‘Rigged’ Matches? Marvel Rivals Players Demand Answers After NetEase Denies Using EOMM

Marvel Rivals players have been calling out the game’s matchmaking for months, and the conversation has intensified recently after developer NetEase publicly denied using a controversial system known as EOMM. Fans have pointed to patterns in match results and academic papers to explain what they see, while NetEase says it will release an explainer video about how matchmaking actually works.

• What players are claiming and where those claims started.
• NetEase’s public response and planned explainer video.
• Academic sources often cited in the debate: the 2017 EOMM paper and NetEase’s 2020 OptMatch paper.
• How some players have reacted in-game to suspected matchmaking behavior.

What players are saying

Since launch, some Marvel Rivals players have suggested the game’s matchmaking is being tuned to influence engagement rather than strictly match skill. In particular, the acronym EOMM — Engagement Optimized Matchmaking — has circulated widely in player posts and threads.

Some players have tracked their match histories and posted patterns they believe point to engineered streaks of wins and losses. In one Reddit post a player wrote:

“I don’t feel like I earned a win (unless it’s that truly amazing, 1% of the time, 30 minute match where everyone is of equal skill), and when I lose, I know from the first one minute of a game that I’m getting a predetermined loss,” one player wrote in a treatise on Reddit a month ago. “It feels as if there is no competitive integrity.”

Developer response

On social media, NetEase publicly stated that Marvel Rivals does not use EOMM. The studio also said it will produce a video to explain how matchmaking works behind the scenes and promised to share that information soon.

Hi Rivals! As our game continues to thrive, we want to reiterate that Marvel Rivals does not use EOMM. We are currently working on a video to demonstrate our developer insights on the matchmaking and ranking system, which is expected to be released next week.

— Marvel Rivals (@MarvelRivals) August 12, 2025

What the papers say

The term EOMM traces back to a 2017 research paper from EA researchers that described a matchmaking approach designed to optimize engagement and other outcomes. The paper is frequently cited by players discussing Marvel Rivals; the original paper can be read here:

https://web.cs.ucla.edu/~yzsun/papers/WWW17Chen_EOMM.pdf

Separately, NetEase has a 2020 paper describing an internal system called OptMatch. That paper states the system aims to produce fair, close matches and to improve player satisfaction. The NetEase paper is available here:

https://nos.netease.com/mg-file/mg/neteasegamecampus/art_works/20200812/202008122020238605.pdf

Player reactions in-game

Alongside posts and threads, some players have reported changing their behavior in matches because they believe matchmaking reacts to in-game outcomes. For example, a portion of the community has said they intentionally throw matches or otherwise alter play to try to influence future lobbies. Those reports come from player posts and community discussion rather than official developer statements.

What’s next

NetEase has said it will publish a video to clarify the matchmaking process. Until that video is released, public debate in forums and social media is likely to continue, and players will keep pointing to the two academic documents above when discussing how matchmaking might work.