The New Ranked MMR System Explained
Whether you are new to League of Legends or are an experienced player, MMR can be a challenging system to comprehend. That’s why one of Valorant’s developers, Riot EvrMoar, posted a Twitter thread containing critical information surrounding MMR and how it affects gameplay for Season 13 and beyond.
Continue reading to get a breakdown of what he said and how it can enhance your LoL gaming experience.
What Is MMR?
MMR stands for Matchmaking Ranking - a tool that determines who players compete against for a fair yet competitive game. It is a point system that matches players to others with a similar value.
In his Twitter thread, EvrMoar explains that League of Legends uses MMR as opposed to visible rank only.
Matchmaking Ranking is separate from overall ranking. As such, you can compete against players of a different level. However, the value of a player’s MMR uses a combination of gaming data, including visual rank.
Is MMR Similar to LP?
LP, or League Points, demonstrate the outcomes of matches and helps establish your ranking based on overall win percentage. The more you win, the more points you gain. Accordingly, the opposite is true when you lose.
As opposed to LP, MMR is not a score visible to all players. It is an invisible point value to help game makers pair competitors with people of a similar skill level. Your MMR value gets determined with some help from your LP, but the two are not the same. Matchmaking Ranking also considers your win streak or lose streak regardless of the total wins or losses you have accumulated. As a result, you can compete against someone of a different level.
Additionally, MMR influences your total LP. After a match, you gain or lose a certain number of points depending on the outcome. The total number of those gains or losses partially depends on your MMR. The better ranking you have, the higher those numbers may be.
Since your MMR is unknown, you may be able to get an idea of your ranking by observing the changes in your LP after a match.
Why Switch to MMR for Season 13?
Past seasons used only visible ranking to determine the matchups for competitions. MMR considers the number of games played to help make a fair competition.
In the past, players who joined the season halfway through but still performed well had a lower LP and got matched up with players of a similar LP. This meant that players with more wins in fewer games could get paired with players with fewer wins after more games were played. Resultingly, the pairings were not always fair.
EvrMoar used the Twitter thread to also explain that past seasons had longer wait times for matchups. Using a simpler ranking method with MMR helps shorten those times. It also puts players who do not start the season immediately to have a fair advantage.
What Else Affects Your MMR?
It is important to note that each gaming mode has its own MMR. That means that the game could pair someone who plays a lot of solo queue with a player who plays only normal games. Therefore, if you get matched with someone on a completely different level than yours, it could mean they mostly play in a different mode.
If you want to play in duos, MMR still takes effect. While the duo gaming mode is only available to players from mid to low rankings, the game calculates MMR by averaging the rankings of the two players competing. If you’re a low-level player who compete alongside a higher-ranked player, this could be to your advantage, as a win can bring you more LP.
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