Those are rare instances, though. The vast majority of battles will have the ±2 tier spread.

Relevant Image:



Also with update 9.20.1, along with balancing teams by vehicle classes (artillery, light tanks, and tank destroyers) and Platoons, the matchmaker now looks into the intended roles each tank plays in combat and ensures each side has a similar number of vehicles that play the same role. Of course, their exact number might differ, but this difference is one vehicle at the most.

Actual Implementation. Myth VS Reality.

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In theory 3-5-7 MMer looks like a great! idea. What happens though in reality?

7 bottom tier tanks is 46.6% of the team. This means that players will likely spend that much time being bottom tier, which, while admittedly less frustrating with the increase in mid tier tanks, is not good for player satisfaction.

Fewer same tier targets for top tier tanks means less XP per game. This is more of a mechanics issue than a balance one but it does need to be addressed.



Let's look to the game's history for some guidance. In 2012, matchmaking was +/-3 tiers, with scouts seeing up to +4 (+5 in the case of the Chaffee). The best games from before the matching adjustment usually had a 3-4-4-3 spread or something similar. Note that this is roughly even, but skewed towards mid tier tanks. Similarly I spent more time being mid tier in a game than top or bottom.



A more experienced player would see that being mid tier is the ideal place for player experience. You can get the extra XP from shooting at higher tiered tanks without having to worry about absolutely everything on the battlefield being capable of killing you easily. Furthermore, it is common for a tank to be competitive at their own tier and capable of fighting tanks 1 tier higher, but struggle against tanks 2 tiers higher. 4-8-3 should be used instead of the 3-5-7 system.

Let's look to the game's history for some guidance. In 2012, matchmaking was +/-3 tiers, with scouts seeing up to +4 (+5 in the case of the Chaffee). The best games from before the matching adjustment usually had a 3-4-4-3 spread or something similar. Note that this is roughly even, but skewed towards mid tier tanks. Similarly I spent more time being mid tier in a game than top or bottom. A more experienced player would see that being mid tier is the ideal place for player experience. You can get the extra XP from shooting at higher tiered tanks without having to worry about absolutely everything on the battlefield being capable of killing you easily. Furthermore, it is common for a tank to be competitive at their own tier and capable of fighting tanks 1 tier higher, but struggle against tanks 2 tiers higher. 4-8-3 should be used instead of the 3-5-7 system. MMer formula assumes (wrongly) even distribution of players across tiers. MM of 3-5-7 gives you 3/15 = 1/5 chance of being top tier; 4/5 chance of not being top tier. Similarly, with 5-10 MM you have 1/3 chance of being top, 2/3 of being bottom. Single-tier games are rather rare.

And that, in order, means there's much more demand for players to fill the bottom slots in the (preferred) 3-5-7 meaning you'll be getting top tier much more rarely than in case the distribution was even.

BTW, as for platoons, expect being top tier being even more rarely; they get extra penalty to MM.

So tier III sees only tier IV since the latest changes. Tier V sees more often tier VII matches and rarely top tier matches.

Tier VIII sees 90% of the time, tier X matches. (Check the PC forums for all the complaining about this).

Additionally, a fairly recent change is that tier 5s can no longer see tier 3s, so that means that you can never be the 3 in a 3/5/7 match when playing tier 5. That means you're even less likely to get top tier in your 5. It sucks, 5 used to be one of the best tiers for new players, but hey, at least it's not tier 8 (tier 10s you have no chance of penning, often even from the side, in most games).

Best tier to play now on WoT PC is tier VII mainly because a tier VII has better chances against a tier IX than a tier VIII VS a tier X and even better is to play any tanks with PMM.

Summary.

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PC Matchmaker puts you in more bottom tier matches than the one we have now. PC matchmaker does not allow for 5 men platoons. This is fine if you only play tier X but a nightmare for people grinding lines and new players after tier III.

FINALLY please note that WoT PC does not have 5 men platoons that completely break the MMer. I wish WG Console would return to the 3 men platoon and put a 2 arty per match limit.

References:

PS.

I remember a "crisis" in 2015 or so, when Tier 8 tanks would wait around 20 minutes (!) for a game, in the matchmaker queue, as WG adamantly refused to create Tier 8 only matches (claiming "it would be too nice for them"!), and desperately sought solutions to accommodate the abundance of tier 8 players somehow, while not letting them have it "too nice".

PS2.