Fascinating subject, though the thread's direction is taking an ill turn at the moment. But hopefully, with some good infusion of commentary we can get things back on track.
The Evolution of the Thread so far
We've seen a growing tension between those who would prefer Random within the game, and those who would like to take a step into a direction where things can be different. I imagine that the game's designers still enjoy the functionality of Random and probably will not be one to part with it. Though there are reasonable points which should be addressed, and perhaps some new options as well? I've a feeling Random will still be in the game no matter what, so perhaps the thread should focus on different elements?
Random, Automatch, and Ranked.
Inevitably, there will be a Ranked portion of the game for those hardcore folks who want to achieve a measure of their skill level in solid 'number' form which they can display. Often there are records of each player as well, telling the world their favorite races, losses, wins, etc.. I think this should be the focus of the discussion in fact, and still surprisingly remains on subject to the due vagueness of the thread's title "Hide opponents Type".
When it comes to Automatching and ranked matches, I actually do believe that no information should be shown what so ever. Ranked should be very different from casual play, and should promote a different level of seriousness. Random, and any other ability to see what your enemy will be prior to a match will makes Ranked a most welcome and desirable change. Focusing greatly upon skill instead of the common knowledge of A Player's Race is best countered by B Player's Race, if C Units are used against D Units, and E Abilities against F Abilities. I feel the extra element of 'scouting', even for an Assassin whom is in essence a walking scout nightmare - should do well to change the pace.
Hiding The Record Board, and Why?
To be honest, there is an odd thing happening these days in many RTS games. A Player's Record board is being used in a fashion that is rather uncalled for, and disheartening. Normally, the boards have been useful to view a player's stats as they enter the game. Naturally you can see whether or not they are good, etc. But it has come to my understanding that Demigod will automatically allocate players to their given skill levels, with this in mind the Personal Score Board should be considerably private, and here is why.
As of late, when a game has grown aged and well used over the years. Players become increasingly cruel to their fellow players. If you are new and want to enjoy the game after it has been out for so long, consider yourself excluded from the Multiplayer Online spectrum. Long time players desire to play with long time players, and when someone new joins in they will view there stats board and see how many games they've played. If they haven't played X Number of Online games or has X Number of Online victories, they'll be booted and unable to play.
People are forced to have to train up their stats in their personal score board by doing "Comp Stomps". They will have to do several of these to fill in some meat in their boards, getting about 50 games and over 80% victory record just to be able to play normally. It's a vastly ignorant and nasty side track that happens as the game gets older. Of course when a game is 'new', this is not a problem. Yet it is not exactly a calculated element that is taken into account when the game is in production since it happens so far, far down the road.
So the a player's Score Board should be personal, perhaps only accessible via a Friend's List if anyone else wants to view it. Players will still be moderated by an automatic skill level allocator. I feel that this is a fine way in taking a step towards Hiding an Opponent's Type, and increasing the element of surprise.
Example: Warhammer 40k Dawn of War. A player joins, you view their records.. Oh, he plays Space Marines 99.9% of the time. Another SM whore... boot.
Random Assassin and Random General
Since Random will likely be in the game, it would also be nice to have a feature which would further limit the guessing. In stead of completely removing Random, you simply add a few more features. You can select from a menu of what you want to play, or select Random Assassin, Random General, or just Random (All). To compliment the prior comments in my post, naturally no one would be able to see you choose any of these elements in Ranked Mode. In Ranked Mode, all you should see are your challenger's names.
