The most anticipated 2.02 patch has already arrived, and it seems like Riot Games finally responded to the players’ complaints regarding the current ranking process in VALORANT.
With the launch of VALORANT Episode 2, there has been a major shift in how the overall ranking system works. The new system would give a player their rank based on their hidden MMR. While it sounded like a good idea, in reality, it actually made it more challenging to climb the rank ladder for some individuals.
Furthermore, some players with inflated ranks really disrupted the overall balance in the competitive mode. Therefore, Riot made some changes to how their MMR to rank convergence system works.
In patch 2.02, players will also be getting a performance bonus for delivering exceptional performances. This will help extraordinary players stand out from the crowd and let them climb the ladder faster until they reach Diamond.
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VALORANT Patch Note 2.02
- MMR to Rank Convergence increase.
Convergence is the multiplier that gives you more or less, Rank Rating (RR) if your MMR is not equal to your rank. Convergence exists to push your rank to match your MMR—but we believe it wasn’t pushing you fast enough.
After this change, most of you should see an increase in RR gains if your rank is below your MMR. You should also start to see fewer RR losses per loss as well. Lowering the amount of RR you lose per loss will make it so you’ll have to play fewer games to get to the Rank you deserve (while still giving us a few matches to test and make sure you belong at that rank).
Overall, you should feel less “hardstuck” if you’re getting matched into higher-skilled games than your actual rank. Those of you with exceptionally good individual performance in games where your team wins decisively will see close to 50 RR per win.
- Diamond 3 is now Solo/Duo.
We want to make sure that you can’t 5-stack all the way to the leaderboard, as well as reduce the amount of Immortal/Radiant 5-stacks you may encounter. This change, along with the convergence changes, reduces the total number of games that 5-stacks can play together before being forced to Solo/Duo.
The secondary goal of this change was to create a buffer to the leaderboards so we can build confidence that when you get to Immortal, you’ve truly earned it.
- Performance Bonus for Iron to Diamond.
Exceptional match performance should be rewarded differently than average performance. Right now, the matchmaker has an idea of how well you should perform whenever it puts you in a match. When you go above that expectation (above your average), extra RR is your reward.
This is to incentivize playing well but get you to stop comparing yourself to your teammates. The goal of ranked is to maintain a healthy, competitive queue where you all feel like you can challenge yourself to improve. As a secondary goal, this will also help push smurfs, or players who may have seen significant skill improvements, to higher ranks quickly.
