What's the deal with the constant dropping of games?

[madmanmorbo]

It seems like every time I try to link up for a game, 3 people will agree, and some dissenter will drop the game. I have to try to match 10-15 times before finding people who are actually trying to play.

is there some mechanic I'm unaware of? Someone trying to game the boardgamearena system by dropping or something *.
It's uncool.


*Moderator edit: please refrain from swearing on BGA, this is a family-friendly platform.

[TwoLambda]

Is it the same person who joins you and then drops the game?
If yes, you can just give them a dislike and you won't play with that person ever again.
If no, may it be your unstable wifi? I don't really know. You can try setting your karma preferences to maximum (>85%) to minimize the chance of droppers joining.

[ahaverkamp]

It is because when you sign up for a 2player game, you still often get included in a 3player game. Which you then decline....

[Jenn_P]

Hey, just wanted to say I think there are some people who specifically go on to do this. I’ve had times when there is someone (or two) who join my table over and over again and decline so quickly I can’t even see the start screen. And they will do this multiple times until I go and dislike them. This is from the POV of someone starting a table.

With that said, I am curious if setting my table parameters can ensure these folks (who when I look have relatively low karma) will mean they can’t even try to join my table? Or will this just mean they join over and over to then be automatically booted by my limitations - disrupting the start process until someone else gets the seat before them?

But yes. I have had a few occasions when I’ve just gone to another game to make a table and left AZUL until later.

[DoctorFianchetto]

Here's a pattern I see a lot.

> I'm in Play Now, I see Player X create a new table.
> I join the table.
> Immediately, Player X leaves and creates a new table.
> I join the new table.
> Immediately, Player X leaves and creates a new table.

It happens far too quickly for Player X to be doing it themselves, so it must be something the code is doing. But I can't explain what.

Another oddity is the same player with 4 or 5 of the same table open for the same game. Another quirk of the BGA code, I guess.

[KrinkleKat]

It happens far too quickly for Player X to be doing it themselves, so it must be something the code is doing. But I can't explain what.

Another oddity is the same player with 4 or 5 of the same table open for the same game. Another quirk of the BGA code, I guess.

I just had that happen. I tried to Leave to first game and it wouldn.t let me. We both let it time out and it was abandoned.

[Nekojin]

Here's a pattern I see a lot.

> I'm in Play Now, I see Player X create a new table.
> I join the table.
> Immediately, Player X leaves and creates a new table.
> I join the new table.
> Immediately, Player X leaves and creates a new table.

It happens far too quickly for Player X to be doing it themselves, so it must be something the code is doing. But I can't explain what.

Another oddity is the same player with 4 or 5 of the same table open for the same game. Another quirk of the BGA code, I guess.

What you're seeing is someone who has restrictions on who they're willing to play with, and your joining is triggering that restriction. Whatever that restriction is - your Karma is too low, your rank is too high or too low, or whatever - is a setting they've got that tries to avoid pairing them with you.

As I understand it, the system is set up so that the person with the restrictions is the one that leaves in such a conflict, because if it worked the other way, people could use it abusively, to force other people to drop out of games that they were already queued for.

[DoctorFianchetto]

Here's a pattern I see a lot.

> I'm in Play Now, I see Player X create a new table.
> I join the table.
> Immediately, Player X leaves and creates a new table.
> I join the new table.
> Immediately, Player X leaves and creates a new table.

It happens far too quickly for Player X to be doing it themselves, so it must be something the code is doing. But I can't explain what.

Another oddity is the same player with 4 or 5 of the same table open for the same game. Another quirk of the BGA code, I guess.

What you're seeing is someone who has restrictions on who they're willing to play with, and your joining is triggering that restriction. Whatever that restriction is - your Karma is too low, your rank is too high or too low, or whatever - is a setting they've got that tries to avoid pairing them with you.

As I understand it, the system is set up so that the person with the restrictions is the one that leaves in such a conflict, because if it worked the other way, people could use it abusively, to force other people to drop out of games that they were already queued for.

Fascinating! But why would I be able to see and join that table if that restriction is applied?

[Nekojin]

Fascinating! But why would I be able to see and join that table if that restriction is applied?

Because the system is not that robust to actively prevent people from seeing the games. That would require a LOT more computer power, of checking every single game against every single person looking at that game list*, even if they don't intend to join it. It isn't until you attempt to join that it does the check.

* Made even more complex when you realize that there are ways to view every single currently-open game on the site, not just the few in your Favorites list. Someone doing that maliciously to trigger Avoids could tax the system.

[KrinkleKat]

Fascinating! But why would I be able to see and join that table if that restriction is applied?

Because the system is not that robust to actively prevent people from seeing the games. That would require a LOT more computer power, of checking every single game against every single person looking at that game list*, even if they don't intend to join it. It isn't until you attempt to join that it does the check.

* Made even more complex when you realize that there are ways to view every single currently-open game on the site, not just the few in your Favorites list. Someone doing that maliciously to trigger Avoids could tax the system.

I've been seeing games popup and disappear before I can even click on it. Several times in a row, different days and commonly the same user. When I look at games in progress, that user isn't there. Maybe that user has flaky wifi.