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How Activision Uses Matchmaking Tricks to Sell In-Game Items

tebunker

Banned
Glixel link

Read it all. On phone or would add one or two more, but for folks who are missing it, this is directly from the article.

This is a system they have developed and have been using. They only recently were granted the patent.


Activision was granted a patent this month for a system it uses to convince people in multiplayer games to purchase items for a game through microtransactions.
The "System and method for driving microtransactions in multiplayer video games" was filed in 2015, but granted on October 17th, according to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Deej on Twitter confirming Bungie does not use this tech. Which is important bc it acknowledges that it exists and is in use elsewhere.
 

Rellik

Member
"For instance, the microtransaction engine may match a more expert/marquee player with a junior player to encourage the junior player to make game-related purchases of items possessed/used by the marquee player. A junior player may wish to emulate the marquee player by obtaining weapons or other items used by the marquee player."

"In a particular example, the junior player may wish to become an expert sniper in a game (e.g., as determined from the player profile)," according to the patent. "The microtransaction engine may match the junior player with a player that is a highly skilled sniper in the game. In this manner, the junior player may be encouraged to make game-related purchases such as a rifle or other item used by the marquee player. "

Jesus.
 

dracula_x

Member
dKBonV9.png


+ http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-...&f=G&l=50&d=PALL&RefSrch=yes&Query=PN/9789406
 

commish

Jason Kidd murdered my dog in cold blood!
Activision is just so scummy. But they've made close to $4b in in-game transactions doing this, so I can't hate on their business sense.
 
So it never was Skill-Based matchmaking (SBMM) that replaced Connection-Based matchmaking (CBMM). It was Microtransation-Base matchmaking (MBMM) this whole time!

Seriously, though, don't tell me this doesn't fuck with queue times.
 

spectator

Member
"For instance, the microtransaction engine may match a more expert/marquee player with a junior player to encourage the junior player to make game-related purchases of items possessed/used by the marquee player. A junior player may wish to emulate the marquee player by obtaining weapons or other items used by the marquee player."

Wouldn't this just as well risk discouraging further purchases from the "marquee" player? "Gee, I can smoke all these scrubs... guess my dude is powerful enough..."
 

KingV

Member
Wow. That is incredibly exploitative. Interesting how it gives a shadow boost to micro transaction purchases.

Like, on one hand it gives you better damage (or whatever) but also it gives you a second advantage by giving you easier matches.
 

Com_Raven

Member
Is there any evidence that is is actually happening? It sounds horrible for sure, but companies files tons of patents they never use all the time.

Thread title makes it sound like this is happening already.
 

kliklik

Banned
If I were matched with a much better player who was using highly effective weapons bought through microtransactions, my reaction wouldn't be to also buy those weapons.

Instead, I'd quit playing the game for its piss-poor matchmaking.
 
I really wish I will not see the day when I have to warn people to stay away from video games because of their predatory business practices. Mobile games are already designed from ground up to milk you out of your money, and I'm afraid AAA games are heading down that path.
 
Here we go people.

THIS is a great example of why the loot box system can be/is exploitative. They can track data about you and everyone else and use that data to pressure you into buying without you even knowing about it.

This is way beyond what, say, a physical pack of trading cards can do because they have no info about the potential purchaser.
 

Marcel

Member
I had not even considered matchmaking as a way of boxing people into making MT purchases. Kudos to Activision I guess for being brilliant exploitative cunts but cunts nonetheless. You kind of have to laugh at how mustache-twirlingly predatory this is.
 

Wagram

Member
I was matched with people in TLOU:R MP where they had all the top tier items and perks. It encouraged me to turn off the game and never play that MP mode again.
 
I think this is a difficult thing to prove. Unless a developer comes out and says this is the algorithm we created for this very scheme, I have a tough time believing it.
 

Marcel

Member
Rename the "Gaming Discussion" side of GAF to "Microtransaction Outrage"

Western governments and regulation bodies as of now don't care about loot boxes and premium game items so all that's left is for these folks to vent on the internet.
 

a916

Member
I mean, on one hand they want to push people to this microtransactions but just not in an obvious manner.

I really don't care personally... because if I'm not having fun without spending money on transactions, to me that equates to the game not being fun... and not that I have to spend more money on it.
 

Hobbes211

Member
I'm generally in the camp of cosmetic microtransactions being inconsequential if they don't provide an upper hand, but this is an actual issue you can't walk away from if it's already being used in games. This has the potential to ruin the game play experience greatly by pairing people together who are worlds apart skill wise, all to sell players in game garbage.
 

Dunkley

Member
For instance, the microtransaction engine may match a more expert/marquee player with a junior player to encourage the junior player to make game-related purchases of items possessed/used by the marquee player. A junior player may wish to emulate the marquee player by obtaining weapons or other items used by the marquee player.

Interesting, so they want unsuspecting older players to entice newcomers into buying MTs by just having the older players show off the cool stuff they got, hoping it'll create a demand where there previously wasn't one by making the new player want that stuff and luckily to them, the company provides an "easy" way to get it as long as they got some extra cash to throw at the game.

It sounds completely evil, but at the same time I'd be lying if I said I wasn't impressed that they would think of this.
 
I was matched with people in TLOU:R MP where they had all the top tier items and perks. It encouraged me to turn off the game and never play that MP mode again.

A clever game designer does not match you with players that have higher level items than you, they match you with those players that are about same level BUT have bought some very shiny cosmetic micro-transactions.

Wait.. does this mean COSMETIC micro-transactions can become Pay-2-Win because you will get matched against more junior (and thus inexperienced) players more often? Or if it's "match WITH", as in same team, does this mean cosmetics can be Pay-2-Lose?
 

Damaniel

Banned
Wow. That is incredibly exploitative. Interesting how it gives a shadow boost to micro transaction purchases.

Like, on one hand it gives you better damage (or whatever) but also it gives you a second advantage by giving you easier matches.

But loot crates are perfectly fine and there's no microtransactions problem! That's what the industry mouthpieces told me, at least.

This is exploitative and should be strongly scrutinized by authorities if any games actually start using it (I can't read the article at work, but it *is* just a patent for now, right?)
 

Wedzi

Banned
Which activision game lets you buy weapons? :O

In Cod (or at least the last couple) each new DLC introduces new weapons for buyers but they can only be obtained through supply drops.

Essentially triple dipping. Buy the game, buy the season pass, buy (or earn) loot creates to get the items you already paid for in the season pass.

I've experienced instances in Black Ops 3 of playing against players who have these weapons (sometimes really powerful weapons) that I don't have access to because I'm not a season pass holder, even on base game maps. Which in turn, means I'll never buy another CoD game again till they change this.
 
D

Deleted member 47027

Unconfirmed Member
Not bad. Good innovation with how to push microtransactions forward and put them in front of people in an appealing light. Very smart.

Can't wait to see the next evolution. This is where the innovation is, follow the money. Fascinating to watch unfold.

Nothing evil at all about this, imho
 

zelas

Member
I dunno what to say still reading it. Originally saw it elsewhere and read a cliffs notes version so want to read full Glixel article.
You should have finished reading the article before naming the topic as such. The article doesnt explicitly say this is what Activision does. Merely that they filed a patent for the practice. Article mentions that they reached out and would like to hear back from Activision:
We've reached out to Activision to ask which games the now-patented system is being used in and will update this story with the company's reply.



THIS is a great example of why the loot box system can be/is exploitative. They can track data about you and everyone else and use that data to pressure you into buying without you even knowing about it.

No company needs permission to try to sell an adult a product. Also, they've always been using your data to make games more enticing for you to purchase. Explain why the practice is suddenly evil now that it can be applied to MTs?
 
That's fucked up. Probably that explains why I in MWR keep getting into matches were the other team is full of people at level 50. I thought they were in a clan or something.
 

Bizazedo

Member
If I were matched with a much better player who was using highly effective weapons bought through microtransactions, my reaction wouldn't be to also buy those weapons.

Instead, I'd quit playing the game for its piss-poor matchmaking.
It wouldn't necessarily put you against them though. It could make them your teammate.
 

EvB

Member
I think this is a difficult thing to prove. Unless a developer comes out and says this is the algorithm we created for this very scheme, I have a tough time believing it.

Which kind of makes it a pointless thing to patent if it can't be proved or isn't even visible to the outside world
 

Chris1

Member
Honestly I expected as much. The amount of data these companies have on people now is crazy, of course they're gonna use that to tempt you into spending money.
 

brad-t

Member
You should have finished reading the article before naming the topic as such. The article doesnt explicitly say this is what Activision does. Merely that they filed a patent for the practice.

Activision didn't merely file the patent, they were granted it, as it says in the very first line of the story.
 
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