If players are having to use sites like r/fireteams or DestinyLFG to find teams then Bungie might as well just add MM to ToO. Using those 3rd party site is literally matchmaking since you're teaming up with randoms, the only difference being you're doing it manually instead of the game doing it for you.
So telling someone to "just use r/fireteams or LFG sites" is pointless advice, since just like regular MM, there's no guarantee that they're going to end up with anyone good or they won't end up with someone who won't drop out just because your team is a couple of rounds behind. At least with in game MM the process of finding new team mates to replace anyone who left will be much faster and much less stressful for all those involved.
It is not, at all, matchmaking; let alone "
literally" matchmaking. That is one of the most disingenuous statements I have seen produced on this topic.
There is no "guarantee" a group will be good even if formed organically under ideal circumstances, without any group assembly tool to speak of. Such a guarantee is impossible to bring about through systemic means, let alone something that can be done given all the current limitations and massively broad playerbase of the console market. Instead any tool developed to assist with forming a fireteam must aim to increase the
likelihood a group will be successful over baseline.
Destiny needs- badly- an in-game fireteam listings board/LFG tool. This should be usable for all content types. It will allow for a delineation between "leader" and "joiners" which is especially necessary in high-level content. It will allow expectations to be set in advance of starting any event. It will not blindly match brand new players looking for help with those who are looking to speedrun a Nightfall, or those who have a checkpoint at the final boss of a raid with those who are entering one for the first time. Essentially, nothing any more complex or imposing than reproducing the functionality of a resource like
www.destinylfg.net completely in-game is needed. Groups formed by these means will have a higher success rate when it comes to completing their stated goals than a random/blind matchmade group.
I have expanded on my reasoning for these claims
here. These are exhausting arguments when it's an issue I've been so close to since launch.
In any case, my prediction is that the Prison of Elders will have matchmaking- specifically as an attempt by Bungie to address the feedback that forming a complete fireteam for endgame content thus far has been difficult and limiting.
