Report: Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 server rates are a third of what they were in the beta
UPDATE: Treyarch responds, says it prioritised game stability for launch.
UPDATE 22nd Oct 2018: Treyarch has responded to the recent discussion about the Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 server send rate.
As detailed below, players found the multiplayer server send rate had dropped from the 60hz available in the beta to 20hz in the current version of the game.
In a post on r/Blackops 4, Treyarch admitted it had prioritised game stability over other factors such as network performance at launch.
"We're constantly working to optimise the game, and particularly network performance, to ensure the highest quality online experience for our players," Treyarch said.
"For a game launch with as massive a population as ours hitting so many global servers at once, we configure our infrastructure to ensure game stability as the highest priority over all other factors."
Treyarch added it will work to "fine-tune" network performance now Black Ops 4 has been out a week.
"Now that we're past the initial launch of the game, we are focusing on fine-tuning network performance around the globe, using the real-world data that we have collected," Treyarch said.
"Over the course of the next two weeks, we will roll out several updates to our network setup that will continue to improve upon the experience of our players since launch. As we have always said, launch is just the beginning, and we're committed to making Black Ops 4 the best-supported game we've ever delivered. This is a journey that will involve constant adjustments, improvements, and additions. We appreciate your continued support and patience - thank you!"
ORIGINAL STORY 21st Oct 2018: Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 players are calling on developer Treyarch to clarify why the PlayStation 4 version of the shooter is reportedly running at a third of the server send rate value that had been available in the beta test.
Several Reddit posts propose that the multiplayer server send rate has dropped from the 60hz that had been available in the beta to 20hz in the current version of the game.
Server send rates dictate how many updates the server sends to your console or PC per second (thanks, Reddit), whilst the client send rate is the speed at which your console or PC reciprocates and delivers updates to the server.
"I performed the testing with Wireshark where I measured the send rate in each direction between the server and my system based on the packets sent to and from the server," u/Smcro detailed on Reddit. "I connected to 7 different multiplayer servers (in four different locations) and each showed a client send rate of 60hz and server send rate of 20hz. My testing was performed on a PS4 Pro with a wired, fiber connection."
These graphs illustrate the difference between the client send rates and the server send rates across various server locations.
"The server send rate has been lowered from 60hz to 20hz causing more inconsistency compared to the beta due to the fact that there is (on average) triple the amount of time between server updates," Smcro concludes. "Also, it would seem that matchmaking sometimes chooses servers that are undesirable in terms of latency. It would be nice to have the ability to whitelist server locations which give the best experience to prevent this from happening."
As you may have already deduced, fans are pretty unhappy about the news, and are calling on Treyarch to explain why the servers have purportedly been downgraded.
We've reached out to Activision and will update as and when we receive a response.
In other news, Treyarch has addressed issues with looting Death Stashes in Blackout, so we can loot defeated enemies again now.
