[img]//assets.albiononline.com/uploads/media/default/media/a3ec20788ced4366da9404959d95cfa6045bddf5.png[/img]\n\nZvZ fights are at the core of Albion Online, with guilds clashing in massive Outlands battles for territories to make their mark on the games history. Were aware, though, that in large-scale combat there can be issues with performance, and this is something we take very seriously indeed. With that in mind, we thought wed give you a look at whats behind these problems and how were trying to tackle them. If you want a more detailed post that dives into all the specifics, check out this forum thread from our Technical Director Jon Davis. Otherwise, read on to learn more.\n\n

Analyzing Lag

\nLag is used as a catch-all term for a wide range of problems, and before we can tackle these issues we need to analyze their root cause.\n\nLow FPS, stuttering, and input latency tend to be client-side issues, happening on the device itself. An unresponsive or frozen gameworld, on the other hand, points to server-side problems. This is often the case in ZvZ fights, where the sheer number of spells affecting a huge number of players causes a massive queue of events that the server needs to process. This queuing can then result in delays or freezes, as the server pauses to process the calculations for each spell before moving on.\n\n[img]//assets.albiononline.com/uploads/media/default/media/7f55ae8006b1f0c456141500c734abfd0bf10d85.jpeg[/img]\n\nNetwork problems, meanwhile, can cause common issues like rubberbanding or characters that appear to be frozen on screen or suddenly teleporting. The problem here is a desynchronization between the client and the server, where your game\'s understanding of the world is not the same as the server\'s. This is often caused by local network issues, problems with your ISPs network, or high traffic at peak times. Sometimes, however, the cause is server-side, as the server is so busy calculating everything going on in a massive fight that there is a delay in updating a characters game state (like their position or health).\n\n

What Steps Were Taking

\nWith all this in mind, lets take a look at some of the ways were looking to tackle these issues.\n\nClient Performance\n\nIn upcoming content updates we want to make some changes to the way assets and visual effects are loaded by the game client to reduce CPU and GPU spikes, as well as memory allocation. In addition, we want to optimize spell VFX to perform more efficiently, and the development team is already hard at work on this. Were also looking at introducing spell VFX limiters, similar to what we have on mobile, to desktop and other platforms though this is a huge undertaking and very much in its early stages.\n\n[img]//assets.albiononline.com/uploads/media/default/media/ba6757ec1816af3d2b34bf1f018869ab9ac247ab.jpeg[/img]\n\nFinally, were working on improving the way certain UI elements like health bars, damage indicators, and cast bars are handled on a technical level. This is a major cause of client-side lag, and by introducing a new system for these elements we hope to see very real improvements in ZvZ performance.\n\nServer Performance\n\nCombat in Albion Online is processed by our servers in such a way as to be able to handle such a complex system on a large scale, but in a massive ZvZ the number of events the servers have to process can result in lags. Were working to analyze exactly where issues such as these occur, in order to eliminate bottlenecks and enable much smoother performance. By optimizing code patterns used across particularly demanding spells, we can greatly improve the efficiency of existing and future abilities.\n\nWere also looking to improve the way our servers send information about, for example, spells hitting players, or damage being taken. By aggregating the information sent by our servers, we hope to reduce bottlenecks and improve performance and stability.\n\n[img]//assets.albiononline.com/uploads/media/default/media/1e7b361d2aa76655aab426a6e8e9b5ad1ee58486.jpeg[/img]\n\nNetwork Performance\n\nNetwork lag is often caused by congestion on specific regional networks, and were constantly in communication with our hosting partners to identify and improve these issues. While these problems are often beyond our influence, you can help us to gather data by reporting problems you encounter in this forum thread . Were also looking to display more detailed information about your connection, which can help you and us to better diagnose any network problems you experience.\n\nBeyond all this, were also upgrading our Unity version, which should bring noticeable stability and performance improvements.\n\n

What You Can Do

\nIf youre experiencing issues in ZvZs, there are certain steps you can already take to try and improve performance.\n\nIn the Game Settings, you can adjust the way your client displays visual effects, certain UI elements, and more. Changes here can greatly improve your clients performance in certain areas. In addition, meeting certain hardware requirements, particularly when it comes to CPU and storage, can have a huge effect, as can your PC configurations. For specific suggestions on the above, see this post .\n\n[img]//assets.albiononline.com/uploads/media/default/media/656e5901d005bc80bda750d64b46ee57f34c21ec.jpeg[/img]\n\nWe hope that this has shed some light on how were looking to improve ZvZ performance, which is at the heart of Albion Onlines gameplay. Its a complicated process and a long road, but were constantly working on this issue and well continue striving to give you the best combat experience possible. Thanks for reading, and for a more detailed look at this topic, check out this forum thread .\n

[ 2025-12-09 14:35:53 CET ] [Original Post]