Why did the MMR system implemented in Season 42 backfire, leading to a serious problem of players giving up?

Day after day, the game has been running for ten years, and finally, the day of reform has arrived. The highlight of Season 42 is not about new skin collaborations or new welfare systems. Everyone seems to be getting immune to these routine events. It's just about daily active users. Anyway, it's the first season of the year. After the skin rain was stopped, the S42 version coincides with the Spring Festival. There are limited-edition Year of the Horse products, 6-yuan flash sales, updates to the King's Shop, Lingbao Market, etc. Who are the members? What are the design concepts? The number of heroes is all a mystery. The news is airtight, and basically no one knows what will happen next. In addition, New Year's Eve falls on the 16th, and the 14th is Valentine's Day. It's a rare phenomenon. I wonder how the planners will promote it.

The Honor Shop has been updated, and this time Lu Bu, a popular warrior, has been added. Unfortunately, the design style is too mysterious, resembling a continuation of the Hundred Dreams skin. The exchange volume is unexpectedly low, and a series of minor disappointments have led everyone to readjust their mindset and continue participating in ranked matches. This is also one of the biggest highlights of this season's update: the matchmaking algorithm is now transparent. For newcomers, there's not much to analyze; they can just play as usual. However, for veteran players, it's a historic moment because it incorporates the MMR matchmaking mechanism, increasing the weight of rank. This is the topic we will discuss in this article.

The ELO mechanism is frequently complained about.

The MMR mechanism may be familiar to some, but its true meaning may be less. Honor of Kings is best known for its ELO mechanism, a common mechanic in MOBA games, which has led to numerous farcical situations and forced the development team to issue a live apology. This illustrates the immense pressure exerted by the public.

To put it bluntly, this matchmaking mechanism records everyone's hidden MMR. Logically, competitive games should be about strong players facing strong opponents and weak players facing weak opponents. However, when it comes to game operation, the user experience affects activity levels, player numbers, and game popularity. To some extent, it's not just a game, but a product, or even a brand. In order to retain players, the developers must do something to ensure the combat experience for most people.

Therefore, the higher a player's win rate, the lower the win rate of their teammates. Before the match starts, the system adjusts the win rates of both sides to 50%. Players with higher win rates are considered stronger, while those with lower win rates are considered weaker. This means that there is no fairness within a team because the skill levels are unequal.

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