Bungie discussing matchmaking for Destiny's Raid
"That's a really tricky topic..."
Bungie is discussing the possibility of adding matchmaking to Destiny's Raid.
Destiny's six-person Raid, called Vault of Glass, does not feature the option for matchmaking with strangers - a controversial decision the developer took because it wanted players to plan and tackle the tougher mission with friends.
At the time Bungie writer Luke Smith said he could "understand everyone's frustration about the decision... and the limitations that this places on the activity's adoption at scale.
"That barrier to entry - the requirement that you get a group of people together and venture into something that is going to challenge your ability to work together (first) and your thumbs (second) - is a barrier I was willing to erect to preserve the activity goals," he explained.
So, what's to be done? In the latest Bungie Weekly Update community chief David "Deej" Dague said the developer was trying to work that out right now.
"That's a really tricky topic," Dague said.
"You don't need to sell us too hard on the value of Matchmaking at Bungie. It's something we helped to pioneer. Yet, we understand its limitations. In the recipe of a Bungie game, Matchmaking has always contributed the ingredient of a team built to play one match of competitive multiplayer. As you've probably witnessed in recent weeks (or years), many of those fresh allies have failed to go the distance together.
"The Raid was designed for solid teams of killers who have made a commitment to solve a dense and explosive riddle. Most of the raiding parties who have emerged victorious from the Vault of Glass have sworn that one weak link would have doomed their chain. There have been other stories, of course. We've heard tell of Guardians who met each other just outside the door that leads into that vault. Strange tales have reached our ears - tales of total strangers who have banded together to see the Raid all the way through to a triumphant finale.
"Those stories surprise us, but the players of our games always have. The best I can do to answer your question is to let you know that you've been heard. We're having conversations about how Matchmaking might support the more challenging activities in Destiny. It's a start. Keep sounding off about it, and maybe someday some matchmade Fireteam mates will hear you, too."
Meanwhile, Dague indicated there may be a chance for private matches, too. Private matches, a staple of Bungie's Halo games, would allow friends to play Destiny against each other.
"I totally get it," Dague said. "I want that, too. I'll keep bringing it up. In the meantime, I'll have some dares and challenges to issue to the competitive community. Keep your sights trained on us."
