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You've run into this problem before - perhaps in an RTS, or perhaps in another matchmaking-competitive game that only allows emotes to communicate.
You have a thrilling match against a cunning opponent, and despite losing you are grinning ear to ear at the end of the match. You send a friend request - but no answer. You shrug and queue up again, the name of your opponent already fading from memory..
On the other end of the line a player has just had a hard-won match, snatching a last-second victory from the jaws of defeat. They receive a friend request from the opponent - but last time this happened, they got called slurs. So why answer this time? They shrug and queue up again, the name of their opponent already fading from memory...
Communication in competitive games carries with it the risk of sore losers, and that risk poisons the well of social interaction. But to make a truly social RTS, there needs to be some impetus to make friends rather than treating the MMR as an automated enemy dispenser.
Enter: FRENEMIES.
At the loading and defeat screens, you are shown your win/loss record against that opponent. After the match, if your W/L is tied or negative, you can add them as a Frenemy.
Frenemy players are bumped to the top of your matchmaking priority, provided you still qualify to face them. In addition, once you are both mutual frenemies, you are prompted to become Friends if you both agree.
Such a system would help elevate MMR opponents from nameless NPCs to real humans with whom you can form a lasting connection - even if you have no interest in becoming friends, you can still make fond memories.
What say you? Would such a system improve your matchmaking experience?
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