Developers want to focus on connecting players together for online multiplayer game sessions, not gaming infrastructure. Google has worked alongside developers and publishers to create Open Match to solve this issue. This open source matchmaking framework provides developers with tools to build a scalable matchmaker without the overbearing tasks of managing their infrastructure when hit with a sudden surge of players. In this talk, we will explore Open Match, its features, and the benefits of building Open Match in open source.

1. Open Match
An Open Source Matchmaking Framework

2. Jon Foust
● Cloud Developer Advocate: Google
Cloud for Games
● STEM Instructor
● Plays a ton of multiplayer games with
long queue times
T: @syntxerror1

3. What is Matchmaking
Matchmaking enables players to be grouped together, to play a
game together. Ideally they should be grouped together by some
combination of skill level, social graph, and other factors to ensure
that players get a fair and enjoyable experience, increasing and
maintaining player retention

4. Traditional Matchmaking Services
?

5. Matchmaking Issues
● Service Can Become Overwhelmed
● Long Queues
● Bad Logic
○ One-Sided Matches
● Boosting/Smurfing

6. Open Match is an open source
matchmaking framework co-founded
with Unity. It is focused on flexibility,
scalability, and extensibility. It is
written in Go and runs natively on
Kubernetes.

7. Benefits of Open Match on Kubernetes
● Breaks the monolith matchmaker into maintainable services
● Scalability
● Autorecovery
● Extensibility

8. Why Open Source?
● Collaboration results is a better solution for everyone
● Build with flexibility in mind
● No need to reinvent the wheel

9. Open Match Architecture

10. Tickets
Tickets are the most fundamental structure of Open Match that will go through most of its
services to match players. Tickets represent matchmaking requests for a player or group
of players.
message Ticket {
string id = 1;
Assignment assignment = 3;
SearchFields search_fields = 4;
...
google.protobuf.Timestamp create_time = 6;
}
message SearchFields {
map<string, double> double_args = 1;
map<string, string> string_args = 2;
repeated string tags = 3;
}

11. Profiles
Profiles are the template for match criteria. Tickets that meet the criteria will be placed
in ticket pools.

12. Open Match Core Services
Frontend - Handles initial matchmaking
request or creating tickets, deleting tickets or
cancelling a matchmaking request, and getting
ticket details.

13. Open Match Core Services
Backend - Responsible for creating matches
and assigning dedicated game servers to
Tickets when invoked by the Director.

14. Open Match Core Services
Query - Query service will look at Ticket
pools for Tickets that have met
constraints set for matches. It will
trigger the match function to select the
Tickets that fit the mold

15. Open Match Custom Services
Match Function - Match functions are
your logic that connects players in Open
Match. Open Match will execute match
functions on ticket pools that have met
the defines match criteria
Evaluator -The Evaluator can be
customized to deal with Tickets that
meet multiple match requirements. It
will determine the quality of a match
based on a calculated score and select
the best.

16. Matchmaking Flow

17. Ticket Lifecycle: Match Request
Game
Frontend
Platform
Services
Match
Function
Machine Cluster
Dedicated
Game
Server
Dedicated
Game
Server
Game
Backend
Player Data

18. Ticket Lifecycle: Assignment
State Store
(Redis)
Game
Frontend
Match
Function
Machine Cluster
Director
Dedicated
Game Server
Dedicated
Game Server
Dedicated
Game Server
Frontend Backend
DataAccess

19. Demo

20. Summary
Open Match:
● Provides the core features of a matchmaker and the customizable components
that allow you add your own matchmaking logic.
● Scalable and extensible features of Kubernetes allow it to grow with your game
● Open Source good

21. Resources
● open-match.dev
● cloud.google.com/solutions/gaming
● kubernetes.io

22. Thank You
T: @syntxerror1