“arena” points

[werfmark]

Arena points just don't make sense for some games and the all award mechanism should be revised. Why allowing a game to happen when you can get 3 or 4 arena points in case of victory and loose 30+ in case of lost. Expecially for games with a lucky factor in place this is something so simple to see that I cannot explain why nothing is done about it

This is just the flaw of the ELO system when it comes to games with luck.

The ELO system and derivatives like glicko etc. assume a certain (normal) distribution for skill in your performance from which your chance to win is calculated and thus the expected value is 0 for both players. In many games this doesn't work though.

For example some games just have a chance to be a 'non-game' so even a large underdog (think 100 pts vs 600) still has a higher chance to win than expected from ratings. Reversly in many games a ~200 rated player doesn't have the ~25% winning chance they are expected to have vs a 400 rated player. Basically in most games top players are incentivized to play many games against just ~200 elo points below while avoiding other top players and the very low rated players.

[Sjarmtrollet]

I even wonder why can elite players play against bronze league players, it makes no sense, would a pro sport team play against a bottom tier garage league team ?

I also wonder why people don't just update settings for them... There is a gear box that lets you set it to only play with players that are at or near your level to your choosing.




Then again... the interface isn't particularly great for people finding all these hidden gems. So maybe someone will stumble into this and realize they can set it to play how they want.

A good player trying to climb quickly should accept matches outside of their rating so they can beat higher ranked opponents to climb faster.
High ranked players who care at all about arena points should set it to play only similarly high ranked people so they have the same risk/reward as their opponents on the line (+-1 is often good enough).

That said, I set up to play anyone in arenas that don't have a ton of tiers between the top and bottom from lower total player count active in them. And while a loss against a bronze is a lot worse than a loss against an elite, playing more games is fun. Hopefully the bronze eminent domain players don't mind a little intimidation factor if they check the current standings and are up against the top player in their first games. They basically skip the bronze tier entirely if they can win at least!

I had no idea it was possible to limit the strength of opponents in Arena play! The option is so very hidden under "advanced options" in the lobby, and on the new game pages it isn't visible at all.

[maveleo]

Unfortunately even if the option is there it doesn't work

[frogstar_A]

I even wonder why can elite players play against bronze league players, it makes no sense, would a pro sport team play against a bottom tier garage league team ?

I also wonder why people don't just update settings for them... There is a gear box that lets you set it to only play with players that are at or near your level to your choosing.

Then again... the interface isn't particularly great for people finding all these hidden gems. So maybe someone will stumble into this and realize they can set it to play how they want.

A good player trying to climb quickly should accept matches outside of their rating so they can beat higher ranked opponents to climb faster.
High ranked players who care at all about arena points should set it to play only similarly high ranked people so they have the same risk/reward as their opponents on the line (+-1 is often good enough).

That said, I set up to play anyone in arenas that don't have a ton of tiers between the top and bottom from lower total player count active in them. And while a loss against a bronze is a lot worse than a loss against an elite, playing more games is fun. Hopefully the bronze eminent domain players don't mind a little intimidation factor if they check the current standings and are up against the top player in their first games. They basically skip the bronze tier entirely if they can win at least!

I had no idea it was possible to limit the strength of opponents in Arena play! The option is so very hidden under "advanced options" in the lobby, and on the new game pages it isn't visible at all.

I think it's only possible one way. So if you are a Gold player you can set only within 1 to stop yourself playing bronze players but there is nothing you can do to avoid higher ranked players. Though not sure why you'd want to do that since beating them gets lots of shields and losing loses few!

[nik592]

I think it's only possible one way. So if you are a Gold player you can set only within 1 to stop yourself playing bronze players but there is nothing you can do to avoid higher ranked players. Though not sure why you'd want to do that since beating them gets lots of shields and losing loses few!

That would be annoying. I limit my opponents in certain games to avoid players significantly higher than me, because it sometimes feels like they are playing an entirely different game, and that game is not at all enjoyable for me (the lesser skilled player), and possibly not for them either.