Dota 2 Matchmaking system: Is Behavior Score actually effective?

In early 2019, Valve introduced Behavior Score, a new matchmaking parameter for Dota 2. But after two years, fans can't help but wonder if the system is actually effective.

Can you fix this shit Valve? I have 10k behavior score and would rather wait 45 minutes for a game than play with the absolute wretched toxic people that grieves and ruins games from the first minute. https://t.co/C15leTXQm2 #dota2 pic.twitter.com/JXbJMIIaQi

— Reddit Dota 2 (@redditdota2) April 14, 2021

In late 2018, Valve faced considerable backlash from the community due to the poor matchmaking of Dota 2.

Rampant smurfs and toxic players were the primary reason for the complaints. Smurfs and toxic players ruined games for the four other players on their team, and sometimes even the five players on the enemy team.

In a recent post to r/dota2, user u/TrinitronCRT highlighted the major problem with the Behavior Score system, which essentially boils down to the fact that Valve doesn't prioritize the Behavior Score enough.

Note: This article is subjective and solely reflects the opinion of the writer.

Related: Why is Techies one of the most frustrating to play against heroes in Dota 2

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What is Behavior Score in Dota 2, and is it really effective?

Dota 2 is a mentally challenging game. One needs mental discipline as much as skills to excel in Dota 2. Unfortunately, Dota 2 brings out the worst in certain people. And these people become exceedingly toxic in the game. They might hurl abuse at another player in the chat or simply ruin games for their own team.

Players like those can be reported, while players who play normally can be commended. Reports and commends for players are compiled into a single score out of 10,000, known as the Behavior Score.

When a player queues for a game, Valve will find teammates and opponents for them based on their Matchmaking Rank or MMR. In addition to that, their teammates are supposed to have a similar Behavior Score as them.

But that is where the problem starts. Either the player base is too thin, or queue times are way too long for Valve's liking because quite often, the Behavior Score is simply ignored during matchmaking.

The dreaded Varied Behavior Scores

After one has played a game, the post-game screen shows whether the players in the match had "similar" or "varied" Behavior Scores. More often than it should be, the result comes out varied. Varied basically means players on a team have much lower Behavior Scores than a specific player does and are more likely to ruin games.

The Behavior Score problem is too widespread to be ignored

In late 2020, Dota 2 hit one of its lowest average weekly players ever. Poor quality of matches removes the fun from Dota 2, and video games are supposed to be exactly that, fun. This has caused several players to quit Dota 2, as seen in the comment above from a Reddit user.

The Behavior Score isn't necessarily effective as of now. Hopefully, Valve will sort this problem out soon as a whole bunch of new players will join the game after watching Dota Dragon's Blood, and the Behavior Score problem might push them away from the game.