Add a Rematch Button

General Discussion
1

After a ranked or unranked game is over, it would be great to have a prompt for the players to ask for a rematch.

This feature is already standard in the fighting game genre, and the benefits are clear. First and foremost, it allows players to keep playing games against opponents they’re having fun with, and creates the opportunity for “laddering” to be a more social experience. It allows players to spend some time together, rather than queuing up against anonymous, random opponents over and over.

Second, it allows players to practice against specific strategies, styles and races. Players have periodically voiced on the forums that they wish they could queue up for a specific matchup, but a rematch feature would create similar opportunities, and in some ways be even better, because rematching the same opponent allows you not only to focus on a specific race, but on a specific style.

Third, it adds the dimension of “figuring out your opponent” that is currently absent from the ladder except in the highest ranks. Playing in tournaments or against friends is a vastly different experience from laddering, because an important aspect of the strategy is anticipating your opponent’s intentions and disposition and adapting to beat it. When every game is a best of 1 against someone you’ve never played before, this element of the game is erased, which greatly amplifies the strength of unorthodox attacks. (I believe this unpredictability of the opponent is also a source of ladder anxiety.)

Finally, it creates the opportunity for grudge matches and the salty runback. Some people may not see why this is a benefit, but I feel that these matches add a narrative dimension to games. Grudge matches aren’t just another match, they’re important moments for proving yourself.

The current system does not work to facilitate these opportunities. In my nearly decade of playing this game, across thousands of ladder matches, I have literally only ever had two people ask to play rematches. The game interface actively discourages this practice, because it requires you to message your opponent before they click the giant “Play Again” button, and rematches will not count towards their MMR or league placement, and if they do agree to a rematch, the two of you need to navigate several menus (which actually have bad loading times!) in order to set up the game. It should be no surprise that rematches almost never happen in the current system.

3 Likes
2

You can do that anyway, just invite them to a custom game, but if mmr counts here you could see how that would be abused easily.

3

You can do that anyway, just invite them to a custom game, but if mmr counts here you could see how that would be abused easily.

I addressed how and why custom game rematches virtually never happen.

How do you believe this mechanic will be “abused”? It already exists in most modern fighting games.

4

I dont mind having fake master 1 It would be fun to watch getting destroyd by Gm twitch streamers

5

Don’t people have to agree to a rematch? Could you see two people getting online and rematching until the other has a certain mmr? Boosting?

If two people would like to play each, won’t they still agree to a custom game? I have made many friends and practice partners this way, so maybe my experience is vastly different than yours.

6

I dont mind having fake master 1 It would be fun to watch getting destroyd by Gm twitch streamers

Boosting is not actually a problem. The matchmaking system would first have to pair these people based on current MMR. Second, every successive game would change the players’ current MMRs, and thus a string of wins against the same opponent would yield smaller and smaller MMR changes, because their MMRs will reflect the winner’s expected winrate.

Ask yourself the empirical question: If this idea would ruin the ladder, shouldn’t fighting game ladders be non-functional? But it’s actually the opposite–this is the standard in fighting games.

1 Like
7

Boosting wasn’t the real issue, but you can just do this anyway. So are you wanting a rematch option, with mmr as the only difference between the custom option?

8

That would be a really nice feature.

Couple of times I was asked for re-match.
Also I would definitely ask cheesers for re-match pretty much always =)

2 Likes
9

No need, so many times Ive matched same players over the same few days or 2-3 in a row, the higher you go the more common. So you get rematch anyway and then you are sorry you used the same build twice, or that you didn’t go for plan B… cause they already expect you to use the same.

10

The MMR change is the only functional difference, but is actually far less important than the user interface component. Having a large, prominent Rematch button next to a Find New Opponent button would completely change the culture of the ladder, because people would click it.

11

I think you have convinced me. I would support, also in chess apps this is option is there as well.

So now have it show up on the win screen after game is the obvious. I guess use the same random map choice as before.

1 Like
12

I 100% agree with this suggestion. A rematch button to suggest a rematch would be fantastic for the ladder. Could lead to some ladder abuse for stats/ranking but I think that would be minimal overall.

1 Like
13

100%. I feel that 50% of players only know one cheese build for specific matchups and once they’ve used it they are out of gas. Would love a rematch button.

1 Like
14

I feel that 50% of players only know one cheese build for specific matchups and once they’ve used it they are out of gas.

Yeah, if it was normal for players to play more than one game against each other in a row, MMR would also to some extent reflect the diversity of a player’s knowledge, rather than how well they’ve learned one exact attack.

1 Like