How is the PlayVS Score calculated?
The PlayVS Score is a metric used to break ties in match records and determine ranking. It consists of two parts:
Match Wins Component: The thousands place value (e.g., 12 in 12,345) represents match wins & when they happen.
Opponents' PlayVS Score Component: The remaining digits (e.g., 345 in 12,345) represent the sum of a team's opponents' Match Wins Component in their PlayVS Scores.
Let's break down these components and provide some examples for better understanding.
Match Wins Component
Teams are awarded points based on the number of match wins they have each week, regardless of whether they win or lose that specific week (If you win week 1, but lose the next 7 weeks, you still gain 1000 points each week for that first win). The points are calculated by multiplying the number of accumulated match wins by 1000.
Previous PlayVS Score + (1000 * (Total Match Wins)) = PlayVS Score (Match Wins Component)
For example, if a team has won three matches and lost one after Week 4, their PlayVS Score would be calculated as follows:
Week 1 (Win): Previous Score(0) + (1000 * Current # of Wins(1)) = 1000
Week 2 (Win): 1000 + (1000 * 2) = 3000
Week 3 (Win): 3000 + (1000 * 3) = 6000
Week 4 (Loss): 6000 + (1000 * 3) = 9000
However, if they lost in Week 2 instead, their PlayVS Score would be:
Week 1 (Win): 0 + (1000 * 1) = 1000
Week 2 (Loss): 1000 + (1000 * 1) = 2000
Week 3 (Win): 2000 + (1000 * 2) = 4000
Week 4 (Win): 4000 + (1000 * 3) = 7000
Opponents' PlayVS Score Component
The sum of the Match Wins Component (MWC) of each opponent's PlayVS Score is considered.
Opponents' PlayVS Score Component = (Week 1 Opponent MWC + Week 2 Opponent MWC + etc)
For example, if a team is 3-1 after Week 4, we would look at their opponents' PlayVS Scores:
Week 1 Opponent: PlayVS Score 2004
Week 2 Opponent: PlayVS Score 3012
Week 3 Opponent: PlayVS Score 4007
Week 4 Opponent: PlayVS Score 10014
The sum of the first digits of each opponent's PlayVS Score would be 2 + 3 + 4 + 10 = 19.
Adding this to the team's existing PlayVS Score (9000 from the first example above) would result in a total PlayVS Score of 9019.
In cases where a team has a bye (no opponent), the average of all other opponents' Match Wins Component is used to prevent penalizing teams unnecessarily.
Real Example
Let’s take a look at a league and break down one of the scores to see how they got the score they did.
From the above example league we can look at Rank 8. They are tied with 6 other teams based on the 5-1 match record, so we must look to break their tie. PlayVS Score is impactful in this scenario for two reasons:
Without PlayVS Score, Rank 8 would still be completely tied with 3 other teams (Rank 3, 4, & 5). There would also still be 2 other groups of ties in the screenshot alone. With PlayVS Score, we break all of these ties based on the strength of their schedules.
Rank 8 has a better game record than Rank 7 but a worse game record than Rank 9.
Rank 8 has a PlayVS Score of 16067, we can break this down by looking at each week. Here are the opponents Rank 8 had, their current PlayVS Scores, and if Rank 8 Won or Lost.
Week 1 Opponent Score: 8060 (Win)
Week 2 Opponent Score: 17077 (Loss)
Week 3 Opponent Score: 7068 (Win)
Week 4 Opponent Score: 11079 (Win)
Week 5 Opponent Score: 13066 (Win)
Week 6 Opponent Score: - (Bye/Win)
Match Wins Component | Opponents' PlayVS Score Component
|
Match Wins Component: 16000 |
Oponents' PlayVS Score Component: 67 |
Combining these components together is how this Rank 8 team achieves a PlayVS Score of 16067.
Using PlayVS Score for Tiebreakers
The PlayVS Score allows the platform to consider both the strength of a team's schedule and the strength of their opponents before taking game records into account when breaking ties between teams with equal match records. This ensures a more balanced and fair ranking system, especially when a large number of teams are tied in match records.