Call of Duty’s SBMM remains a hot topic, with Warzone amplifying concerns. Now, a leaker is claiming that lobbies could get even more confusing in the future — with “Bot Pools” pitting bad players against AI.
You’ve heard of PvP (player versus player) and PvE (player versus environment, aka AI-controlled enemies). But, if new rumors are to be believed, the two systems’ child, PvPvE, may soon be coming to Call of Duty.
In the past, Warzone’s SBMM (skill-based matchmaking) was the subject of controversy over pay-to-win matchmaking and streamer whitelist concerns. People are constantly wondering how the game decides the skill of your lobby and new leaks will only add to that mystery.
Modern Warfare 2 and Warzone insider ‘RalphsValve’ revealed that AI may eventually factor into SBMM in a long thread about future CoD plans. They described how these “Bot Pools” would only be for certain players and could help combat smurfing.
Warzone SBMM could feature player vs AI lobbies in future
SBMM: With the maintenance of the SBMM code, there are apparently plans to introduce Bot Pools (PvPvE), on the condition that a players stats are eligible to enter these lobbies. With the overhaul in AI, they’ll be able track and equal a players’ level of skill throughout a…
— Ralph (@RalphsValve) November 2, 2021
As Ralph explains, “there are apparently plans to introduce Bot Pools (PvPvE)” into Call of Duty in the future. It’s unclear if this is meant for just Warzone, just MW2 2022, or some combination of them all — but it would be an interesting first in Call of Duty.
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Elaborating, the Bot Pools would only allow certain players (with ‘eligible stats’) into them, and one has to wonder if it would only be those with very low K/Ds. If so, that would protect lower-level players from getting smacked around, thereby nurturing a comfier environment to practice in.
AI bot lobbies to counter reverse boosters or smurfs?
And, on the topic of protecting low-level players, Ralph added that the AI would suit that purpose. Using the bots, Activision could theoretically figure out what human players’ true skill levels were — allowing them to ‘counter smurfs.’
This would also seemingly make it harder for people who reverse boosted to stick around in easy lobbies for too long.
Of course, these leaks are entirely speculative and cannot be confirmed. But some of Ralph’s other rumors seem to have been corroborated by different sources, suggesting some legitimacy.
