THE FINALS’ matchmaking has had problems since the open playtest back in October 2023. While developer Embark Studios has addressed many issues so far, players are still suffering from being placed on empty teams in tournament modes.
In tournament modes, ranked or not, players are penalized for leaving the game. This happens because THE FINALS’ tournament modes are supposed to offer a more competitive environment. But, this also means if matchmaking lets you down, you’re stuck at a significant disadvantage with no way out.
THE FINALS players expressed their frustration on Reddit on Jan. 2, asking whether players should really be suspended from tournaments after they’re put on a team by themselves. “Like yeah, no shit, I’m gonna fucking leave,” the player wrote. Because there’s no point in playing the game by yourself, it just ends up being a waste of time.
The main issue is that tournament modes don’t backfill teams, unlike quick play. Or, if they do, it doesn’t work properly. This means if you find yourself on an unbalanced team, your only option is to struggle through the match or leave and receive a timeout penalty.
In the comments, the community suggested the developer allows players to disconnect from the match without a penalty one minute after the first teammate leaves, or implement a system that checks if the teams are full. In case a team has an empty slot, the match would be canceled or offer a surrender option in a similar way to how games like Overwatch 2 and VALORANT handle their competitive modes.
Matchmaking issues in THE FINALS have been persistent since December 2023 after the patch that was meant to improve matchmaking did the exact opposite. Players have been encountering bugs ranging from solo ranked games to being unable to reconnect, which also results in a suspension.
Embark stated it’s dedicated to ensuring the game runs great over adding new content, so it’s likely matchmaking is a top priority right now amid balancing changes.
