We don't yet know whether or not Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 will feature skill-based matchmaking (SBMM), but one Infinity Ward lead promises the devs will be "transparent" about the situation soon.
SBMM is a divisive topic within the Call of Duty player base – while as the name suggests, it's a system that aims to match players with similar skill levels against each other for a more balanced experience, some argue that doing so makes the game feel less casual and more sweaty, removing the joy from matches where you're head and shoulders above the competition.
Right now, neither Activision nor Infinity Ward have confirmed the extent to which SBMM will be implemented in the upcoming game (if at all), but we at least know that we should find out soon. Asked about it on Twitter, Infinity Ward co-studio head Mark Grigsby simply responds: "All will be revealed soon, and transparent."
All will be revealed soon, and transparent. 🫡May 29, 2026
Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 went through a few ups and downs with its own SBMM – in the runup to its release, it was announced that "at launch, Open Matchmaking with minimal skill consideration will be the default matchmaking." Then, it was later clarified that this wouldn't apply to all playlists, with the majority "similar to the Beta experience where skill is minimally considered." Not everyone was happy about this – some called it a "rug pull" and a "backtrack," and perhaps this could be influencing the devs' immediate promise to be open about their plans this time around.
This is already going down well with fans, too. "It's actually crazy think that if you go back just 2-3 years you'd have never seen a studio head of COD openly replying to someone asking about SBMM. Crazy how things have changed. Only uphill from here," former CoD leaker Ghost of Hope responds.
"If he can deliver on this, then there might be hope," another replies.
Frankly, it seems incredibly unlikely that Infinity Ward will be able to please everyone in practice. For as many people who love the feeling of destroying their opponents, you'll no doubt have just as many who'd be left frustrated in the face of constant annihilation thanks to being matched with players more skilled than them. How the devs will tackle this, then, remains to be seen, but at least they're planning on telling us.
