In Pokémon GO, the official first season of the PvP League starts this weekend. However, there is a phenomenon in the preseason that shouldn’t really be happening.
What is Rank Tanking? On Reddit, several players report being matched against extremely strong opponents at low ranks. This occurs because some strong trainers intentionally lose matches to keep their rank low, thus being assigned weak opponents. But what is the point of that?
Why Rank Tanking is Currently an Option
This is the problem: Currently, the PvP League distributes its rewards per set of battles. This means: Encounters with Pokémon that can include monsters such as Darkrai or Giratina can be obtained if you win four out of five matches in a set. If you invest a Premium Pass, this is even possible after just two matches.
As the counter resets after all five completed sets, you get this chance repeatedly. You are not therefore forced to win as many sets or matches as possible in the long term – the key is to win four – or twice within a set.
This is obviously easier against weaker opponents than in high ranks, where you face strong trainers and strong Pokémon. This phenomenon is somewhat similar to problems from the FIFA series. Here, strong players have also “played down” to have an easier time with seasonal tasks in lower leagues.
On Reddit, solutions are being discussed. One possibility would be to orient the encounters with Pokémon, or the entire reward system, more towards total wins. For example: “Achieve 15 wins to encounter a Pokémon,” instead of making it possible within sets. Another option would be to change the matchmaking. For example, so that the evaluation of trainers does not depend on wins in the league but rather on level.
Whether Niantic will make further adjustments here before the official start of the league remains to be seen. Our author Noah Struthoff meanwhile has a completely different problem with the league:
