Why do promo games exist?

themachamp2·3/6/2015, 10:11:34 AM·6 votes·2,607 views

Maybe its just me but.....does anyone else agree that they are just an artificial barrier using a small subset of your games played? It feels like it has more to do with luck than skill. Not to mention that you lose a game for dodging for some stupid reason. Least in non promo games i can take my -3 and be fine...yet im forced to play with trolls and lose....or just lose. Its my 3rd promo series to silver and this shit never ends. Can we just do away with promo games altogether? Lets be fair....they are just a pain in the ass that cause more frustration than anything else.

Edit: After 4 promo series, i finally won it. Even though my overall record is 56w-37L it took forever....like almost a week to win it >

14 Comments

SmokingPuffin3/6/2015, 4:45:16 PM3 votes

Promos are about breaking up the grindy feel of acquiring elo in a pure ladder system. Gives people a short term goal and a sense of accomplishment when they win. From the ranking system's perspective, the series is just window dressing; it doesn't affect how much MMR you gain or lose and, over the long term, whether you win or lose this series has no real impact on your rating.

They work really really well. The share of the playerbase that plays ranked, and the number of ranked games per player per season, are both up huge compared to the old system.

DaCush3/6/2015, 10:14:00 AM3 votes

To piss you and everyone else else off

GnomeDigest3/6/2015, 4:46:29 PM2 votes

Because Riot has told us we are excited to play promotional series! What? You aren't excited? But Riot has top notch psychologists that know exactly how we as players experience their wonderfully designed systems. Still not excited huh? I don't know why a small subset of games that inordinately effect your advancement where trolls and dcs can have a much higher effect on your situation would bother you.

I know! Riot will just add to the summoners code that "Summoners must be excited to play promotional series. They will consider it the bestest most exciting part of their ladder climb. Summoners who complain about the design of our brilliant system will be in violation of the summoners code."

Then again, we are all already excited by these series (because riot says so) so I guess the above is redundant.

The Drewprint3/6/2015, 11:37:16 AM2 votes

Dude, Ranked isn't meant for whiny brats who don't fully understand the game yet, or, you know, learn how to mold themselves into being good at this game. I am disappointed that you, being Silver elo, think this way.

90% of any game you play guarantees a troll, 98% a feeder, and as far as winning, always stays at 50/50 (given your mentality, I'd say 20/80).

If breezing your way up the ranking ladder was as simple as breathing, what would you learn?

HamburgerJunior3/6/2015, 4:30:56 PM1 votes

Honestly, i can totally get behind this. Last season i had to do my placements 6 times to get to silver. If not get rid of promo games as a whole. Can it at least be best of 3? Because best of 5 is just shit.

Sailor Mint3/6/2015, 3:34:46 PM1 votes

Because the league system in general is much easier to climb in than the old Elo system.

You can climb on a 50% win rate.
Losing at 0LP or successful promotion series doesn't hurt you as much.
Removal of clamping before Diamond means you can still get promotion series with a bad MMR.

You just need to be able to not streak horribly for 2 to 5 games. In the old system, going 50/50 would slowly make you drop ratings.

themachamp23/7/2015, 5:28:19 AM1 votes

Lol, im far from excited....more...."oh boy time for the best of 5 lottery" rolls the dice I just wish they could give us dodge credits or something. Cause some games you know are just lost from champ select. ex: 2 people fighting and pick urgot/evelyn and take troll summoners in hopes of forcing a dodge. Well....if i play i lose....dodge i lose....guess this type of thing slipped through the cracks in testing.