343 Industries has confirmed a controversial multiplayer feature is present in Halo Infinite. The past couple of years, one of the biggest talking points in games like Fortnite, Call of Duty, Apex Legends, and more has been skill-based matchmaking, also known as SBMM. SBMM has been around for a long time, but in recent years it’s come under the microscope and been the target of criticism as it’s evolved and become more and more crucial to the experience of games it’s implemented in. And as you would expect, it’s in Halo Infinite.
For those that don’t know: Skill-based matchmaking is a matchmaking system that more often or not is implemented in two ways. The first and more prominent way is also the more controversial way, and that’s filling a lobby full of evenly skilled players. The second implementation is usually in team-based multiplayer, and it creates two balanced teams by averaging out skill across each respective team.
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For now, it remains to be seen how Halo Infinite will make use of SBMM and how aggressive 343 Industries will be with the toolset, but as you would expect, it’s divided fans.
“With new training options, bots to spar against, skill-based-matchmaking, and improved systems that deliver better communication of key info to players during a match, we’re excited to welcome Spartans of all skill levels and help you battle your way to the top each season,” said 343 Industries.
Currently, Halo Infinite is still scheduled to release this holiday season. Based on what I’ve heard, a final date hasn’t been determined yet, but the game should make this window. If this is the case, we should see and hear a lot more about the game soon, which means we should hear more about SBMM in the coming months.
Halo Infinite is slated to release this holiday season via the Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PC, and Xbox Game Pass. For more coverage on the upcoming sci-fi first-person shooter — including all of the latest news, all of the latest rumors, and all of the latest leaks — click here. Meanwhile, as always, feel free to leave a comment or two letting us know what you think or, alternatively, hit me up on Twitter @Tyler_Fischer_ and let me know over there. Is SBMM being in Halo Infinite bad news?
