Modern Warfare 3 Ranked Play arrives in the mid-season update, giving players a full competitive mode to grind and earn unique rewards. Here’s a breakdown of how Skill Ratings, Division, Ranks, and even skill-based matchmaking work in MW3 Ranked Play.
Modern Warfare 3 Season 1 Reloaded brings a ton of fresh content to multiplayer, from a pair of new maps to learn to new guns like the TAQ Evolvere and HRM-9. It also marks the long-awaited arrival of Ranked Play, bringing a competitive mode to the game for the first time.
Copying the rules and regulations of the Call of Duty League, Modern Warfare 3 Ranked Play offers unique rewards as players climb through the leaderboards. But while CDL pros are competing for money and glory, Ranked Play fans are looking to reach the highest Skill Division possible.
Ahead of its launch in Season 1 Reloaded, here’s everything you need to know about Skill Divisions, Ranks, and more in MW3 Ranked Play.
MW3 Ranked Play Skill Divisions explained
ActivisionMW3 Ranked Play arrives in Season 1 Reloaded.
MW3 Ranked Play’s Skill Divisions are brackets that players are placed in based on their performance in matches. There are eight Skill Divisions in total, with everyone starting in Bronze 1 when Ranked arrives on January 17, 2023.
Skill Divisions are directly tied to the amount of Skill Rating a player has, and they can move into higher or lower brackets depending on how they do. The devs haven’t revealed the exact Skill Divisons or requirements just yet, but we expect them to be similar to MW2’s Ranked Play, which we’ve listed below:
- Bronze – 0-899 SR
- Silver – 900-2,099 SR
- Gold – 2,100-3,599 SR
- Platinum – 3,600-5,399 SR
- Diamond – 5,400-7,499 SR
- Crimson – 7,500-9,999 SR
- Iridescent – 10,000 SR minimum
- Top 250 – 10,000+ SR
Each Skill Division also features sub-tiers from one to three. At the end of each season, a Ranked Play reset takes effect, which knocks everyone down by three Skill Divisions and forces them to climb back up the ladder once again.
The highest a player can start at is Diamond 1, with the first of these resets taking place in MW3 Season 2.
How to earn SR in MW3 Ranked Play
Skill Rating is earned by winning and playing well in Modern Warfare 3 Ranked Play matches. At the end of each game, every player is awarded SR to help them edge closer to the next Skill Division, based on the result of the match, the number of kills, and objectives captured.
A defeat will result in a loss of Skill Rating, again based on how much a player contributed to the loss and the overall team performance.
ActivisionRanked Play uses the same maps, modes, and rules as the CDL.
What are Ranks in MW3 Ranked Play?
Ranks are a permanent form of progression in MW3 Ranked Play, as they don’t reset at the start of each season. All players begin at Rank 1, with each victory earning a star that contributes to the overall Rank, regardless of your kills or objectives captured.
Modern Warfare 2 featured 50 Ranks altogether to grind through, each of which unlocked a new reward such as a skin or Blueprint. Modern Warfare 3 will likely be the same, but this is yet to be confirmed by the devs.
MW3 Ranked Play SBMM explained
Modern Warfare 3 Ranked Play features a skill-based matchmaking system, meaning it creates lobbies full of players with a similar skill level. The SBMM is based on the Skill Division and SR of a player, so you should mostly find yourself in matches with enemies that are in the same or a similar bracket to you.
While it hasn’t been officially confirmed this time around, MW2 also featured a system that limited which players could party up based on their SR. For example, anyone in Diamond or Crimson could only be in a squad with someone within two Skill Divisions
This was to prevent top-tier players from joining forces with a friend in Bronze or Silver to terrorize lower-skill lobbies and boost their own SR in a less difficult environment.
There you have it! That was everything you need to know about Ranks, Skill Divisions, SR, and SBMM in Modern Warafre 3 Ranked Play.