Apex Legends developer Respawn Entertainment addresses the issue of short queue times
Apex Legends developer Respawn Entertainment addresses the issue of short queue times in a blog post, admitting that the MMORPG's matchmaking system is failing at high skill levels while negatively impacting lower-skilled players. The focus on quick matches over fair matchups, Respawn says, means top-tier players in Apex Legends are suffering from long wait times while lower-ranked competitors are enjoying shorter wait times.
"We've heard your concerns regarding the current state of ranked matchmaking and the impact it has on the highest-skilled players," Respawn says. The studio says its data shows average wait times for ranked matches are consistently short across all skill brackets, implying that the matchmaking system is prioritising quick and easy games over fair matches.
Graphs provided by Respawn illustrate the problem of skill variance at higher divisions. Apex Legends players at the highest divisions can experience wait times of over an hour, while the lower divisions experience much shorter wait times. Respawn says this is because "there is a lot of skill variance at the top of the ladder," and that the matchmaking system is prioritising matches with players of similar skill levels.
Other games like Valorant and CS:GO have longer wait times for high-skill players, suggesting that Respawn's solution of prioritising quick matches over fair matchups works in other battle royales. There's a simple solution that Apex Legends can borrow from these games, however, and that's to allow players to choose what they want: a quick match or a fair one.
In the meantime, Respawn admits that short queue times in the new Ranked mode are actually the result of a bug, and not a balancing decision. "We recently discovered that this was a bug and the queue times should be longer than they currently are," Respawn says. "Rest assured, we have been working on a fix for this and our plan is to deploy it as soon as possible."
The new Ranked mode in Apex Legends faced criticism for rewarding survival over eliminations, with the mode's Ladder Points penalising players for dying too much. Respawn acknowledges the issue and says it plans to make adjustments to Ladder Points in Season 18.
The studio says the current state of Ranked is partly the result of an excess of Masters players. "We've seen a lot of comments from the community regarding the overpopulation of Masters players," Respawn says. "We believe a lot of this is being caused by bugs and generous LP tuning." It says it will be making changes to address the overpopulation of Masters players.
Moving forward, Respawn says climbing the ranks in Season 18 will come with more risks and losses. It also says future changes to the Ranked mode will include adjustments to circle damage to discourage passive play. The studio also says the ultimate goal of survival in battle royale games contributes to the passive play seen in Apex Legends Ranked.
"We know that this is a large reason why players are playing more passively and are upset by the change to Ranked," Respawn says. "Our plans for the future of Ranked are very much tied to addressing these issues."
PC Gamer's guide to the new Apex Legends ranked mode explains how the mode works, and the risks and rewards associated with Ladder Points. You can also get a look at the best Apex Legends characters, if you're looking to climb your way up the ranks in style.
