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A Reddit user may have some information about an Activision patent that explains SBMM in Black Ops Cold War or Call of Duty in general.
It should be noted that regardless of what the patent is, there is no confirmation that Black Ops Cold War uses the system itself. However, a link to the patent was provided by the user on Reddit, and it could explain a lot.
SBMM "coaching" in Black Ops Cold War
According to the post, the patent in question was filed by Activision in early 2019. This means that the system could technically be in place within Modern Warfare if the system was implemented into Black Ops Cold War. It would coincide with the increase to SBMM that many players have noticed in the last two entries of the Call of Duty franchise.
The system used in the patent studies everything about a player, and it differentiates their dislikes and likes when it comes to playing style. It's well-known that developers have all kinds of data that players don't have access to, and this patent would simply have access to those data points and patterns.
What the system does is try to coach players into playing well against their dislikes. The system does that by using the data collected through every match, and it pairs players with enemies that utilize their dislikes. For example, if players have a hard time going up against shotguns, they would theoretically be placed against more players with shotguns.
Improvement or coaching of players is technically the goal of the system. The Reddit post uses the patent as a possible answer to why SBMM feels so sweaty. Rather than being placed against similar skill levels, players may feel like every game is difficult because they are facing their weaknesses.
Apparently, utilizing different play styles and confusing the data would be the only way to beat the system. However, the method also wouldn't be guaranteed.
As compelling as the patent is, that doesn't mean that Activision ever implemented the system into their games over SBMM. It's also hard to see a scenario where there isn't a tandem system that supports both the coaching and the SBMM.
It would be great to have confirmation on how exactly the SBMM in Black Ops Cold War works but until then, theories will keep circulating.
