
In XDefiant, matchmaking is handled a little differently than other FPS titles. I’ll dive into the casual matchmaking process, hopefully giving people a better understanding before launch.

Determining Player Input Types
XDefiant’s matchmaking system begins by identifying the input type of each player. This input type can either be Controller or KBM (to my knowledge). Additionally, the system takes into account cross-play preferences, allowing players to choose whether they want to play with or against users on different platforms. Input-based matchmaking aims to create a level playing field and provide fair competition among players using similar input methods.
Prioritizing Ping and Local Player Search
To ensure a smooth and enjoyable experience, XDefiant’s matchmaking system places a strong emphasis on ping, which represents the latency or delay between a player’s console and the game server. By prioritizing low-ping matches, the system seeks to minimize lag and maintain optimal gameplay.
Additionally, XDefiant’s matchmaking system tries to prioritize connecting players with others in their local region. By searching for local opponents, it reduces the chance of encountering significant latency issues due to long-distance connections.
Balanced Team Composition with Soft Elo Check
Once player input types and local preferences are considered, XDefiant’s matchmaking system proceeds to organize matches by utilizing a soft ELO check. ELO is a rating system commonly used in competitive games to evaluate player skill levels, but is still used in 99% of PvP games. The soft Elo check aims to create balanced teams by considering the players’ ELO ratings and forming teams that are as equal as possible.
However, it is important to note that the soft ELO check may be bypassed in certain scenarios, such as stack versus stack matches. When organized groups of players, aka stacks, face each other, the matchmaking system obviously prioritizes keeping the teams intact rather than focusing on balancing skill levels. This allows players who are playing together as a coordinated team to face other similarly organized teams.
While this blog post provides a simplistic overview of XDefiant’s casual matchmaking, I’m sure there are people that have more experience in the field / can further explain the system more in depth in the future.
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