Tournament app for iOS/Android/computers: Match play, knockout, pingolf and more

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@aobrien5 Any particular topics you would like covered or questions you would like answers to? I’ll be happy to answer any questions you have.

I do need to add some screenshots/tutorials to the website and that’ll happen sooner rather than later. I do have descriptions of all the different tournament formats at https://matchplay.events/tournaments and an FAQ at https://matchplay.events/faq

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I’m just curious about the interface and how easy it is to use.

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Very easy to use and the UI is really clean. I’ve done beta testing with Andreas and used this in Las Vegas for the tourney I threw at Flipperspiel so some folks saw it there.

I would suggest just signing up and creating a fake tourney to test it on. Then you can beat NES in round 1 and play the best players in the world. :slight_smile:

24

Thank you for creating this. I’ve been looking for something like this to help me run my fortnightly tournament.

The only problem I have is that I use a less popular bracket style. It’s called the 3 game guarantee bracket. See here: http://www.printyourbrackets.com/3-game-guarantee-tournament-brackets.html

I use this because I’m aiming to attract people that are new to pinball and I want them to be able to get value for their money. This way they get at least 3 match play games. And if they win a game they get to keep playing.
We are time limited, which is why I didn’t just do a simple triple elimination. This bracket reduces the amount of games the tournament takes overall, while still giving people at least 3 games.

I’ts basically a double elimination, but if you lose your first 2 then you get another chance.

I’d love it if you could incorporate that bracket style into your software. I’d definitely use it for my comp.

25

I’ve very much on the fence about incorporating various elimination brackets other than the standard single elimination bracket. The code is pretty complicated to write and I’m not sure it’s the best way for me to spend my code-writing time on Match Play Events. I have noted a vote in the “yes, please” column from you :slight_smile:

If I do implement more bracket types it’ll almost certainly be a standard double elimination bracket and not one of the more exotic brackets. My time is limited so I have to focus on the formats that most people play.

Have you considered a four-player match play as the format instead? A popular tournament for smaller tournaments is:

  • 4-6 rounds of four-player match play (depending on time available)
  • Top 8 player advance to a single elimination bracket for finals

Each round typically takes 20-25 minutes so you can do 5 rounds plus finals in under 3 hours.

It’s very newbie friendly:

  • Four-player groups means having someone to talk to while waiting for your turn (this has proven very important for making new people feel welcome in our local tournaments)
  • Non-elimination match play format means everyone has a guaranteed amount of matches (no one is eliminated until finals)
  • Less wait than a double elimination bracket (the winner of a double elim winner’s bracket is always in for a long wait)
  • Infinitely easier to explain than a double elimination bracket
  • Works well if you don’t have a location with a ton of games. With just 6 games you can have 24 players with everyone playing
1 Like
26

Thanks for the reply!

I can totally understand your reasoning. Not only is the bracket I’ve used fairly uncommon, its also more complex to understand than most. I’ve been looking for other ways to do it.
I will definitely have a look at doing it that way. I’m actually running my comp with 2 games. We had 17 players last week, and the bracket took roughly 3 hours to play out. It worked well, but as you say, people in the winners bracket were waiting around for a while.

I am starting a new chapter in another location with 4 machines, so I think I will definitely give the 4 player match play a go. You are totally right about having people in the 4 player group. Allows for more social interaction while being involved in a game.

Thanks for the advice! I will give it a go!

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I’ve had a bit more of a think about it. And I’ve come up with a few things that are good about going with the bracket. I’m honestly trying to decide which way to go. The 4player match would be so much easier in terms of organisation, but the 1v1 bracket just seems like better value for the players.

  • 1v1 games are shorter, and more of them means more opportunities to experience the thrill of a close game (or even winning).
  • Bracket play evolves like a story. People get excited about making it to the semis etc. At the end only 2 are left standing.
  • The bracket is self balancing. Beginners usually get at least 1 win in the loser bracket (when they face other beginners).
  • Losers don’t really have to hang around till the end if they don’t want to (sure id prefer if they did, but its understandable on a weeknight comp).

I know that the way im doing it isnt the most balanced in terms of competition. But it is honestly designed to bring new players into pinball and let them experience the fun of competitive match play.

Having said that, we can see that I’m not really your target market. I don’t really expect implementation of this kind of bracket. Perhaps there is some way you can create custom brackets. Then people can make whatever they need.
I wouldn’t mind spending some time designing my bracket if it meant i could use it in your software.

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Congratulations, I can’t wait to use it. I went looking for the iOS app but it is not there. I guess you are only releasing it in the US? I am in Australia.

Thanks so much for coding this software. Regards, Greg

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You know best what you like and what your players like! Creating custom brackets is… very hard. I generally don’t rule out anything, but custom brackets might the the only exception. It’s one of those things you can spend 100 hours on just to fail completely :slight_smile:

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Oh, there’s nothing in the app store. Just point your Safari to https://matchplay.events/ to sign up and run your tournaments. Everything run in the browser. That way I don’t have to duplicate all my work for multiple platforms and you will always have access to the newest features as you’re not stuck on an old version.

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31

It’s actually pretty handy to have as a Web app. Over the weekend I used Matchplay for the first time in an actual tournament and was able to have a laptop at a registration table checking people in and had my iPad connected to a TV for score input. Once everyone was checked in I just refreshed my iPad browser and it was ready to go.

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Used it this weekend for a knockout tournament. Worked brilliantly! I will be using it again in the future.