The Master Chief Collection Ranking System

[XO Jaime OX]

The ranking system in the Master Chief Collection will be identical to Halo 2's ranking system, as revealed at PAX Prime, and for those who do not know how it works, this is for you. I will give a simple explanation to how the ranking system works, and for those who want a more detailed explanation, you can visit the link at the bottom of the topic. That is also where I got my information.

When you complete a matchmade game your stats are recorded for the matchmaking playlist that you played in only. The end result is that each player has separate stats for each ranked matchmaking playlist. These stats are summarized in the form of a "level" for each playlist. If you've never played a game in that playlist you will have no level. New players start at level 1, the highest level is 50. Most players have levels closer to 10.


Levels
As you have probably already realized, are important for more than just bragging rights. Your level corresponds to your skill at games in a particular matchmaking playlist. Games against similarly skilled opponents and with similarly skilled teammates tend to be the most fun. Thus skill (level) is one of our matchmaking systems most important criteria when searching for games. In fact, the matchmaking system prefers games with opponents of the same or very nearly the same level, and if it must stretch these boundaries it will not match players beyond the preset limits. The only exception to this rule is when groups of players that exceed these limits enter matchmaking together as a party. When this happens the lower level player is treated as a player of minimum acceptable level for all matchmaking and experience calculations. For example, if a level 12 player forms a party with a level 1 friend, because the level 12 player can only match with levels 6 and higher, the player at level 1 will be considered level 6 when finding matches and calculating experience. This will put the less experienced player at a disadvantage.


Level Calculations
Alright, on to the pressing question: How are levels calculated? Halo 2's stats system is actually pretty simple. When you win a game in a ranked matchmaking playlist you earn experience points. When you lose a game in a ranked matchmaking playlist you lose experience points. Your total experience points determine your level. Simple. Your level is nothing more than an abstraction of your experience.


Special Considerations
You may be wondering what happens when you drop from a game before it's over. This situation is actually quite simple. The game doesn't forget about you. Instead you're ranked in the final standings along with everyone else. However, when calculating the final standings all teams that had at least one player finish the game are ranked above all teams that dropped, regardless of score. Only then are teams sorted by final score, but within these two divisions, never crossing the line between finishers and droppers. So if your team drops you can still beat other teams that dropped, but you'll always finish below teams that stuck it out until the end. Similarly, if you as a player drop but your team goes on to secure a glorious victory you'll get just as much credit as your teammates that finished the game.

At odd times, someone will be higher level than you are yet have less experience than you have. This can happen because experience and level are not completely wedded. Instead, when you reach a new level for a matchmaking playlist we help you stay there, even when your experience points wouldn't otherwise justify it. Basically you'll stay at your current level, regardless of experience, until your experience drops below the midpoint experience required for the previous level. This helps avoid the frustration of hovering right at the boundary between two levels, constantly switching back and forth. It also gives you a little peace of mind when you reach a new level because you know you won't be slipping back down anytime soon unless you have a really bad losing streak.

Remember, if there is something you want to know more about, visit the link - http://halo.bungie.net/stats/content.aspx?link=h2statoverview - for a more detailed explanation.

[Rey Rodriguez]

so.... basically idiots who want to exploit the rankings... can just join... drop.. join drop.. join drop. constantly without ever really playing a full game and still have a chance to earn exp?
Chubbs

[Guts]

I do believe there is something about this posted already. If not, good to know that.

[XO Jaime OX]

There is information saying how the MCC will have Halo 2's ranking system on here, but before posting this topic, I looked to make sure I wasn't reposting anything and I did not find a topic where the system is actually explained. It was always just mentioned.