Server Tick Rate Is Holding the Game Back

[RedLolly]

I'm learning a lot in here, wow.

For some reason, I recall multiple instances of 230 ms ping being labeled a comfortable limit for high ping to still play FFXIV reliably. Years ago. That's half a second delay and still being able complete any encounter.

I've always played with high ping, every test getting around 190 to 210. I have one of my area's best services from my ISP. This fully explains *why* DT content suddenly feels so brutal while others just do not see or feel it as a problem beyond lack of skill. That comfortable ceiling got drastically lowered with zero change on how our games communicate with the server. Thousands of us are just screwed over.



That's bad.

[Umbrasin]

I'm learning a lot in here, wow.

For some reason, I recall multiple instances of 230 ms ping being labeled a comfortable limit for high ping to still play FFXIV reliably. Years ago. That's half a second delay and still being able complete any encounter.

I've always played with high ping, every test getting around 190 to 210. I have one of my area's best services from my ISP. This fully explains *why* DT content suddenly feels so brutal while others just do not see or feel it as a problem beyond lack of skill. That comfortable ceiling got drastically lowered with zero change on how our games communicate with the server. Thousands of us are just screwed over.



That's bad.

There's another factor at play that has helped bridge the gap (especially for those with high latency) which has helped fights feel more responsive but has a number of tradeoffs. SE uses server-side movement prediction to try and smooth the gaps between the positional tick updates. To help break it down:

• When you hit a movement key your client sends a packet saying “I’m moving forward/back/left/right.

• The server receives that input and assumes continuous movement in that direction until it gets another packet telling it you stopped or changed direction.

• This means that for mechanics like Titan’s Landslides, as long as you begin sidestepping early enough, the server will already be projecting your position outside of the danger zone even if the exact position packet hasn’t been received yet.

• This is also why you can move near an AoE and not go in it, yet be hit by it. It's the server prediction failing because it erroneously predicted you moved too far. The server didn't receive a new packet in time stating you stopped right at the edge.

That’s why you feel responsive movement in typical fights. The prediction bridges over the 0.3s tick + latency gap. Here's the problem, however, what if you need precise movements and positions, such as those required in more difficult fights?

• Savage fights often demand tight pre-positioning or last-second dodges (think P10S towers or P12S Phase 2 spreads).

• If you adjust direction suddenly (e.g., dodging out of a cleave at the very last tick), the server is still assuming your previous trajectory until your next position packet gets received.

• That means you can be visually outside on your screen, but the server thinks you were still inside when the mechanic snapshot occurred, so you get hit.

• This is why “move early, stop early” advice exists in high-end content. You’re basically trying to work with the prediction window so it doesn't kill you.

[Umbrasin]

What does all of that stuff just above mean?

At 100ms+ ping, that correction packet confirming your new direction takes longer to reach the server. Combine that with the 0.3s sampling window, and the server may be working with data that’s 0.35–0.40s old at the moment of mechanic resolution. Prediction can’t save you if your last-known “move vector” is wrong, so the faster and more precise the mechanic, the more punishing this gap becomes.

Movement prediction is what made older encounters feel playable despite the 0.3s tick + latency delay, since AoEs and slower mechanics gave the server’s assumptions room to be “good enough.” But with modern Savage and Ultimate fights now demanding sub-second prepositioning and sharp directional changes that same system falls apart. The result is that what once masked the lag now actively exposes it and and the cracks in the game's netcode.

This is why I ultimately decided on emphasizing the positional tick rate here. Increasing it would drastically improve positional accuracy on the server side, cut down on prediction failures, and make the modern fight design actually fun rather than feeling like we're fighting against the infrastructure.

[AmiableApkallu]

This is why I ultimately decided on emphasizing the positional tick rate here. Increasing it would drastically improve positional accuracy on the server side, cut down on prediction failures, and make the modern fight design actually fun rather than feeling like we're fighting against the infrastructure.

Except that the problem with modern fight design is the emphasis on standing in the correct spot.

The premise of fixing the server's understanding of where I'm standing doesn't actually address that fundamental flaw.

After 100+ levels, encounters should actually test what it means to be tank, healer, or DPS.

[BlisteringFrost]

Except that the problem with modern fight design is the emphasis on standing in the correct spot.

The premise of fixing the server's understanding of where I'm standing doesn't actually address that fundamental flaw.

After 100+ levels, encounters should actually test what it means to be tank, healer, or DPS.

We have mechanics that snapshot on the cast, and we have mechanics that snapshot prematurely.

The server's not the problem anymore.