Server Tick Rate Is Holding the Game Back

[RedLolly]

Everyone in this thread is wrong.

Elaborate.

[Umbrasin]

I don't understand your reply and what you're trying to tell me. I know what a server tick is and I'm telling you it's probably not the root of the problem, but delays and processes are.
I don't know where you got your 0.3s from either?

I'd refer again to this thread that goes more in depth about it. Either way I do agree with you that all of this is a problem, and the position refresh rate doubly so.

I did more digging and found an old Live Letter where Yoshi-P explicitly confirmed there was a 0.3s positional server tick rate (at 0:11:09 in the Q&A). I say was because it was published just before the Titan Hard changes, after which SE only said they "made adjustments". This means the current tick rate is unknown.

They likely made the following changes:

• Raid encounters: Positional tick rate was increased (such as in Titan Hard), and possibly changes to the server movement prediction since it wasn't working properly. SE has not published the new tick rate to my knowledge.
• Open world: Open world tick rate still seems to follow the original 0.3s tick rate. As mentioned before, this was likely kept to prevent performance problems such as huge hunt trains of people using spells/abilities at the same time. Increasing the world tick rate would significantly increase data load with little gameplay benefit since open world fights are rarely as fast-paced.

At the time, Yoshi-P noted that most MMOs used a ~0.3s positional tick rate which was considered standard. However, this was over a decade ago (2013) and other MMOs like WoW have since reduced packet size and raised positional tick rates to handle their increasingly fast encounters. Given the state of FFXIV’s modern fights, especially now in Dawntrail, it seems doubtful that SE has reevaluated whether their current positional tick rate can still keep up with the fight design.

Apples to apples comparison
WoW: ~0.01–0.016s between updates
FFXIV: ~0.3s between updates -> 18-30x slower than WoW

If SE increased the encounter tick rate to 0.2s after Titan Hard it would be:
FFXIV: ~0.2s between updates -> 12-20x slower than WoW

[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.

[Ajisaii]

Elaborate.

No, I don't think I will.

[Firebrand]

Agree with the OP, even though I don't have as many issues with the snapshotting.
The snapshotting is a very dated mechanic that feels bad to play around, full stop. You can play around it, and it's workable when you get used to it, but it's gotta go. It makes PvP a joke, and PvE feel sluggish and unresponsive at times. It makes playing the game feel considerably worse than it could be.

Unfortunately though, I feel like their focus is on simplifying the game (looking at job design direction), removing more and more difficulty and nuance. So maybe it won't be a problem when there is no more challenging content worth doing.

[Myotis]

It's 2025 the relic of snapps should go away already.

[Umbrasin]

I'm happy to see more discussion here.

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.

I don't believe there is a way around this since Savage fights are essentially choreographed dances. While some mechanics are regarded as more fun or interesting than others, the newer fights in particular demand far more movement. Interestingly, rather than designing fights around the classes, SE has begun designing classes around the fights as evidenced by the recent BLM overhaul and the expanded AoE heal radius for healers. I have heard that this raid tier has been much more difficult for groups for a variety of reasons.

Ultimately, increasing the tick rate would make the game feel far more responsive and fair in order to test player skill. Even in the newest fights there are very egregious snapshots that combine with the low tick rate to create a frustrating experience. One example is the M8S dragon heads for Eminent/Revolutionary Reign. They have line AoEs but the snapshot resolves roughly 1-2 seconds before the line itself disappears. If you can't trust the orange danger zones on the floor then why have them at all?

Raising the tick rate would actually raise the bar for skill-based gameplay. It would reinforce that success is determined by execution and awareness, not by whether you happened to land on the “safe” side of a server tick, or wiping repeatedly to find the arbitrary point where a mechanic resolves through trial and error. I can't think of another MMO that resolves mechanics so ambiguously as to defy its own self-proposed rules.

Unfortunately though, I feel like their focus is on simplifying the game (looking at job design direction), removing more and more difficulty and nuance. So maybe it won't be a problem when there is no more challenging content worth doing.

Sadly, that does seem to be the case. Looking back at the overboard PCT nerfs, it’s clear they were a reaction to the poor design of FRU rather than thoughtful balance. As mentioned earlier, the expanded AoE healing radius is welcome but also once again removes some of the flavor and challenge of healers. It’s disappointing to see every player of a class affected by kneejerk adjustments made in response to niche content that only a small percentage of the player base participates in.

I keep hearing that I "have to wait until 8.0" for the across-the-board class overhauls, but looking at past changes I am not hopeful. I recall waiting years for the AST overhaul only to be left disappointed, with barely any changes. However, I am straying off topic and would like to keep this server tick related since it's a fairly easy change for SE to implement.

[Firebrand]

Yeah, for example I was appalled to find how they have butchered DRG as a job. A job I have used to clear Ultis in ShB. The pretty elegant burst window as we knew it is gone, simplified to "just cast 1 Nasteond lol", Mirage dive charges lost all skill/meaning to them becoming just "here's another oGCD for damage with charges", they have basically made it an arcade masher job with little thought or care needed to execute well compared to a superior ShB design. Eye is gone too... Dragoon basically lost most of its complexity.

[MayuAmakura]

Yeah, for example I was appalled to find how they have butchered DRG as a job. A job I have used to clear Ultis in ShB. The pretty elegant burst window as we knew it is gone, simplified to "just cast 1 Nasteond lol", Mirage dive charges lost all skill/meaning to them becoming just "here's another oGCD for damage with charges", they have basically made it an arcade masher job with little thought or care needed to execute well compared to a superior ShB design. Eye is gone too... Dragoon basically lost most of its complexity.

I remember when in Endwalker people cried on forums how they want to more focus on fights and less on jobs because "I can't play job that is hard and simultaneously look at the boss and mechanics". Like a lot of crying was about this. Including in game where people agreed that they want easier jobs so they can focus more on fights lmao.

So now we have this where job complexity doesn't exist and most are same and boring copy of each other.

[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.