Bungie is rolling out a new matchmaking assistance for Destiny 2’s Trials of Osiris mode. They are aiming to make this mode a bit more fair for people who are on the weaker side of competition. But some people are actually angry about it, just because they will be matching with people of similar skill.
Trials of Osiris is a high-risk, high-reward competitive mode that Bungie reintroduced to Destiny 2 last March. Players are competing in groups of three for loot and various rewards. If you are able to rack up seven subsequent wins (a.k.a. going “flawless”), you are also able to hang out at a very cool lighthouse.
Trials was on a hiatus during Summer, yet they are now back in a revamped state. First difference is the lowered entry barrier. Bungie wants this mode to be more accessible by people. Also from now on, Trials will feature a “flawless pool”. With these changes, if you manage to get a 7-0 record, you will be matching the players with same success. This will only last until the game’s weekly reset though.
Moreover, people on the weaker links will be getting some assistance in matchmaking if they are on a bad streak. Once they start winning again, this assistance will be disabled so it will not be possible to abuse it intentionally. Internal mechanics are not discussed by Bungie at this point. Last weekend, about 750,000 Destiny 2 players participated in Trials. Of those, roughly a third (237,000) came away with a victory.
Critics are still concerned about possibilities of tricking this new system though. A team may still win six games, lose the last one on purpose and stay in the standard pool so they can beat others more easily. Also some relatively average-skill players who somehow manage to get 7-0 would be locked in a matchmaking pool with a much higher skill level than theirs.
People are not always fond of skill-based matchmaking systems for obvious reasons. There are always going to be some skilled players who just want to stomp newbies for fun. But if you are on the receiving end, it is not really fun.
These changes are not mentioned to be permanent yet. Bungie will be watching the effects of this change and work for a better balancement in time.
