Call of Duty Petition Calls for Skill-Based Matchmaking to Leave Public Lobbies

A fresh community campaign is putting one of Call of Duty multiplayer's longest-running arguments back in the spotlight. Creator Tdawgsmitty has launched an online petition calling for skill-based matchmaking, commonly shortened to SBMM, to be removed from the franchise's unranked multiplayer playlists.

The proposal does not ask for matchmaking based on player performance to disappear from Call of Duty altogether. Instead, it argues that ranked play is the appropriate home for a system designed to create tightly competitive matches, while public lobbies should place a heavier emphasis on connection quality, region, variety, and a more relaxed social experience.

The petition reportedly collected more than 500 signatures in roughly its first hour. That is a small number relative to the enormous Call of Duty audience, but it shows how quickly the subject can mobilize a section of the community. SBMM has been debated across multiple annual Call of Duty releases, with players split between those who value consistently even games and those who feel the system makes every session unnecessarily intense.

The new effort arrives around a month before Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 is due to launch. The game is expected to use the contentious matchmaking approach introduced earlier in the summer with Black Ops 7, ensuring that the issue will remain a prominent part of multiplayer discussion heading into the next release.

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What the petition is asking Activision to change

Tdawgsmitty's campaign focuses on unranked matchmaking rather than competitive playlists. The central idea is straightforward: players who choose ranked modes are knowingly opting into a more serious environment with visible progression and competitive stakes, so stronger skill balancing makes more sense there. Casual playlists, the petition argues, should offer a different experience.

That distinction reflects a common complaint from SBMM critics. They say public matches can feel too much like ranked play when every lobby is made up of players at a similar ability level. For those players, the concern is not merely losing. It is that each game can demand constant concentration, tightly optimized loadouts, and a high level of performance simply to have an enjoyable round.

The petition's description specifically highlights situations that can become frustrating under a highly performance-focused system: trying an unfamiliar weapon, unwinding after work, or playing with friends whose abilities differ substantially. In those circumstances, critics believe matchmaking can turn what should be a flexible, low-pressure playlist into another demanding test.

It also calls for better communication about how Call of Duty matchmaking operates and asks for opportunities for the community to test potential changes. That request for transparency is notable because discussions around SBMM often become muddled by incomplete information. Players may use the term to describe a range of hidden matchmaking factors, including recent performance, long-term skill estimates, party composition, connection quality, region, and other engagement-related considerations.

Without a detailed public explanation of how those factors are weighted in each playlist, players can struggle to separate a genuinely harsh matchmaking pattern from the natural streaks, adaptation, and uneven team balance that occur in any large online game. More clarity would not necessarily end disagreement, but it could give players a clearer basis for discussing what the system is intended to accomplish.

A familiar argument over fairness and fun

The debate surrounding SBMM is complicated because both sides are generally talking about fairness, but they mean different things by it. Supporters of skill-based systems tend to argue that new or less experienced players should not regularly be placed against opponents who can overwhelm them. More even matches can help a multiplayer game remain approachable, particularly for players who have limited time or are still learning maps, movement, weapon behavior, and objectives.

Critics, meanwhile, argue that an unranked mode should not promise perfectly calibrated competition. They want a broader range of match experiences, including the possibility of easier and harder games, unusual player combinations, and opportunities to experiment without the expectation that every opponent will be performing at a similar level. In their view, the unpredictability of older public lobbies was part of the appeal.

Connection is another major point of contention. Players frequently say they would rather have low-ping matches against a varied pool of opponents than face a more evenly skilled group if it means worse latency or a less stable game. The petition echoes that position by pointing to the importance of ping and region in earlier approaches to matchmaking.

Its description references comments from former Call of Duty developer Brian Bright regarding work on the canceled project known as NX1. Bright said that team's work focused on ping and region, while also describing a later shift in which Activision hired data scientists working with its marketing department who advocated for greater use of skill-based matchmaking. Those comments have fueled further questions from players about how the series' matchmaking priorities changed over time.

However, the exact balance between connection, location, skill, party makeup, and other factors can differ by game and playlist. Calls to eliminate SBMM from casual modes are therefore also calls for Activision to explain precisely what alternative it would use, and how it would protect connection quality and newcomer experience at the same time.

Recent Destiny backlash has encouraged the campaign

Tdawgsmitty has framed the petition as part of a wider moment in which gaming communities are testing how much influence organized player feedback can have. The campaign follows a major fan response to Bungie's earlier decision to end support for Destiny 2.

That decision drew intense backlash, including online protests and players choosing not to support Bungie's newer game, Marathon. Bungie subsequently said it would bring back vaulted content and continue supporting the Destiny franchise, a reversal that was enthusiastically received by many fans. Tdawgsmitty has pointed to that outcome as evidence that a coordinated community can help force a change of direction.

"This Destiny news is huge for gaming," Tdawgsmitty wrote on Twitter. "It shows we can use our voice and effect change. It's time for the COD community to step up and get some much needed changes to the direction its been headed."

There are important differences between the situations. Destiny's future and its vaulted content became a concentrated flashpoint for a community responding to a major franchise-level decision. Call of Duty matchmaking is an ongoing design issue affecting a huge audience with varied preferences, across many modes and platforms. Reaching a consensus on a replacement for SBMM may prove much harder than rallying around a single demand.

Still, petitions, feedback campaigns, social-media discussion, and purchasing decisions are among the few tools players have to express dissatisfaction with a live-service multiplayer design. Whether this particular campaign grows beyond its early signing surge will likely depend on how clearly it defines its desired outcome and whether it can attract players who agree on the problem but may disagree on the solution.

Infinity Ward says matchmaking will remain an ongoing discussion

Infinity Ward has already acknowledged that matchmaking is not a subject with a simple, final answer. In August, Modern Warfare 4 Multiplayer Design Lead Jacky Reynolds described it as a conversation that will continue, saying it is unlikely to become a fully "solved system" and that new iterations can always be explored.

Reynolds also said the aim is for players to have fun and experience variety in their matches. At the same time, Reynolds noted that she and a fellow multiplayer developer were not directly responsible for matchmaking, with their work centered on building multiplayer content rather than owning those systems.

That response is unlikely to fully satisfy players who want an immediate commitment to connection-first public lobbies. But it does indicate that developers recognize the issue as one requiring ongoing adjustment rather than a fixed formula. For a series with an audience as broad as Call of Duty's, any matchmaking model has to contend with competitive veterans, first-time players, solo users, large parties, social groups, regional populations, and varying network conditions.

What to watch as Modern Warfare 4 approaches

The petition does not guarantee a policy change, and Activision has not announced plans to remove SBMM from unranked Call of Duty playlists. Its early momentum nevertheless puts additional attention on a subject likely to follow Modern Warfare 4 through launch and beyond.

The most practical questions now are whether the campaign continues to gain signatures, whether Activision or its studios offer more detailed matchmaking communication, and whether future playlist tests give players a chance to compare different systems. A transparent test that measures connection quality, match variety, retention, and player satisfaction could provide a more useful discussion than anecdotal accounts alone.

For now, the petition crystallizes a clear demand from a vocal part of the Call of Duty community: keep ranked play competitive, but make public matches feel more open-ended. As the next Modern Warfare release nears, that argument is once again becoming one of the franchise's biggest multiplayer battlegrounds.