Fortnite players' testimonies attest to how broken skill-based matchmaking is

Nothing infuriates Fortnite players more than placing second while chasing the Victory Royale. While players do lose the endgame due to lack of finesse, this is not a true testament to their skill-set, and at times there's a deeper reason why they get ousted. Enter skill-based matchmaking (SBMM).

Fortnite's latest update to SBMM has been marred by the erratic mechanism of matchmaking that is driving players crazy. The community has been upset about the upgrade for some time now. Players frequently complain about unjust matchmaking and lop-sided lobbies riddled with bots.

The Fortnite community prides itself on being very vocal. Players don't just sit about and take whatever the developers serve them. Instead, they partake in lively debates and curate suggestions that hold the potential to improve gameplay. One such player recently took to Reddit to share their outburst against the flawed SBMM.

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Players feel Fortnite's new SBMM is flawed

User u/SirArt1fice started a thread on the official Fortnite subreddit, and it was soon populated by players with similar problems. In the post, the user enumerated how they were matched up with seasoned players despite their low overall statistics and the way a player's Battle Pass ranking affects matchmaking.

The community was quick to respond and had a plethora of players rush the comment board. The majority of the comments were against the new and updated SBMM and how it was ruining the overall gaming experience. Over the last few months, the developers have been facing backlash from the players.

Some insightful comments elucidate the flawed matchmaking process and shed light on the mechanics of the algorithm used by the game to pool players. However, the improved ability of the game to filter out cheaters and bots does stand out, and some players have acknowledged it.

What percolated from the discussion was that the new SBMM is massively flawed, and rather than using the overall stats of the players, it just matches players with a similar level of the Battle Pass. How the player has been performing during the matches hardly makes the cut.

It is evident from this thread that players are plagued by this rather unjust new approach to matchmaking. They are looking for new ways to circumnavigate the flawed system and enjoy the game the way they did before the updates rolled out. Players also mentioned the Cronus Zen problem, and how it adds to casual players' misery.

Players have discovered a rather shrewd approach to counter SBMM. They use additional accounts with lower rankings to match up with players of the same Battle Pass level, thus entering a balanced matchmaking and conserving the desired gameplay.

It is apparent that players are disappointed in the new skill-based matchmaking. While the intentions of the developers are always in favor of the players, this time around, they seem to have missed it. Players are furious and have deemed Fortnite Chapter 3 Season 3 as the worst one till date, all because of its flawed match-making.

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Note: Opinions expressed in the article are those of the writer.