COD Vanguard SBMM: Does the game have skill-based matchmaking?

Since the mid-2010s, whenever a new Call of Duty title releases, one question is on fans’ minds: will the game have skill-based matchmaking? 

The controversial matchmaking system has plagued the franchise since it was made popular in Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare. Since then, many developers have come out and said the feature has actually been in the franchise since Black Ops 2, just on a more toned-down scale. 

With Vanguard, many fans are hoping that Activision decides to revert their decision regarding SBMM. While it’s been proven to help player retention on the lower talent levels, it’s been a detriment to players of higher skill. They’re constantly placed with players of their same skill and each public match feels like a sweat-fest of epic proportions. 

So, has Vanguard been confirmed to have SBMM? Keep reading below to find out. 

SBMM in COD Vanguard 

While nothing has been confirmed, inside sources have come out and stated that skill-based matchmaking will be featured in Vanguard. Activision is unlikely to ever change their mind on this decision, as it’s proven to help out a majority of the player base and keep them playing the game for its entire life cycle. 

Of course, this isn’t great news for the top 10% of the player base. They’ll continue to get matched up against top-tier players and have to try extra hard in every public match. 

• Read more: Best weapons in Vanguard beta: The strongest and most broken guns

For fans wondering how it will work in Vanguard, one insider, @TheMw2Ghost, has stated that it will be the same as it was in Black Ops Cold War. The insider tweeted that “Yes. It will be in the game and it’ll be the same as it is in Cold War.” 

Though this is disappointing for some, it seems to get worse for this crowd. According to the leaker, Engagement Based Matchmaking is also making a return. This is an unconfirmed aspect of SBMM that sees players thrown into lobbies with other players who have bought cosmetics in multiplayer. 

The supposed goal of this system is to entice players to buy cosmetics and bundles, as they can see how neat they are in their lobbies. Both systems are unconfirmed by Sledgehammer Games and Activision, but neither has ever come out and confirmed SBMM despite several content creators confirming its existence. 

So unless something drastic changes, players will have to deal with SBMM in Vanguard. All that’s left is to hope it’s not tuned up extremely high. 

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