Gears of War 4 will adopt a “Season” setup for its multiplayer, the developer announced today. As in other games, including Halo 5, Seasons in Gears of War 4 will span “a few months,” during which time players will first earn ranks through placement matches and then move up or down based on their performance.
Ranks will reset at the end of a Season, so you’ll need to earn back your skill rating through new placement matches. In a blog post, developer The Coalition says it is still nailing down the specifics for how long Gears of War 4’s seasons will last.
Players can earn new rewards, including weapon skin sets, for rising through the ranks. There are tiers including Bronze, Silver, Gold, Onyx, and Diamond, with skin sets matching these.
The Coalition also announced that it’s adding a new skill-based algorithm for Gears of War 4 to improve the quality of the game’s ranking system.
“This updated version of our Skill Ratings should improve the accuracy of your Tier Placements, and take more of your Skill over time into account,” the developer explained. “When this system goes live, you may find your initial placement Tier is higher or lower than expected compared to Season 0. This is actually a more accurate representation of your skill (and performance in your placement matches) so brace for potential changes!”
Also in the blog post, The Coalition said a future update for Gears of War 4 will address team balance for ranked play. The update, due out in the “coming days,” will adjust the game so that “while players from different tiers will play together at times–teams should now be much more evenly balanced tier for tier.”