No, Black Ops 6 skill-based damage is not a real thing – obviously

The latest delusional matchmaking conspiracy making the rounds in the CoD community supposes that your skill level impacts your damage output. Obviously, this is total nonsense. Both in Black Ops 6 or any other CoD game.

Skill-based matchmaking (SBMM), is real, present in almost every online competitive game, and not going anywhere anytime soon. But, due to frustration around ‘sweaty’ opponents and harder games, some CoD players seem to have an endless list of conspiratorial matchmaking theories.

From your skins to your hours played, there have been many SBMM theories over the years. Some believe the less you spend on microtransactions, the harder your matches will be.

To be fair, most of these theories are spawned from real patents filed either by Activision or Electronic Arts. The problem is, most of these patents, such as EOMM (engagement-optimized matchmaking) are totally misunderstood, grossly exaggerated in their scope, and typically, have never even been used in any title.

And this latest matchmaking conspiracy is no different – so what’s all this fuss about skill-based damage?

Is skill-based damage used in Black Ops 6?

No, there is no such thing as skill-based damage used in Black Ops 6. Let’s just get that out the way first of all.

To explain, the belief was that if you performed badly in one game, your damage may be slightly or even considerably buffed in the following match, to help you feel better about your performance. Some even claim this can happen on the fly in the same match, if you were to go on a death-streak.

And, on the contrary, if you have a string of good games with high kills, your damage in subsequent matches would be decreased, to stop your streak of domination. All of this, is, of course, nonsense.

This bizarre claim was, unsurprisingly, sparked by a patent Activision filed for use in Skylanders. This is the same patent, unrelated to Call of Duty, that caused the clamor over microtransaction-based matchmaking too.

It has nothing to do with Black Ops 6, or any Call of Duty game for that matter.

Activision

Still, once the rumor started, it’s taken on a life of its own. Over on Reddit, threads ask “is skill based damage actually a thing?” and “Anyone else feel like skill based damage is a thing?”

The comments rarely help. “Yes skill based damage is for sure a thing,” one comment highlighted on Google search shows. Another adds, “It’s 100% a real thing,” before explaining a single interaction they had as irrefutable proof.

Another thread response claims “the game literally makes you superman,” after a bad run. “I feel it kick in.”

Activision has already denied skill-based damage

Other than the fact it’s obviously a ridiculous idea, Activision has also shut down these rumors in the past. In their “Inside look at matchmaking” blog, they confirm:

“Does the Call of Duty matchmaking process impact any in-game elements such as hit registration, player visibility, aim assist, damage, et cetera?

No. Our matchmaking process does not impact gameplay elements.“

If you feel like your damage is inconsistent, it’s much more likely to be network-related, or simple placebo effect. You can rest easy, while there is skill-based matchmaking in Call of Duty, and it’s not going anywhere, your damage stats are unaffected.

If you find yourself having a tough time in matches, we can recommend our Black Ops 6 weapons tier list to make sure you’re using the most competitive guns in the current meta.