Matchmaking Is Inevitable

July 20, 2020

I know that BSG has stated there won't be any matchmaking. I know the standard arguments, but without matchmaking, this game will die. There isn't enough hardcore players to fuel development.

It's Sunday night and I'm a solo player. Tonight I've run into several 3 - 4 man squads. Killing 1 or 2 members of these squads is sometimes possible, but its virtually impossible to win a fight against that much firepower. Anyone who says otherwise is just not being realistic. 4 man squads, in a game like EFT with severe penalties for dying, should not be matched up against solo players.

The arguments against this are going to be:

Get good, learn to avoid 4 man squads - This argument is kind of ridiculous. Are solo players supposed to just roam around in bushes at the edge of the map? Are we supposed to sit in a bush for the first 30 minutes then run around picking up the trash before the round ends? That's not a good experience.

Make friends, Tarkov isn't mean to be a solo game - I'm a 35 year old married Software Engineer with a mortgage, a Wife, 2 kids and a dad with Stage 4 bone cancer. I like playing Tarkov, but managing a social circle just to get on and play when I have the time isn't feasible.

The final argument is what I started previously: Tarkov was never designed to be a casual game, its for hardcore players that don't have jobs that can play all day. Unfortunately, this is a very small number of people. Maybe right now with Covid it seems like you can tap into this population of people, but its a pipe dream. For Tarkov to be succesful it can tap into both of these groups. Simply by making rounds composed of 1 or 2 man squads or 3+ will allow hardcore players to continue to compete against less geared players so they can feel powerful and actually give squads of 3+ players a challenge by matching them up against other 3+ man squads.

This isn't some type of ridiculous request in my opinion. It won't fundamentally change any game mechanics. With all the recent changes pushing casual gamers out of Tarkov, a change like this would be a nice way to encourage some of them to stick around. It would help Tarkov be inclusive and give casual players the opportunity to compete. Is that really so bad?

Feel free to discuss.

Edited July 20, 2020 by Bjason1

3.5k · July 20, 2020

I would advise you to use the search function, but you already knew prior threads existed.

Creating new topics on the same subject matter instead of re-using old threads is not just going to clutter up the forums with the same old regurgitated discussions, it is against the forum rules.

As you already mentioned, BSG has a stance on the subject of matchmaking, and to this day it is that there will be none. Should you wish to further discuss this, use one of the old threads.

Do not create new threads on the subject again.

#Thread locked, answered.