In this article, Blizzard provides some clarifications and feedbacks on ranked play – one of the most talked about topics in HotS communities.
CURRENT STATUS
For different styles of play, there are several game play modes in Heroes of the Storm. Quick Match is comprised mainly of fast, casual games, while Hero League and Team League are mostly competitive ranked modes. Although Blizzard has made a lot of development, players would still like to know the future plans for Ranked Play, and how the system works over-all.
RANKING
First, it is good to know how a rank is presented and its meaning.
In a particular game mode, a rank is assigned to a player (or team) which is a visual representation of their skill. The current highest rank is 1, and the lowest is 50. With each rank accounting for roughly 20% of the population, and in comparison to the rest of the population, the approximate percentile rank you fit in is indicated by each number. For example, the top 2% of players in the game for their region is represented by rank 1. Only a handful of players can climb to the top rank. In order to climb the ranks and be able to beat better opponents, players will need to improve their skills.
However, a progression aspect is included in the current ranking system. The progression system is where players, starting initially at rank 50, climb through the ranks until they reach a plateau that precisely reflects their skill. If a player is still making progress, a player’s skill may not be truly reflected by his/her rank under the current system. This system has resulted to confusion around Ranked matchmaking modes. Blizzard doesn’t want progression and ranking up each season to come at the cost of an accurate ranking. Blizzard is planning to introduce a set of placement matches that players will need to complete before they receive an official rank, in order to improve the accuracy of a player’s rank. A player’s rank will not be assigned or displayed during this phase. The player will be seen by other players as being in his/her “Placement Phase” instead.
A rank that more accurately reflects a player’s skill will be assigned to him/her, once he/she has completed placement matches. Blizzard is still to determine the exact number of placement matches required before players are assigned a rank. A larger number of placement matches will be required for players exploring a ranked mode for the first time to complete. The system will have a much better understanding of each player’s skill with each new season. And before new ranks are assigned, fewer placement matches will be required. Players will carry on as they do today after placing into a rank. Opponents of similar skill level will compete against players and to climb the ranks, earn Rank Points.
RANK POINTS
Players will gain or lose an amount of Rank Points after each ranked match. Match Points and Bonus Points will comprise the combination of total Rank Point earned at the end of a game.
Based on whether you won or lost the game, you will always gain or lose Match Points at the end of a ranked game. The skill difference between the teams will determine the amount of Match Points your team gains or loses. When in an equally matched game, the winning team earns 100 Match Points and the losing team loses the same number of point. If, skill-wise, the game is not evenly matched, 200 Match Points could be potentially earned by the winning team, and same amount could be lost by the defeated team. The same amount of Match Points for a game can be earned or lost by all players on a given team.
At the end of the game, players are also awarded Bonus Points. If a player’s personal skill rating (MMR) outruns their visible ranking on the winning team, he/she can be awarded Bonus Points. This can help get them closer to an accurate ranking and usually happens if a player wins several games in a row.
THE GRANDMASTER RANK
Having each rank represent approximately 2% of the population is the current goal of the ranking system. Despite that, for those who have reached a high level of skill, rank 1 is currently an open ended rank. Blizzard is planning to add a Grandmaster-equivalent rank above rank 1 to acknowledge the best players in each region.
A Grandmaster rank will be assigned to players who are able to achieve an awe-inspiring level of play. This will show the exact position of where they place amongst their fellow Grandmasters. Blizzard will have a leaderboard available in-game and visible to all, and especially for those wanting to track the best players in their region,
Both Hero and Team Leagues will have a Grandmaster rank, according to Blizzard’s plans.
SEASONS EXPLAINED
There will be regular seasons in all Ranked Play game modes for Heroes of the Storm, as previously mentioned. Each season will be about 3 months in duration, as being discussed by Blizzard. At the moment, we are in the Preseason of Ranked Play. Blizzard is planning not to hold the first official season until sometime after the launch of the game, and remain in Preseason. Players who were not in the Closed Beta phase will be able to meet the various Ranked Play requirements and get up to speed with the game. This way, Blizzard will also be able to make many of he improvements explained in this post done before the start of the first official season.
pPlayers will need to play through their placement matches, as described above, and all ranks will be reset when Blizzard finally holds the first official season. How well you played in your placement matches and your prior season’s performance will determine which appropriate rank that reflects your skill you will be placed on. To help ensure matches will be balanced and equal, Blizzard will carry over your internal skill rating (MMR) from the previous season.
Eventually, your efforts will be rewarded! The highest rank you attained for the season will determine how you’ll be awarded, so make sure to try your hardest. Blizzard will be adding a Ranked Trophy Page in your profile and it is there where your achievement will receive recognition. Tracking your Ranked progress from season to season can be done from this page too.
TEAM LEAGUE
Team League is Blizzard’s newest addition to Nexus, and is where the most organized and competitive teams fight in a Ranked Play experience. Blizzard has collected feedback from the community and internally since the feature’s launch. Here are some of the them:
- Grouping up with same friends with different schedules is not always easy.
- Games can be harder to find in Team League since there are fewer teams.
- The 1000 gold cost of a team is too much.
- To address these issues, Blizzard will be making a few changes to Team League.
First, to avoid a high level of team creation churn, Blizzard has implemented the gold coast to create a team. This makes teams affordable, but has a lasting identity that span across multiple seasons. The devs have recently halved the team creation cost to 500 gold to help with this. Hopefully, a balance between cost and low team churn can be attained with this change.
Second, five-player parties will be removed from Hero League and moved to Team League. After this change is made, party size of one to four can queue up for Hero League. A full party of five (either as a pickup party, or a formal team with a name) can queue up for Team League.
Blizzard believes a number of benefits can be achieved from these changes:
- Better quality matches can be created in less time by having all five-player parties in the same queue. Before, they were split between Hero and Team League.
- The change guarantees that five-player teams will always face off against other five player teams. Although this is already mostly enforced by the matchmaker.
- Rules that are more applicable to five-player parties and teams are now better able to be applied to Team League. This means hero bans and other potential draft improvements.
Ranking remains as they do today wherein each pre-made team would still have a team ranking. For those who play with pickup parties of five, Blizzard will have a separate Team League ranking for them.
Source: HotSSource
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