Editing Rank (Halo 2)

{{Status|Gameplay}}

{{Title|''Halo 2'' multiplayer ranks}}

{{Center|''This article is about the rank system in ''[[Halo 2]]''. For more articles of the same name, see [[Rank]].''}}

[[File:H2 MP Rank Icons.jpg|thumb|300px|Halo 2 rank images]]

The '''ranking system''' in ''[[Halo 2]]'' is the numeric representation of a player's [[multiplayer]] experience.{{Ref/Site|Id=Bnet|URL=https://halo.bungie.net/stats/content.aspx?link=h2statoverview|Site=Bungie.net|Page=Halo 2 Stats Overview|D=02|M=12|Y=2014}} An [[Rank (Halo: The Master Chief Collection)|identical system]] based on the ''Halo 2'' rank system is also employed in the competitive playlists for ''[[Halo: The Master Chief Collection]]''.

''Halo 2'' uses a skill-based [[matchmaking]] system, informed by a numeric value of 1-50 to represent a given player's skill level in any given playlist. When matching players for online games, the algorithms in question try and pair up similarly-skilled players to ensure roughly evenly-matched games. The displayed 1-50 rank is an abstraction of an [[XP]] value, hidden to the player and calculated behind-the-scenes. Each game completed awards or removes XP, depending on the result of the match - this means that poor performance in a game can result in losing rank, while winning results in players ranking up. Ranks are calculated purely on wins and losses, meaning actual in-game performance such as [[KDR]], [[Flag]] captures, bomb plants, hills captured etc do not affect the final result; merely being on the team does.{{Ref/Reuse|Bnet}}

Rank is calculated per-playlist, meaning that a player's performance in one playlist does not affect their rank in another.{{Ref/Reuse|Bnet}}

Once a game is completed, the game awards or removes XP from each player depending on the final result. This is achieved by consulting a table (shown below), dependant on the difference in level. In broad terms, winning or losing matches against similarly-ranked players nets a lower XP gain/loss, whereas winning matches against players with higher skill gaps will gain greater rewards or greater loss. For a given player in the game, the table is consulted to perform a matchup against every single player of an enemy team in the game - if the player has completed a match of 8v8 slayer, the table would be consulted to determine the XP gain/loss for all eight opposing players. Once these values are tallied, the total is divided by the amount of enemy players, to gain a final XP value for the game as a whole.{{Ref/Reuse|Bnet}}

! Level difference !! Higher win{{Ref/Note|Id=Higher|These values apply to the player of the higher level per-matchup.}} !! Higher loss{{Ref/NoteReuse|Higher}} !! Lower win{{Ref/Note|Id=Lower|These values apply to the player of the lower level per-matchup.}} !! Lower loss{{Ref/NoteReuse|Lower}}

To calculate Player A's total XP gain, the table must be consulted three times - once for each player they matched up again. In this case, they won against a player with a three level difference, a two level difference and a five level difference. Thus, it can be determined that Player A earned 79, 85 and 70 XP - respectively. This value is then summed to get a total of 234, before divided by three to get an average value of +78XP. This calculation is done for every player to determine each player's XP gain/loss.{{Ref/Reuse|Bnet}}

With the player's total XP values known, the game can display a single rank number as a representative of their overall skill. Ranks are indicated by a 1-50 value, with a new player holding rank 1 and the highest-ranked players holding rank 50, with most players averaging around rank 10. Each rank has a simple icon alongside its number, with the final [[seven]] ranks holding a unique symbol - a nod to [[Bungie]]'s love for the number. Each rank has an XP bracket assigned (shown below). However, in order to prevent frustration at constantly flipping between two ranks if games are repeatedly won and lost, players will keep their 1-50 rank value even if they drop below the original requirements to achieve it, and won't de-rank until they hit the mid-point of the previous rank's requirement. For example, if a player needs 10,000XP to hit a new rank, achieves 10,000XP but then loses a game and drops below the 10,000XP total, they won't revert back to the previous level until their XP total hits 5,000XP.{{Ref/Reuse|Bnet}}

|style="background:#444"| [[File:MCC - Rank 25.png|25px|center]] || 4000 || 4249

|style="background:#444"| [[File:MCC - Rank 27.png|25px|center]] || 4500 || 4749

The 1-50 rank held by a given player determines which players they will match up with in multiplayer matchmaking, by aiming to match players up with similarly-ranked players. The matchup requirements are listed below.{{Ref/Reuse|Bnet}}

With the systems listed above, one last consideration is the XP modifiers given by rank. In order to help new players in being able to level up, lower-ranked players are not penalised as hard when losing matches while they are low-leveled. This % value peters off as they level up and by rank 29, is no longer in effect. However, ''Halo 2''{{'}}s online XP is a zero-sum system, meaning that there is a set amount of XP points available to the entire player population as a whole, and the raw XP gain/loss systems ensure when a player loses against another player, the winning player gains the same amount of XP as lost by the loser. In order to maintain this system, the higher-ranked players begin seeing the opposite affect applied to their wins. Upon reaching rank 42, players will begin earning a lower percentage of the XP they would otherwise earn, with this penalty increasing per-rank, capping out at max-rank players at level 50 only receiving 50% of the XP they earn for a win.{{Ref/Reuse|Bnet}}

|style="background:#444"| [[File:MCC - Rank 10.png|25px|center]]{{Ref/Note|Id=Loss|Text=The original Bungie-provided stat table listed [https://halo.bungie.net/stats/content.aspx?link=h2statoverview here] lists two values for ranks 10 and 11. It is unknown which value is correct, so both have been listed for clarity.}} || 40.00%<br/>50.00%  ||style="background:#444"| [[File:MCC - Rank 50.png|25px|center]] || 50%

The rank system found in ''Halo 2'' was designed by ''Halo 2'' multiplayer lead [[Max Hoberman]], based on his experiences in the rank systems for Bungie's previous game, ''[[Wikipedia:Myth (video game series)|Myth]]''. In ''Myth'', players were able to achieve up to twenty-five ranks in multiplayer play, each with a unique name and icon with the highest rank being the "Comet". Due to how fun and addictive he considered the system, Hoberman knew he wanted to implement a similar feature for ''Halo 2''. Hoberman was suggested by designer Michael Evans to look at the [[Wikipedia:Elo rating system|Elo rating system]] used in Chess tournaments, which starts all players in the middle of the ranking scale and moves them up or down depending on their successes and failures. Hoberman liked this system, but wanted to preserve the element of progression from ''Myth'', and decided to try and combine the two. Hoberman's intent was to create a system like Elo, in which players gain or lose ranks by exchanging points in matches, while also having a flat progression scale from 0-25. Hoberman designed a specification for the system largely arbitrarily, and ultimately was able to implement the feature relatively hassle-free.{{Ref/Generic|Id=H2:A|[[Halo 2: Artifacts]]|Episode 2 - The Social Revolution (50:00)}}

 

To test the system, Hoberman wrote an article for distribution internally at [[Bungie]] and [[Microsoft]], detailing in-depth how the system worked in a hope that crafty players would be able to analyse the system and find ways to break it. This testing included an open letter sent to all employees, offering any player who could break the rank system free Bungie merchandise and the chance to have part of one of ''Halo 2''{{'}}s multiplayer maps named after them (among 10 other prize categories) - though no employee was able to claim this prize. Nonetheless, the launch of ''Halo 2'' soon found issues with the system due to the unexpected prevalence of cheaters and hackers using fake [[Xbox LIVE]] accounts. The article written by Hoberman was later published on [[Bungie.net]], and remained online until the site's shutdown in [[2021 (real world)|2021]].{{Ref/Reuse|H2:A}}

 

[[File:H2 UnusedRankIcons.png|thumb|250px|Various iterations for ''Halo 2''{{'}}s multiplayer rank icons, as recovered by the [[Digsite]] project.{{Ref/Twitter|Id=Icons|zeddikins|1768762379897102482|zeddikins|Quote=Over at #Digsite we've uncovered a couple earlier iterations of Halo 2's rank icons, and today I'd like to share them. There could have been more throughout development, but this is just what we've found.|D=16|M=03|Y=2024}} The raw icons for these ranks can be downloaded from the Digsite ''Halo 2'' GitHub repo.]]

The rank icons for the rank system were designed by [[David Candland]]. In the original mockups, there were only 25 ranks (a holdover from the ''Myth'' ranks), each represented by an icon of the various ''Halo'' universe species such as [[Unggoy|Grunts]], [[Kig-Yar|Jackals]], [[Sangheili|Elites]] and the final rank being a [[San'Shyuum|Prophet]].{{Ref/Reuse|H2:A}} The icons as of [[2004 (real world)#July|July 2004]] include the following ranks:{{Ref/Reuse|Icons}}

*[[Unggoy|Grunts]] - 5 ranks (represented by the emblem present on [[Unggoy combat harness|Grunt armour]]){{Ref/Reuse|Icons}}

*[[Yanme'e|Drones]] - 3 ranks (represented by a stylised interpretation of a Drone){{Ref/Reuse|Icons}}

*[[Kig-Yar|Jackals]] - 3 ranks (represented by a [[Kig-Yar point defense gauntlet|Jackal shield]]){{Ref/Reuse|Icons}}

*[[Mgalekgolo|Hunters]] - 2 ranks (represented by a stylised interpretation of a Hunter){{Ref/Reuse|Icons}}

*[[Jiralhanae|Brutes]] - 3 ranks (represented by a stylised interpretation of a [[Jovokada Workshop brute shot|brute shot]]){{Ref/Reuse|Icons}}

*[[Sangheili|Elites]] - [[Seven|7]] ranks (represented by an [[Energy sword (fiction)|energy sword]]){{Ref/Reuse|Icons}}

*[[San'Shyuum|Prophets]] - 2 ranks (represented by a [[Hierarchs|Hierarch]] headdress){{Ref/Reuse|Icons}}

 

By August 2004,{{Ref/Reuse|Icons}} the number of ranks had been doubled to 50, all bearing a shield background with a simple number. This was done due to the Covenant-based ranks being unclear during internal discussions, with questions about the Covenant's ranking system brought up. For example, when the [[Changing of the Guard]] occurs later in ''Halo 2''{{'}}s campaign, the [[Jiralhanae|Brutes]] are promoted to replace the Elites in the Covenant, meaning they would now technically "outrank" Elites - something that the Covenant-based multiplayer ranks would not be able to account for.{{Ref/Twitter|Id=BruteRanks|drcandland|1768765336894284275|David Candland|Quote=Ah yes. Had to move to numbers since ranks weren’t super clear. Do Elites outrank Brutes? Depends where you are in the campaign.|D=16|M=03|Y=2024}} Hoberman also intended to ship the ranks with unique identifying names to help foster more communication and easy recognition of the ranks, though ultimately was unable to do so after increasing the rank count from 25 to 50 - finding it infeasible to come up with so many unique names. However, such a system would later return in the [[Rank (Halo: Reach)|rank system]] created for [[2010]]'s ''[[Halo: Reach]]''. A month later in September 2004, the system seen in the final game was created, with the final [[seven]] ranks retaining unique iconography.{{Ref/Reuse|Icons}} In the final system, rank 49 is represented by comet - a nod to the original ''Myth'' system in which the top-ranked player was "The Comet".{{Ref/Reuse|H2:A}}

[[Category:Game rank|2, Halo]]