The cutoffs for the final brackets for Season 2 have been revealed. Of note is the addition of a diamond ranking beyond platinum for the best of the best, and the use of top rating instead of current rating.
The latter of these changes addresses an issue that arose at the end of Season 1. Because the season kept getting extended, players who had achieved rankings had to fight with Elo decay to maintain them. Each extension caught players unaware and unprepared, resulting in lots of confusion and irritation. By making top rating the key to a ranking, players need not fret about Elo decay once they've achieved their goal.
However, this change also allows players to use friends or Elo boosting services to push their accounts into brackets they have not earned. It doesn't matter that the boosted player's Elo will dramatically crash shortly thereafter, they'll have achieved a gold/platinum/diamond top rating regardless. It should surprise no one that this possibility has many players up in arms.
I don't begrudge anyone for wanting rewards, but these sorts of shortcuts cheapen the accomplishments of others. While nothing can change the fact that it was my own skill which carried me to platinum, the context surrounding that fact can be changed. The value of my accomplishment is muddled when other players abuse the system.
How widespread a problem this will become I don't know. It won't keep me from shooting for diamond, but it gives me pause as I consider how people will view rankings in Season 3.
No comments:
Post a Comment