How Xbox 360's Halo 3 Matchmaking Works

Halo3 is the third game in the most popular, best-selling franchise that is available only on Xbox 360. Many die-hard fans and casual gamers alike were blown away by the stunning graphics when viewed in high definition. Many people stayed up all night with their friends to beat Halo 3 on legendary, or to tackle it alone for the ultimate challenge. The best part about Halo 3 though, and what gives it plenty of replay value is the Xbox Live Matchmaking.

To have the ability to play an endless amount of games, with people similar to your skill level, allows the Xbox 360 and Halo 3 owner to continue to hone their skills and to play exciting matches without having to have anyone in the room with you. While the game is still new, there may be some kinks that need to be worked out, but the Xbox 360 Halo 3 matchmaking is addition to the game.

How does matchmaking work on Halo 3?

One of the major aspects of the matchmaking service is skill rank. Your skill rank, in the different matchmaking modes, goes up if you are winning, and it goes down as you are losing. The skill level also takes into effect who you played against, what their skill level was in comparison to yours, and it is all calculated to determine your Halo 3 skill rank. This skill rank system was improved upon from Halo 2. According to Bungie.net, the makers of the Halo 3 matchmaking system, "One of Halo 2's defining features was its ability to match players of similar skill levels, for the most enjoyable possible games, with the fairest outcomes. Although it was a success, we've used that experience and data to build an even better, more accurate, and fairer system, that will ensure even more balance, better matching and less cheating and abuse than ever before."

One of the ways that they accomplish that, is by the new experience points (EXP) system. Experience points are given, for playing all aspects of matchmaking. Your experience increases depending on how well you do in each game that you play. Everyone is able to see your universal experience points number. That way, when you are getting matched up, you can see how many games someone has played. If they are on a mediocre level, but they have a large number of EXP, then you'll know that the person has been playing Halo 3 for quite some time.

Making having fun easier in Halo 3

Bungie.net and Xbox Live have made it easier for people to join up, and to play the games they really want to play. In Halo 3, they have added the ability for people on the same team to immediately party up if they so choose. Previously, in Halo 2, you had to go to your friends list, go to the recent friends section, and then request to join them. Now, in Halo 3, all you need to do is press "X" and you will link up with whoever else presses "X." Also, there is another way to enhance the experience is a new feature to help you with getting the games that you want. When a game is presented, you can choose to veto the game, and if a majority of players choose to veto, then a new game map and type will be chosen. Lastly, if you just want to have fun and not have it ranked, Xbox 360's Live service and Bungie.net have allowed you to just play social, non-ranked matches in match making on Halo 3.

There you have it. Although it's not a perfect system, it is definitely a great way to meet up with your friends online, and have a great time playing Halo 3 for the Xbox 360. You now know the basics of how the matchmaking system works! Enjoy, and go kill some aliens Master Chief!