How do ranking and rating systems work in games?
Most competitive games track your skill with a hidden number, often called MMR (matchmaking rating), that goes up when you win and down when you lose. The matchmaker uses it to find opponents of similar skill. What you see on screen, such as Silver, Gold or Diamond, is a visible rank that roughly follows that hidden rating.
How the rating moves
Most systems descend from the Elo system used in chess, or newer models like Glicko and TrueSkill.
- Beating a stronger opponent earns more points than beating a weaker one.
- Losing to a weaker opponent costs more.
- New players' ratings move quickly at first, then settle as the system becomes more confident.
Examples
- League of Legends: tiers from Iron up through Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Emerald and Diamond to Master, Grandmaster and Challenger. Below Master, each tier has four divisions, and you climb by earning League Points (LP) from wins.
- Fortnite Ranked: Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, Elite, Champion and Unreal. Ranks reset at intervals, usually with new seasons.
- Dota 2: a visible medal (Herald to Immortal) linked to your MMR.
Letter ranks (S, A, B)
Games that grade performance with letters usually follow Japanese school grading: S is above A, and extra S's (SS, SSS) mean even better. These are performance grades, not matchmaking ratings.
FAQ
What does MMR stand for?
Matchmaking rating: the number the game uses to find fair opponents.
Is S rank higher than A?
Yes. S sits above A in almost every game that uses letter grades.
What is a good MMR?
It depends on the game. A useful guide is your percentile: being above the median of active ranked players already puts you in the upper half.
Do ranks reset?
In many games, yes, at the start of a new season, often with a soft reset that places you near your previous level.