The players have won, it seems. Skill based matchmaking (SBMM) has been a hot topic in the Call of Duty community, and the Black Ops 7 beta has trialed playlists that significantly dial back its influence.
It seems to have been a hit, and it's even won over this jaded old man who, for the most part, felt protected by SBMM from the sweatiest players out there. But I've tried it, and after some initial woes, came to love it.
Today, as the beta ends, Activision has announced that open matchmaking will be the default option for Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 when it launches on November 14.
The Call of Duty community is unmatched, and we thank you for joining us in the Black Ops 7 Beta over the last week. This Beta has provided Treyarch the opportunity to try new things and rapidly test and implement player feedback. Building on this feedback, we can confirm that… pic.twitter.com/BKDWLCtoR2October 9, 2025
SBMM isn't completely gone, but it will be minimal in lobbies by default. In theory (I hope, anyway) it should protect the more casual players, such as myself, from playing in lobbies against a stack of professional players.
Besides more varied lobbies, the open matchmaking also had the knock on effect of lower latency when reducing the impact of looking for players at a similar skill level. Lower latency is always a win for a competitive multiplayer game.
Part of the problem SBMM has had is that even if you're generally an average skill level player, if you have a few really strong games, you seem to be dropped into a lobby that resembles the Call of Duty League finals. At which point those players have a bad time.
It's not the only thing announced today relevant to the launch of the game, either. Another often requested feature will also be added for day one; persistent lobbies.
"We’ve heard the community discussion and dialogue around lobby disbanding, and as we mentioned earlier during the Beta, we’re focused on keeping players together from match to match more often. Today, we’re excited to announce we’ll have persistent lobbies at launch for Black Ops 7. We’re committed to improving this experience for players, and will be sharing more details soon."
In addition, rotational aim assist has also been name-dropped, with particular note to aim assist tuning for controller being addressed. The idea is to have a fair balance across "all inputs," since mouse and keyboard players often feel at a disadvantage given Call of Duty's heavy focus on controller play.
Whether it's because genuinely Activision wants to make Black Ops 7 the best experience it can be, whether they're scared players will jump ship to Battlefield 6, or whatever, doesn't matter. Open matchmaking changed the beta for the better, and to end it with this confirmation for launch will certainly help players feel good going into it.
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