Do you change your Netspeed? And to what?

So as some of you know you can set your netspeed to something higher than the default 10000 and get higher framerates than 85 fps (engine defaults). Even if you set netspeed > 10000 in your .ini file the game resets it each round to 10000. Several people, even me, often set it in game to something higher to get higher framerates (google it if you're curious https://www.utzone.de/forum/showthread.php?t=4326). However, while getting that stat fps number higher, I don't think its some magical help to make you snipe like Terminator/Anon/SK10H, and I wonder if its doing more harm than good by trying to make the server send/receive more packets? eg. a default its 85 packets/s, with netspeed 15000 its 100-200. (Side note DO NOT change the keepalive based on those posts...I've researched it before and its wrong..there was an Epic developer who chimed in on one stating it wasn't doing what they thought and was not good to set it too low) So lets say 30 players @ 85 = 2550 /s now a bunch of us ramp up the netspeed and now its sat 130 per player = 3900 packets/s... Want to know where the limit is? I don't know.

The other post says netspeed 20000 is 20kb/s upload. Which at 30 players,600 Kilobytes/s upload TO the server requires 4.8 Mbps (Mega bits per second), which I think the server should easily be able to handle, but its also a high amount of steady traffic..and potential for slow down/packet loss.


Anyway, all the tech mumbo jumbo aside, I am wondering if limiting the netspeed server side would help reduce lag.

Im always at the standard settings and get the usual 80 or so FPS. I couldn’t adjust on Mac anyway.

I'm going to try changing netspend and I'll report back if I notice any difference..

Didn't notice much change except for setting FPS to 120fps (native 4k resolution)

I've changed it here and there, and I don't think I've ever really noticed a difference in gameplay either. The number in the upper right changes and I really use it to gauge whether the server can keep up... as if its heavily loaded it will start to drop.


I might set the server to enforce a lower netspeed, certainly not lower than the default 10000, but something less than the 20000.

I forget who first told me to change it 13620 years ago at the start of every round. I also use it as a gauge as to how the game is going to go. If my FPS goes below 100, I get massive un reg shots, I don't see the lasers from the centuar and other vehicles, etc. Sometimes i forget , notice poor play, and change it to see if things improve, but usually not.

You shouldn't be getting unreg shots even at 60-85 fps. In fact, the higher netspeed might even be contributing to it. The higher the netspeed the more packets the server/client has to send/receive, and that increase the chance for packetloss. Which show up as missing projectiles(lasers), missing turret renders etc.



I do think the incidence of unreg shots has decreased on the new server.



I've got some things to try on the server regarding netspeed, I'll probably give those a go over the next few days as a blind test.

I've seen un reg hits and missing lasers without touching the netspeed, more so on the randomizer maps. I'll try playing without touching it for a few maps and see what happens with the new server. It's just habit at this point.

Good info for those who haven't explored the settings too much: From 2007...lol https://tweakguides.pcgamingwiki.com/UT2004_1.html

There is a 2018 update on this page : https://docs.google.com/document/d/1...M3I2qgWc/edit#

I used to change it after Rando convinced me I should. Yeah, the game looked a good bit smoother, but I can't say it actually helped my aim or anything. All the settings got wiped out when I had to fix an issue with UT (forgot to back up the edited files) and never bothered doing it again, and have played at the standard 80 fps since. Doesn't seem to help or hurt my playability, it just looks smoother with netspeed cranked up. I don't need all your fancy nerd hacks to own you fools!

I heard one of our regular players the other day talking about how he just spent $3000 on a custom gaming rig. But, he's what most would consider a fairly weak player, so what good is that expensive rig gonna do for him other than make everything look a little prettier more efficiently? Unless that machine somehow convinces him to start going to nodes and paying attention to his surroundings, it won't help him. Neither will increasing netspeed.

I have no idea if having a lot of players with dialed up netspeeds has any effect on the server like you suspect Pooty, but that would make sense.

From what some of the things I've read and heard, it does forcing the server to send more data. However, most seem to agree there's very little advantage in gameplay other than your client gets faster fps. But fps is meaningless other than a number when the server doesn't have that much to update. 80fps is pretty good for decent gameplay and you won't magically turn into Godlike with 180fps. Basically at 80fps its fast enough for the engine.



UT has limits on Netspeed and I've been testing them over the past few days...so please report if anyone sees more issues on one day or the next. I've also been testing the tick rate as higher tick rates really drive both cpu and network.

I keybind it at the start of every match to set netspeed just to make my monitor happy at 144fps. I tried those fancy calculated setting from 11000-13xxx based on 144fps, doesn't feel a difference to me.
So I just use 10001.

So, didn't change my netspeed, still crappy play on junk. I got azazel who jumped from the troop carrier, but then pooty was falling soooo slow he was able to continually goo me. I could see him fall, so he wasn't in a flier, unless the flier wasn't showing up. Other players were complaining of un reg hits, so it wasn't just me. Ping on map before junk was kinda steady at 52, but was bouncing all over on junk between 32 and 920, had two shots go through me, so again, not just me having the issue.

I had the parachute from the Helix.... for some reason it doesn't render like it does from the Predator. So when you go in the Helix you can jump out and not fall. Pretty fun gooing from up there....


My ping occasionally jumps around like that. I had the mega few times and didn't have any unregs. That was a pretty full map though, and at 32 players on a randomizer it hits the server pretty good no matter the settings.

I run 20k for the higher FPS. I dont think it ever made my hits any better.