What will be the next non-performance fix aimed at reducing lag?

LonePirate · March 2015

We have all seen and heard for months now how fixing the lag in Cyrodiil is a top objective for ZOS. I guess I have missed the bullets in the various patch notes that reference performance fixes during the past few months. What I have seen, though, are indirect changes to things that are not performance fixes per se. These include the pop cap reductions from December, the impotent zerg buster skill Magicka Detonation from 1.6, the siege weapon damage, the mob levels and the XP changes from 2.0.2 and the AP bonus from delve bosses from 2.0.3.

The distinct absence of direct performance fixes leads me to believe that the console UI must be the magical silver bullet for performance issues because that is all that ZOS is working on right now. Until those fixes arrive on June 9, what other indirect Hail Mary attempts at fixing the performance issues do you think we will see?

An obvious one I think we will see is another reduction in the pop caps. Let's disregard the impact this change will have on the ability of players to reach Cyrodiil, given how EP regularly locks every campaign except Haderus and the Thornblade queue exceeds 200 during peak hours. There will be fewer complaints about Cyrodiil performance if fewer people can actually go there!

Another change I see coming is the removal of scrolls and the emperorship status. The lag is at its worst when two factions go after one of the other faction's inner three scroll gate keeps or at that last keep before an emperor is crowned or dethroned. Without scrolls or the emperorship, there will be less of a need to concentrate so many players in a single location and thus less lag.

What other changes do you think we will see while we wait for the promised performance fixes which never seem to arrive?

c0rp · March 2015

Removal of trolls.

WebBull · March 2015

If they reduce the caps anymore they may as well shrink the size of Cyrodiil. Not sure how they can reduce much further. However they can certainly make the caps more even. Pops are still out of whack between alliances with the current caps.

PainfulFAFA · March 2015

I kinda of agree with the notion that ZOS is indirectly fixing performance issues by changing player behavior through many incentives. The newest incentive to reduce lag is now that AP bonus baloney in delves...

However, I'm fine with the new siege changes and with the new alliance abilities. Makes for a great way to spread out 60+ EP charging through the field outnumbering other alliance 3:1.

In regards to queues, once console launches, I fear the queues for red will go up to the 300+s.
Currently AD queue is never more than 20 even during primetime. Imagine DC's queue.

That means Red players will have to either hop off the wagon, or wait for 45mins + for PVP action.
Or, you know, go flood another campaign.
Seriously, EP is like an overpopulated China for every one you take out, three more replace him.

LonePirate · March 2015

PainfulFAFA wrote: »

That means Red players will have to either hop off the wagon, or wait for 45mins + for PVP action.
Or, you know, go flood another campaign.

45 minutes is nothing. I will try to join Thornblade at my usual time of 6:00 PM EDT and the EP queue will be around 80. Guildies have reported the queue requiring over two hours once it hits the 200+ level every night. The removal of AP costs and time locks for changing Home and Guest campaigns need to be removed as quickly as possible.

frozywozy · March 2015

The main problem is the fact that they don't have any system in place to rollback a big fix on a particular thing. Anytime they bring big changes live on the main servers, first of all they didn't experiment it enough on the PTS, and second the way they deploy the fix, it seems totally impossible for them to bring it back to where it used to be prior the fix in case it brings even more problems than it actually fixes the issue aimed at.