A Look at League of Legends Season 3 Ranked System

     So I’d like to take a little bit of time (well, a lot considering how long this is >.>) to talk about the current ranked system and some tweaks/redesigns I have for it.  Currently there are a few problems with the in place ranked system that are very frustrating to a lot of players.  In order to try to cut down on a long post, I will jump right into the issues and try to bullet point them as easily as possible.

Current System Problems

+ Matchmaking is based on your MMR not your tier/division.
     -This makes your placement in the current ranked queue pretty pointless.  In example, while on a smurf in Silver 1 I have been placed with Gold 1/Platinum players.  As a Diamond 3 player I have been placed with Platinum 5 or lower players.  Both of these instances are extremely frustrating to all involved.

+ Because matchmaking is based on MMR instead of tier/division, the upper tiers/divisions have been filled with players that do not belong.
      - Gold/Platinum players have been able to climb to and through Diamond tier because their MMR is so low that they are placed against Gold/Platinum players even while being in and gaining points in the upper Platinum/Diamond tiers.  On the same hand, players that should be in a higher tier are stuck in lower ones because their MMR places them against players of much higher tiers/divisions.

+ Because there are no restrictions on duo queues, it is possible for extremely low tier players to be in high tier games.  Duo queuing in this way also brings down the MMR for matchmaking purpose of the higher partner, allowing them to face easier opponents.
      - This is extremely frustrating to players of higher tiers who have to play with lower tier players because of this.  Also, it makes it easy for a higher tier player to create/use a smurf to help their friend win a game/series by bringing down their team MMR to place them against lower tier/MMR players.

+ Clamping, the act of rewarding players with less and less points as they near 100 points is an extremely frustrating practice to players.
      - As the value of each game continues to decrease, value of playing to the player also decreases.

+ Progress starts to feel extremely slow.
      - Through the first 100-200 games, players gain 20-30 points and progress seems to be at a good pace to players, but as the games start to rack up, points gained dwindle to the 12-18 ranged, roughly half of what was gained before.  When this point hits, the ability to progress through the tiers/division begins to feel extremely slow in comparison.  A system that does not change the rate of progress, but still allows for faster correct placement would be much better.  Taking away from players often leads to abandonment of a game/game mode.

+ Inability to drop tiers.
      - Since players cannot drop tiers, and matchmaking is based on MMR, it is possible to “tank” your MMR each time your reach a new tier.  Since losses at the 0 point Division 5 level of any tier are basically meaningless, it is possible to lose a large amount of games at that position, so that as you climb you are facing players in divisions/tiers below you instead of on your level.

+ Challenger tier is too exclusive.
      -  There is too much protection for challenger players, especially for the higher ranked challenger players.  The tier is relatively safe; the upper ranked players only having to play a game week to keep their spot.  The tier needs to be more volatile and encourage playing games to defend your position.

System Needs

+ Conducive to progress

     - Any system based on tiers needs to conduct progress through them.  A system as such creates goals for players.  If these goals feel unattainable, then eventually the system will not be used.

+ Rewarding
      - Reaching a new division/tier should feel rewarding to players.  Moving out of a lower bracket of players and into a higher skill level is a great way to do this.  By basing matchmaking on divisions/tiers this can be created.  Players can and will know the range of players they will be playing against, rather than their matchups not changing when their tiers/divisions do because of matchmaking being based on MMR.

+ Easy to understand
      - Any system should be easy to understand by the players.  Currently this is not the case because of the high involvement of MMR in the system while MMR is currently a hidden number. 

+ Places people at the proper skill level
      - A ranked system needs to do this, and it needs to do this in a way in which their displayed skill level matches their actual skill level.

+ Allows quick passing of divisions.
      - Especially during a player’s placement and first hundred games, players need to reach their proper skill level quickly.  A system should be in place that allows players to skip divisions if their potential skill level is high enough.

+ Demotions should be defended against.
      - As promotions have to be earned, demotions should also be able to be defended against.  Currently they come without warning, and without a solid pattern. 

Tweaks/Redesign

     Over the next few posts, I will attempt to redesign the current ranked system in a way that involves both MMR and the current tier/division system in a way that is fluid and cohesive, rather than feeling disconnected from each other.  All of it is mere brainstorming and conception work, so please don’t take it as fully fleshed out fact.  But theories and ideas generate knowledge that lead to a final product.  I hope that these concepts can/will address some of the current issues.  If not, well I tried and the exercise was a decently fun one.

Division/Tier and MMR Correlation

     Currently, MMR plays a huge role in the ranked system, however, how it plays its role is very much hidden from the players.  As I start tweaking/redesign the system, it would be best to start with how the two correlate with each other.  So, here it is.

Bronze 5: 0 - 300
Bronze 4: 150 - 450
Bronze 3: 300 - 600
Bronze 2: 450 - 750
Bronze 1: 600 - 900

Silver 5: 800 - 1100
Silver 4: 950 - 1250
Silver 3: 1110 - 1400
Silver 2:  1250 - 1550
Silver 1:  1400 - 1700

Gold 5: 1600 - 1900
Gold 4: 1750 - 2050
Gold 3: 1900 - 2200
Gold 2: 2050 - 2350
Gold 1: 2200 - 2500

Platinum 5:  2400 - 2700
Platinum 4: 2550 - 2850
Platinum 3: 2700 - 3000
Platinum 2: 2850 - 3150
Platinum 1: 3000 - 3300

Diamond 5: 3200 - 3500
Diamond 4: 3350 - 3650
Diamond 3: 3500 - 3800
Diamond 2: 3650 - 3950
Diamond 1: 3800 - 4100

Challenger:  4100+

     This correlation will be the basis for how the rest of the system works.  Each division is assigned a range of MMR to it.  Players of X MMR should be found within one of the appropriate ranges and the system should place/match them in correspondence to this.

Qualification Series (New)

     First off, the start of any system deals with the qualifications.  If this doesn’t interest you, skip this section and the next, otherwise keep reading.  This first qualification section will be for players who have never entered the ranked system before.

     Your matchups and points to earn will be based on your current wins minus losses in your qualification series.  The more wins you have compared to losses, the more points you stand to earn.  Losing a match will net you half the points available. After 5 losses, anymore losses will result in you losing half of the available points instead of gaining them.

Wins – Losses            Playing Against         Points on the Line

0 or Negative              Bronze 5 – 3                125
+1                                Bronze 5 – 1                150
+2                                Bronze 1, Silver 5 - 4  175
+3                                Silver 5 – 3                  200
+4                                Silver 4 – 2                  225
+5                                Silver 3 – 1                  250
+6                                Silver 1, Gold 5 – 4     275
+7                                Gold 4 – 3                   300
+8                                Gold 3 – 1                   325
+9                                Plat 5 – 3                     375

     At the end of your series, you will be placed into the highest division/tier in which your total points fall into.  The highest possible division to be placed in is Platinum 5 while the lowest is Bronze 5.

Examples

Game  Score   Wins over Losses       Game Results             Points Gained            Total
1          0 – 0    0                                  Win                             125                              125
2          1 – 0    1                                  Win                             150                              275
3          2 – 0    2                                  Win                             175                              450
4          3 – 0    3                                  Loss                             100                              550
5          3 – 1    2                                  Win                             175                              725
6          4 – 1    3                                  Win                             200                              925
7          5 – 1    4                                  Win                             225                              1150
8          6 – 1    5                                  Loss                             125                              1275
9          6 – 2    4                                  Win                             225                              1500
10        7 – 2    5                                  Win                             250                              1750
Final Score:  8 -2, 1750 Rating, Placed into Gold 4

Game  Score   Wins over Losses       Game Results             Points Gained            Total
1          0 – 0    0                                  Loss                             62.5                             62.5
2          0 – 1    -1                                 Loss                             62.5                             125
3          0 – 2    -2                                 Win                             125                              250
4          1 – 2    -1                                 Win                             125                              375
5          2 – 2    0                                  Win                             125                              500
6          3 – 2    +1                                Win                             150                              650
7          4 – 2    +2                                Loss                             87.5                             737.5
8          4 – 3    +1                                Loss                             75                                812.5
9          4 – 4    0                                  Loss                             62.5                             875
10        4 – 5    -1                                 Loss                             -62.5                            812.5
Final Score:  4 - 6, 812.5 Rating, Placed into Silver 5

Qualification Series (Old)

     For players that have been in the ranked system during the preseason and/or the season before.  This Qualification System will attempt to place them in the appropriate tier/division.

     Your previous MMR will be cut in half to give you your current MMR; however this will be up to a maximum of 1500 MMR.  From this point, your divisions/tier will be the highest that your MMR falls into, and the opponents you face will be in a range of 1 division down and 2 divisions up from your own.  For example, if you are at 1500 MMR, you will be considered in the Silver 1 division and your first match will be played against Silver 2 – Gold 4 opponents.

     Your matchups and points to earn will be based on your current wins minus losses in your qualification series.  The more wins you have compared to losses, the more points you stand to earn.  Losing a match will net you half the points available. After 5 losses, anymore losses will result in you losing half of the available points instead of gaining them.

Wins – Losses            Points on the Line

0 or Negative              80
+1                                100
+2                                120
+3                                140
+4                                160
+5                                180
+6                                200
+7                                220
+8                                240
+9                                260

     At the end of your series, you will be placed into the highest division/tier in which your total points fall into. 

Examples

Staring at 1500 MMR
Game  Score   W>L   Facing             Game Results             Points Gained            Total
1          0 – 0    0          S 2-1, G 5-4    Win                             80                                1580
2          1 – 0    1          S 2-1, G 5-4    Win                             100                              1680
3          2 – 0    2          S 1, G 5-3        Win                             120                              1800
4          3 – 0    3          Gold 5-2          Win                             140                              1940
5          4 – 0    2          Gold 4-1          Win                             160                              2100
6          5 – 0    3          G 3-1, P 5        Win                             180                              2280
7          6 – 0    4          G 2-1, P 5-4    Win                             200                              2480
8          7 – 0    5          G 1, P 5-3        Win                             220                              2700
9          8 – 0    4          Plat 5-2            Win                             240                              2940
10        9 – 0    5          P 3-1, D 5        Win                             260                              3200
Final Score:  10 - 0, 3200 Rating, Placed into Diamond 5

Staring at 750 MMR
Game  Score   W>L   Facing             Game Results             Points Gained            Total
1          0 – 0    0          B 2-1, S 5-4     Win                             80                                830
2          1 – 0    1          B 1, S 5-3        Win                             100                              930
3          2 – 0    2          B 1, S 5-3        Win                             120                              1050
4          3 – 0    3          Silver 5-2         Win                             140                              1190
5          4 – 0    2          Silver 4-1         Win                             160                              1350
6          5 – 0    3          S 3-1, G 5        Win                             180                              1530
7          6 – 0    4          S 2-1, G5-4     Loss                             100                              1630
8          6 – 1    5          S 1, G 5-4        Loss                             90                                1720
9          6 – 2    4          S 1, G 5-3        Loss                             80                                1800
10        6 – 3    5                      Loss                             70                                1870
Final Score:  6 - 4, 1870 Rating, Placed into Gold 4

Ranked Progression

     The rest of the sections will be of interest to more people than the previous two.  This section will talk about moving through the tier/division system, how it relates to MMR, and dealing with promotions/demotions.

     Currently, progression through the tiers is not straightforward.  Because points earned vary from game to game and clamping exists as you get closer to your goal, it is hard for players to judge what it will take for them to reach the next tier/division.   One game may earn them 20 points, while a few games later they may be earning 5 points.  The difference can be quite large and the reason is unexplained to the players.  This just leads to frustration.   Using the division/tier and MMR correlation chart above, here are a few of my suggestions for ranked progression.

+Players will gain and lose a set number of League Points per game.  This number will never change and can be set between 10-20 points per game.
      -This will give players an easy to understand and consistent method of progression that still requires a higher win than loss ratio and removes player frustration over instances of losing more points on average than you win on average.

+MMR will still gain/lose points based on a second (the current) system.
      -Tackling an MMR system is a little beyond me.  Using the one already in place would be fine in my opinion.  MMR will be primarily used in promotion/demotion decisions as a check/balance to progression speed, rather than determining your matchups.

     As an example, a player would earn/lose 15 LP every game, but their MMR rise/fall based on the MMR’s of those they are playing against.

Promotions

+Upon reaching 100 League Points, the game would check to see that your current MMR is => the minimum MMR of the next tier/division.
      -Prevents MMR tanking at Div 5 of new tiers.  Attempts to control lucky win streaks by having a second check to make sure a player deserves to be promoted.

+If your MMR is below the minimum MMR of the next tier/division, your promo series would be delayed.  During this period you would enter a state of MMR acceleration.  While your LP is => 100, winning a game would continue to add League Points past 100, but your MMR gains would be increased to 150% (or perhaps a scaling bonus on win streaks: 110% -> 120% -> 130% -> etc).
      -Allows for players who have improved to raise their MMR to promotion levels at an accelerated rate, moving them through the MMR promotion check/balance at a fair speed.

+Once both your League Points are => 100 and your MMR is => the minimum of the next tier/division.  Your Promotion Series will start as normal.  During your promotion series, MMR acceleration will cease.

+Matchmaking for Promotion Series will consider you as in the next tier/division.
      -Promotions should be played against the tier/division you will be joining, not based on the one you are already in.

+Upon winning a Promotion Series, you will be placed into the lowest division (but at least 1 higher than your current) in which your MMR is within the range.  Allows for skipping of divisions but will not allow you to skip a tier.
      -Allows for players to skip divisions if their MMR is high enough, helping them to reach their appropriate skill level faster.  Also deals with undeserved promotions losses.  For example, you might lose your Promotion Series 2-3, but afterwards reach it again in 3 straight wins.  A continued cycle of 5-3 or 6-3 should still be rewarded even if those 3 losses are all promo

+Winning a Promotion series will make you immune to demotion status for 1 day or 10 games, whichever comes first.  Your MMR will still drop during this time period.
      -A quality of life improvement for players, it is extremely frustrating to win a promotion series and quickly get demoted to an unfortunately timed losing streak.  Player’s will still have to regain their MMR, but this will protect them from bad luck.

     This system will provide two measures to a player’s skill, hopefully able to best place players in the tier/division appropriate to their skill level.  While it does limit a player’s ability to speed rush through the system on wins streaks, it still allows for quick progression if MMR is high enough.  The consistency of earned points makes it easy for players to understand and the removal of any clamping is a simple quality of life improvement.  Also, since points are consistent, players who improve their gameplay and deserve to be higher tiers will be able to progress based on their current skill level rather than their progression rate having been clamped because of the number of games they have played.

Demotions

     I find that there are three problems with the current demotion system.  First, you are not warned about them.  Second, you cannot defend against them.  And lastly, you cannot be demoted from a tier.   I believe that the first two should change simply for the quality of life of the players, while the last issues should change to remove MMR tanking exploits and to better place players at their appropriate skill level.

+If a player is at 0 League Points and their MMR < their current tier/division’s minimum MMR, they will be placed into a Demotion Defense Series.
      -Sets when and why demotions will occur and lets players track how close they are to them.

+Players must win 2 out of 4 or 3 out of 6 games to prevent their demotion.
      -Sets the demotion prevention requirements at a 50% win rate.

+Upon surviving their demotion series, players will gain LP equal to 2 wins. 

     -Prevents hitting a demotion series immediately after winning one, even if your MMR is still below your current division/tier’s minimum MMR.

+If a Demotion Defense is lost, players will be placed in the previous division/tier with 50 + Demotion Defense wins (max of 75) LP.

+Players CAN be demoted from tiers.
      -Counteracts “elo boosting” and large lucky win streaks.  Also allows for redistribution of players as more skilled players make their way into the appropriate tiers.

      I think that having a system in place that notifies players of incoming demotions and allows them to prevent them is a good quality of life improvement as opposed to the current, surprise you’re demoted, system.  Having players being able to be demoted from tiers will make sure players are in their appropriate tiers as well as devaluing the worth of “boosting.”

Matchmaking

      Matchmaking is probably the most important issue with the current system.  Currently the division/tier system seems to be nothing more than a fancy user interface.  I believe (I could be wrong) that matchmaking is based entirely or almost entirely on your MMR and has nothing or little to do with your division/rank.

+Currently the matchmaking system is too broad.
      -Matches can consist of players across up to 3 tiers.  Diamond tier players have and can be matched up against Gold tier players and vice versa.

+Basing matchmaking on MMR can create highly skewed teams.
      -On a smurf whose MMR is very high, I’ve been on teams full of Silver 3-1’s against teams full of Gold 4-1’s.  One player’s MMR can highly skew the team composition in terms of divisions/tiers.

+MMR is not a visible stat to players and as an invisible stat should not be part of determining matchups.
      -This is for the quality of life of the players, reducing frustration on seemingly so varied team compositions.

     Changing matchmaking to be based primarily on the divisions/tiers in place would make them much more meaningful, reduce player frustration, and cause players to be placed in divisions/tiers more appropriate to their skill level.  Here are my thoughts.

+Matchmaking should first pull from the closest two division within your tier.
      -In example division 3 would first pull from divisions 4,3,2 but division 5 would pull from division 5,4,3 within that tier.

+As time in the queue increases matchmaking will open up to all divisions within your tier.

+As even more time passes by without a match found, matchmaking will open up to Division 5 of the tier above you and Division 1 of the tier below you.

+Queue times should increase to better match players.  Something along the lines of 1-2 minutes for the first search bracket, and 1-2 additional minutes for each new search bracket. 

     -Personally, I would rather spend a longer amount of time to find players within my skill level and have evenly matched teams than to find unbalanced and broad games quickly.

     I feel that a matchmaking system based on the visible ranked system would make the tiers/divisions much more meaningful as well as make the matchmaking system easy to understand by players.

     Lastly, two small suggestions on possible improvements to either matchmaking system.   Not so much changes, but rather additions.

+Duo Queuing should be limited.  I feel that requiring players to be within in one full tier of each other is fair.  For example, a Plat 5 player could duo with any player within Gold 5 – Diamond 5.

+In a players profile they may set their ability level in each of the lanes/roles (Skilled, Average, and Unskilled).  In the champion select screen, these could be seen by teammates as small icons underneath the player’s name.  This would convey more information during champ select for team coordination.
      -Players can also choose to not mark anything (so players do not feel pigeonholed into the current metagame).  Could be used in the matchmaking decisions or just left as an information conveyor only.

Challenger Tier

      Last on my list of things to talk about, is the Challenger Tier.  I find that there are a few problems with its current incarnation:

+Challenger Tier is extremely exclusive.
      -Only allowing 50 players into it at a time is an extremely small number with how many players League of Legends has.

+Safety period is too long.  1 week of demotion immunity is a long period of time for a tier that should promote volatility and competition.
      -Being a Challenger should be a position that demands it be defended.  Players should not be able to sit back once reaching it and safely hold onto it.

+Only rotates the bottom players in the tier.  Top players are nigh untouchable.
      -The players that reached challenger tier first and have now reached the top 30 or maybe even 40 are relatively untouchable.  Their points are so high compared to the lower end and new entries that it’s almost impossible for them to be in danger of demotion, even while playing only 1 game a week.

     Currently, there are a lot of players in Diamond 1 who cannot even begin their promotion series because the players they can replace are locked in demotion immunity status.  There’s a decent sized queue to get into Challenger because there effectively only a few slots open that are constantly being protected.  If a player is not on top of when immunities will expire and do not claim that promotion series spot as soon as it opens, they may never make it to challenger even though they deserve it.  I’ve brainstormed two ways to potentially counteract these problems and make the Challenger tier a more competitive and volatile tier.

Tweaking the Current Challenger Tier

+Drop the safety period to 2 or 3 days instead of 1 week.
      -Gives players enough time to get out of the bottom end of Challenger while not locking up the position if they don’t play.

+MMR acceleration at 100 points in Diamond 1 will allow players to earn their promotion series faster by reaching the MMR of players in the Challenger Tier.

+Allowing points to go past 100 will hold on to Diamond 1 player’s promotion without fear of losing a game or two while at 100.

+MMR acceleration in the Diamond 1 tier will cause the players rotating between Diamond 1 and the bottom of the Challenger tier to catch up to the players in the top of the Challenger tier.

Challenger Tier Redesign

     This idea I like a lot more than just tweaking the current Challenger Tier.  I feel it creates a tier of fairly constant competition that promotes defending your position rather than simply idling in your position once you move out of the lower end of the tier.

+The Challenger Tier will consist of a shared point pool.  For my example the total amount of points available in the Challenger tier will be 50,000 (1,000 to each player).  Once 50 players have reached Challenger status, the points will be distributed evenly and the tier will officially begin.

+At the start of the Challenger tier, all players will be given 1 week immunity from demotion while the ranking within it settles.

+Every game that is played in which a Challenger plays against a Challenger, the points within the Challenger tier point pool would be affected.  If a Challenger(s) plays a game but does not play against another Challenger(s) only their MMR will be affected by the outcome.

+In Challenger versus Challenger games.  Non-participating Challengers and the losing Challengers will lose 1 point per Challenger on the winning team.  The Challenger(s) of the losing team will also lose an additional 25 points.  These points will be split evenly among the winning Challengers.

Example using even teams

Challengers on teams            Winners          Non-participating      Losers
1v1                                          +74                  -1                                 -26
2v2                                          +73                  -2                                 -27
3v3                                          +72                  -3                                 -28
4v4                                          +71                  -4                                 -29
5v5                                          +70                  -5                                 -30

+The specifics will be different for teams in which Challengers on teams are uneven.  Points lost by the non-participating Challengers will be based on the number of winning Challengers.

+For Diamond 1 players, their promotion series will start when reaching the lowest MMR in the Challenger tier but will replace the lowest ranked Challenger.

+New players will enter the Challenger tier with 1,000 points.  These points will first be taken from the replaced Challenger and then stolen evenly from the rest of the Challengers (starting from the #1 rank)

     I believe that this system or a similar one would promote a volatile and competitive Challenger tier.  A shared point pool prevents infinite climbing while still allowing for you to create distance between you and the others in the tier.  Play becomes about your comparison to those in your tier rather than the amount of points you have accumulated.  By having every game siphon points from all Challengers, the system will deal with the stagnation of the top ranks.  All players in the challenger tier will have to play a decent amount of matches to maintain and defend their position while all of the challengers will be targeting and “dragging” down the rest of the challengers, realistically making them targets that can be passed.  Challenger tier should not simply be a position that is reached and held, but one that must be defended and maintained by all Challengers, not just those at the bottom of the tier.

Summary

     The current ranked system is nice, especially in a visual/player goal oriented sense.  There are however, still problems, especially in how matchmaking occurs and how much of an affect MMR has on matchmaking, unfair/fair tier/division progression, and the Challenger tier.  This is compounded by the fact that MMR is an invisible player stat and is never stated to the players as being such a huge part of their ranked experience.

I hope that some of the tweaks/changes I have put worth have value in alleviating the current problems.  I especially like the Challenger redesign, but that may just be me =).  I hope this can generate some discussion about how to best solve the current issues of the ranked system and I will be checking and responding to this thread on a consistent basis if discussion picks up.