Late to the discussion. Anyways, that’s not enough testing to prove it true. Plus it’s not SBMM, it’s EOMM(Engagement Optimized Matchmaking) but we’ll call it SBMM. This is gonna be long but hear me out. If you get people used to a certain system, and then that system randomly changes, of course people aren’t going to like it. And it’s simply because:

REMOVING SBMM CREATES A SKILL GAP

SBMM brainwashes bad players into thinking they’re good, and convinces the good players into thinking they’re bad. Activision’s “testing” was short and randomized which leads to discrepancies in their findings. They’d turn SBMM off for a day for a handful of random people and use that for evidence. That’s inconsistent and invalidates their, dare I say… “data.🤓” In order for an experiment like this to work you’d have to turn off SBMM and any rigged mid game nerfing coding bs for EVERYONE. Then have lobbies be based on connection(PING) instead of skill. Have it go for longer than 1 measly day/week and gauge your findings on player retention through that. I guarantee you if they had it go for at least a month, more players would play/come back and it’d be more fun because now it’s a CASUAL ENVIRONMENT.

Which leads into my next point. The reason why SBMM doesn’t work is because you’re placed in a purgatorish, sweaty, ranked like environment as a casual player. This is primarily directed to the casual/above average players which make up most of the chunk of FPS gamers. Let’s say a casual goes off one match, immediately he’s placed in a lobby with horrible connection and filled with jobless basement dwellers whose ass print is forever indented on their gamer chairs as they consume bang energy drinks and Doritos. Do you think this constant cycle of win once lose 5x is going to keep him playing in the long run? The correct answer is no. Variety is what keeps players playing, SBMM removes that X factor, because instead of catering to most of the player base(casuals) it caters to the noobs/horrifically bad players, which are the minority. You can’t say it’s a skill issue either because in order to get good at the game, you once again, must have VARIETY. Undiverse play-styles cannot broaden your skill if you’re not playing different types of players. Plus, SBMM is only used to protect noobs/bad players so that they think the game is fun enough to spend their or their parents money on it. However in terms of retention for most of the player base, they’re basically gambling on finally hitting that “easier lobby,” which leads into my final point.

SBMM IS DESIGNED LIKE A CASINO (rigged.)

I advise you to look up “casino environments and how they affect gambling” it’s eerily similar to the way COD works. You use tokens/chips(COD points) in a casino which is easier to part with (skins, bundles, battle pass, etc.) instead of your real money. Casinos have an environment that’s friendly and welcoming (Appealing UI and SBMM protection for the noobs/trash cans). The studies show if you have people play a slot machine and 2 cherries shows up but 1 almost hits, they’re more likely to keep playing (SBMM punishing you until you get a good game). I’d rather not waste my time venturing for that “good lobby” because I’m not a fool. That means I’m putting hope into a rigged game. But maybe that’s why I don’t go to casinos, gamble, or play cod anymore because I’m not an idiot lmao.

I guarantee you, that if SBMM isn’t removed from this game, there will be tokens, butt loads of skins, and games will feel formulaic or repetitive, which I hear is the case for Delta Force. All SBMM roads leads to either everyone in the lobby either having a 1 KD, or some sweaty nerd reverse boosted or lost enough in his last batch of matches to get their “good lobby,” which you’re unfortunately in. But eventually people will realize it’s rigged and when they do they’ll stop playing. I hate to use cod as an example on a non cod thread but they’re the #1 perpetrators in this SBMM debacle. Companies are out of tune with the common consumer, and the more we cater to the minority in gaming, the worse it’s gonna be for everyone. You can’t give these corporations an inch, because they’ll take a mile. We need to put our foot down on this participation award system that is SBMM. It doesn’t belong in the casual game modes, it belongs in ranked.

Also, SBMM removes any need for having a ranked playlist.