Thread: .3 Second Positional Update Delay (Requesting Dev Response)

So, I'm making a new thread as the thread with the most responses seems to have a lot of people mistake it for QQing about endgame, specifically Titan. That thread is here for anyone interested:

http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxiv/t...-fix-something.

Originally Posted by tingko

Finally Yoshi... Finally......

Official response is out:
Q2: You have said that in FFXIV: ARR, the character's position is checked by the server once every 0.3 seconds. However there are times where the character receives AoE damage even though the character on the screen is outside of the range. Seems like the information on character's position is not up to date. Is there any plan to make an adjustment to this?

A2: If we apply faster response times in all areas, the load on the servers will be too much. Therefore, while it will only be for certain areas (for example high-level content and the Wolves' Den), you will be able to notice the faster response times. Please stay tuned!

http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxiv/threads/121315

Sinth posted an excellent explanation for what the problem is, and why it's that way. He also explained it's very difficult to fix without investing millions. Very good read, can be found here:

http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxiv/t...annot-be-fixed.

The Problem(s)

The game client only sends your position to the servers every .3 seconds. This, combined with latency, can make aoes impossible to dodge at times for some of the player base. Yoshi himself has stated even players with a "great connection" will still see a .1 second delay on the cast bar.

Now, a large portion of the player base are not going to have a "great connection" to servers in Montreal, Canada. So what happens? Please note: All of these will appear on the player's screen as if they should have successfully dodged. On their screen, they're out of the red by the time the cast finishes. (thanks CatofNineTails)

Players with a very small latency don't seem to notice a problem. They only get that .1 second delay Yoshi referred to.

Players with lower latency seem to have to get out of aoe effects by the time the cast bar reaches around 85% to 90% or they will still get hit.
I'm in this category, here's what not dodging looks like to me. Also, I know that I hesitated in the first video, but if you pause it towards the end of the cast bar up you can clearly see I'm out with the cast bar still up. I am not arguing that it's not dodge-able, I'm arguing that you shouldn't get hit when you're out before the cast bar completes: http://www.twitch.tv/sunarierymshek/c/3084552
http://www.twitch.tv/sunarierymshek/c/3084630

Mid-high latency can mean out by 50%, and in bad cases can mean no hope of escape (the cast is finished before you even have a chance to move).
Example videos: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5g4T...ature=youtu.be
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hg33BjzwLWw

I don't know if the problem is only because of the .3 second update intervals, or if there is some other problem with cast bars showing up for people late. I know that cast bars and ground animations (the red you have to get out of), are not always in sync. All those players complaining about lag, probably aren't lying about it.

Are there work arounds?

For some people, yes. As many have suggested, you can sometimes move before a skill is cast when you know it's coming up. Additionally, some have had success using a skill right after moving out of an aoe, as well as not using skills while in the aoe. Others have been using VPNs to try and get their latency into the "great connection" range. Not all work arounds are valid for all players, and for some, none of the work arounds actually help (I would probably say these are the high latency players). No amount of moving seems to be able to get them to safety.

If it's latency related, is it really SE's job to fix it?

In my opinion, yes. When no other MMOs that have come out (not developed by SE) in the past 13-14 years have had this issue, and when your only server choice for everyone is in one set location (two if we count JP servers as a choice), I would say it's in SE's court to fix it. High latency isn't something new, I've seen people raid with it in various other MMOs without having issues dodging.

As I mentioned in another thread, I did a Google search for "Got hit by aoe when out [game]", and replaced [game] with various MMO titles, then went through the first page of responses. Lots of talking about aoe, how to avoid it in PvP and such.. zero issues with getting hit when you're out by the time the cast finishes or the ground marker disappears. If someone can direct me to an example of that in any other MMO that they found on the internet, I will gladly add it to this paragraph and correct myself.

The Questions

So what's going to be done about it? Is it the way the game is built (like FFXI) and there are no plans to investigate or improve it? I'd appreciate something either way. Either a "yes we're aware of it, and it's being investigated", or a "we have no plans to change it, you need to find work arounds yourselves."

TL;DR Lag is a major issue in the game for many players. Getting out of an aoe on your screen doesn't mean the game sees it that way. What is (or isn't) going to be done about it?

Originally Posted by C-croft

Workaround:

Level BRD.
Don't stop moving. Ever.
Golden.

Probably not the workaround you are looking for though.

Show me a vid of 7 bard and a tank killing titan and I'll take you up on your suggestion

Originally Posted by Eztam

putting requesting dev response in the title of your general discussion thread really doesnt mean a developer is going to see or even respond to it. I doubt devs look at the forums very often, and even less in general discussion. At most a mod might read it, but they cant do/say much other then a scripted response that gives very little info. This is the case for most games as forum mods generally dont have any specific info.

I would honestly be happy with any response that netted a little crown on the thread. The thread that I linked was closed down completely and re-opened.. and they still mistook it for an end-game discussion thread, and didn't comment on the actual issue. The community reps seem to have some form of communication with the devs.. I mean, the butt shape thread got an official answer... I do also see them responding to a good deal of stuff in the forums, although it does seem selective.

At the very least, I wanted to make it clear in what I was looking for and why I was posting so it wouldn't get the same mod response as the last thread. I think the title does that just fine.

Originally Posted by Melisenna

I think the point was that it doesn't matter what you name your thread, because contrary to popular belief, they DO read everything. Part of the reason players should bump threads instead of making 20 duplicates because "MY opinion MUST be heard!"., but that's another point entirely.

A thread with [To the devs] or [Requesting Dev Response] in the title has as much chance of getting a response as [Banana banana banana banana banana banana banana banana banana banana banana]

Oh well.. I hardly consider it a point to argue in the thread, unless you're purposefully trying to derail it. The thread I linked to that this is a spin off of, did actually get closed and reopened, but the moderator/community rep that responded misinterpreted the thread entirely as if they didn't read it. I think the point of the thread should come across in the title, which the title for this conveys fine. I am not one to usually start duplicate threads. In fact, this is the first thread I've ever started on this forum, and I wouldn't have even started it had the response the other thread got not missed the point entirely. Oh well though, arguing over the title of the thread when everything else in it is completely valid is being nit-picky to the extreme, and taking away from the value the thread actually has, so this will be the last response I give on that topic.

To other replies... I'm not sure how other games calculate whether you're in or out of the aoe at the end of a cast. Programming isn't my area of expertise. I do think it's clear that SE is doing something different. I don't know if that something is something that can be changed or if we're SoL. I'm hoping that it can be changed to match what people have come to expect in the industry.. which is visual markers on the screen being accurate enough to successfully dodge on a regular basis, as long as you're out when the cast ends, you're out.