Blizzard using bots to 'entertain' us in Ranked - misleading and annoying

Yes, there are players using bots - and some have been banned for it. There are several projects out there, some commercial and some open source (Hearthranger, Hearthrock and others).

But Blizzard is also using bots, in a very misleading way. Here’s how to recognize them:

  • They have a name made up of 2 words stuck together (today I encountered CrankyPants and NightRaven);
  • They play their cards instantly (and stupidly);
  • Most importantly: they do not show up on the ‘recent opponents list’.

If you spot a bot (instant play; plays that make no sense) that DOES appear in the ‘recent opponent list’, it’s a player bot.

Usually bots are easy to beat, and you get a relatively quick free win. After you make it to Diamond 5 or higher, the bots are (mostly?) gone. But that’s not the point.

This is a PvP game. I play it to achieve a real rank, against human opponents. If I’d like to play versus a bot, I’d start up a solo game. And yes, I’d rather wait for a few minutes for a real opponent, than get an easy win and move up the ladder.

Blizzard has apparently added these bots to:

  • Reduce wait times;
  • Fill up the player ranks with fake players to give the false impression that there is a large community to play against;
  • Give players a ‘winning’ boost (I usually get one after I’ve lost 1 or 2 games) and move up the ladder faster, making them feel better and encouraging them to spend money on the game.

I’ve seen bots up until Diamond 5, but more frequently on the lower ranks. Besides, the number of bots seems to be increasing: which likely means the number of active players is decreasing.

What really annoys me is that Blizzard has made none of this public. They ban players who ‘cheat’ using bots, while at the same time cheating players, giving them a false sense of achievement, ultimately to get them to spend more money.

I’m one step closer to fully move over to MtG Arena or Gwent.

5 Likes

because players dont do this

You failed the reading test.

This isn’t speculation. It is factual.

1 Like

is it? nothing i read is 100% provable and most sounds like conspiracy theorys

Do some more research. Read the NA forums. Check the ‘recent opponents’ list after you play a suspected bot.

The question is not: is it true, but: why does Blizzard not inform its players?

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okay dude. read the na forums? no theyre a toxic cesspool

This is a good thing, because sometimes there are not enough players around of a similar MMR to yours. Would you rather wait an hour instead, with the skill difference that the system slowly widens as it looks for a match, eventually landing in a game that is a total stomp either in your favor or the opponent’s? Or would you rather wait 5 minutes at most for a match against an official bot that most likely can’t beat a super-optimized deck?

This makes no sense as it’s already been established how these bots are named. Someone who knows this won’t fall for the trick. Sure, new players might, but everyone was new at some point.

This also makes no sense. Why would you feel the need to spend more money if what you’ve currently got is winning you games already?

Cheating them how exactly? As you’ve already stated, they are relatively free wins. Sure, if their MMR gets too high they’ll face actual players who will stomp but then their MMR will start readjusting until they get to a point where they should win around 50% of the time, which is what the system is designed to do. One way or another they will end up where they’re meant to be, and if they want to get better, they’ll have to start putting effort into it.

Which is not the same thing as money.

I mean it is just frustrating to play a PvP game and not have it actually be PvP. I do see Blizzard’s point of view as a company but like, it’s still a sh*tty business practice. Also, I could see a rebuttal being that this is actually misleading shareholders if they think the game is thriving when it’s actually just a dying game full of bots.

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Because blZz is losing too many players every day. Because they have great design teams.
The unstoppable super intelligence Nept. Morn. Priest deck continues.

not only getting f tired of the bots but also the WORTHY OPPONONENT “my *ss”. Sick and tired of playing in Rank Standard Bronze and getting DIAMOND worty oppononents…
get it together Blizzard

1 Like

if you have star bonus its based on that if nor mmr not rank

The game is broken in general, at least in Standard Mode. The team behind of this project, instead of balance the game just spam with patches with more new cards and combos xD
They are lost in the middle of the ocean searching for land…

Can confirm at least #1 isn’t true. When I signed up for a blizzard account via my PSN for Overwatch 2, it gave me a randomly generated ID.

I didn’t really notice and was waiting for the opportunity to enter a proper username but it never came.

So I am now forever GrayBat. My old blizzard ID from WoW and my previous hearthstone was lost to the aether, a 2factor dongle thing and an old email never to be retrieved.

I agree they do use bots, but also they use AI, it learns, it isn’t so easy to beat, and is mostly present in BGs.

You van change it in account settings on battle.net website

To add to this, you get one free change then the any more you have to purchase at extortionate prices, as is the Blizzard way :slight_smile:

I really can’t understand why are ppl complaning about bots… much more easy to beat them then players… free win… If you get bots instead of real players then your win rate is too low… it is simple as that… learn to defeat bots, then the game will give you players. :slight_smile: