#Research and Development

[askagamedev]

In multiplayer games like Call of Duty and Apex Legends, I see many complaints about SBMM (Skill-Based Matchmaking). The main criticism is that it doesn’t allow strong players to play casually in non-ranked matches because there are already ranked modes for competitive play. However, even in casual modes, SBMM makes them face players of the same skill level, which can be stressful. What’s your opinion on this? How do SBMM algorithms work, and do you think it's reasonable for players colmplainit

Here's the thing - lopsided (blowout) games are a lot more frustrating for the players getting blown out than they are fun for the players winning. They are a net negative experience - there's very little to gain or learn from getting blown out, but a lot of bad vibes that have a significant increase in the number of lesser-skilled players that quit playing the game because they've been blown out repeatedly by higher-skill player groups.

The Call of Duty team actually released a [research white paper] in July of this year about an experiment they ran in Modern Warfare III with a control group and an experimental group with loosened skill-based matchmaking criteria. When they reduced the skill-based matchmaking requirements, 80% of participating players were more likely to quit matches early and 90% of them were statistically less likely to play again. When they ratcheted skill-based matchmaking up so that it played a larger factor in matchmaking, they saw the inverse effect - players quit less and were more likely to play again.

This shouldn't be a huge surprise. While playing against better players usually increases skill level over time, it must be balanced against the frustration of that play experience or players on the losing end won't want to come back for more. From the developer perspective, we want players to keep playing the game so that we can keep paying the bills and making more content. We want the game to be sustainable. Players usually come back for more when they have closer matches.

[Join us on Discord] and/or [Support us on Patreon]

Got a burning question you want answered?

Short questions: Ask a Game Dev on Twitter

Long questions: Ask a Game Dev on Tumblr

Frequent Questions: The FAQ

[pepperjunkie]

Titan 2 Research & Development Flight - NASA Photo ID: PL-63-23768..

[postav54]

Shape & Color Exploration 🎨📚🔭

[this-acuteneurosis]

Too Many Ghosts

Leia gets off of Tatooine and makes some new friends.

[shirozen]

Finding the best sweet craving

[radarsteddybear]

This is the Northrop “Gee-Whizz” Decelerator Sled. As you can see, it's not an airplane--it is, as its name would suggest, a sled. It was built used in tests after WWII to better understand the injuries sustained during pilots in aircraft accidents. They would launch this thing down a 2,000 ft. long track at up to 200 mph and then abruptly stop it, creating a deceleration of up to 46 Gs, all with a human person inside. The project was run by Dr. Col. John Stapp, who himself made 26 runs on the sled, suffering "concussions, cracked ribs, broken wrists, and retinal hemorrhages," proving that test pilots (and test...sledders?) are truly a different breed. He felt that these injuries were worth the information these tests provided, saying, "I took my risks for information that will always be of benefit. Risks like those are worthwhile."

The upshot is that the results of these tests led the Air Force to call for redesigned cockpits and pilot harnesses.  These tests also led to the Highway Safety Act of 1966, which required seat belts in all new cars sold in the US beginning in 1968.  

[hell-resources-official]

how do I get permission for my relatives from prithvi lok to come to my lab on a visit. I've submitted so many applications but they always get lost in the chaos. I suspect HR people are just feeding them to the shredder, pls help

We saw your other ask.

We will forward this request to the head of RnD personally and ensure that you get a definite answer within the next three to six years, thank you for reaching out about this problem.

[harriswalz4usabybr]

Speech Governor Tim Walz Gave at Missouri S&T in Rolla, MO!

~BR~

[worldsportsboats]

Bad boys new Bertram 800 sets a new record pace

Bertram 800: http://wp.me/pzWMi-Fm

[escinsight]

Eurovision Chat Over Coffee, BBC R&D's Dave Martson And Eurovision's Next Generation Audio

Eurovision Chat Over Coffee, BBC R&D's Dave Martson And Eurovision's Next Generation Audio

We talk a lot about the songs of the Eurovision Song Contest here, we look at how the Song Contest allows cultures to be shared, and how the Contest is used as a live environment for testing new broadcast technologies. It’s the latter that’s the subject of today’s Chat Over Coffee podcast. Liverpool’s hosting of the Eurovision Song Contest was a golden opportunity for the BBC’s Research and…

[georgiaejlittleyear3blog]

Haegue Yang

A sculpture artist who uses a combination of knitted and mechanical aspects to represent her ties to both Seoul and Berlin. It is a representation of both the warmth she feels when in the countries and the alienation of being drawn back to the other despite being comfortable where she is.

I think I could use the method to make certain environments feel more homey than others in my work, or perhaps communicate a longing to be elsewhere through it. The communication between textiles and electronics is appealing to me.

[thepastisapebbleinmyshoe]

Delayed On-Set PTSD

To be diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), you have to experience a specific set of symptoms for at least one month following exposure to a traumatic event, but in some cases, people may experience delayed-onset PTSD.

Delayed-onset PTSD is not frequently diagnosed, and there is not a great deal of research on this type. However, its occurrence has been observed and studied in some research, and it appears that almost a quarter of PTSD cases may be delayed onset.

Delayed On-Set PTSD, By Matthew Tull, PhD 

Matthew Tull, PhD is a professor of psychology at the University of Toledo, specializing in post-traumatic stress disorder.

[unwelcome-ozian]

In the past, it was the military that drove the cutting edge of technological innovation, often with beneficial 'spill overs’ into wider civilian life – jet travel, satellite navigation and the Internet being just a few examples. That relationship is now being reversed. The growth of research and development (R&D) in the commercial sector and the interconnected global innovation and production networks increasingly mean that the dynamics in defence innovation work the other way around – with technologies often first developed in a civilian context and then adapted for military application. The combined defence R&D expenditure of the 27pMS of EDA is now significantly smaller than the annual research spending of leading commercial companies – many of them based outside of Europe, including in the USA or Asia.