[SOLVED] Same ping but different results when gaming

[Baggedblue70]

Hi, so, I have this problem that my ISP nor I know what the exact issue is. I live far from the gaming server I play on but have no choice but to play on those servers. My avg ping is around 135-145ms but sometimes as low as 120ms to as high as 190ms. The issue is that I have an extra "delay" when gaming (FPS games).

So, I call my ISP looking for help. Unfortunately, they aren't to bright and don't really care. I live where there is only two internet providers (both equally garbage) so they don't care because they know it's you either get their bad service/internet or you don't get anything at all. Talked to the tech manager and he told me that what I stated above is just the game because ping is ping and there's no other "delay". He is totally wrong but he's the manager so he's right according to him.

Ex., I can slide behind the enemy and shoot them in the back and they're shooting at nothing but I'm the one who dies. The game shows me how I died. It shows that I slide but I was still in front of the enemy. He was shooting me in the back and I was the one shooting at nothing. This happens to me all the time no matter what the enemy's ping is. I can be at 130ms and the enemy's ping is 200ms. BUT, when I call my ISP and ask them to reboot my modem from their end, 75% of the time that delay goes away but comes back after couple hours, couple days or a week. Most times after a couple of hours. When the "delay" is gone I will have the same 135-145ms ping but now when I slide behind the enemy and shoot em in the back they die.

I have tried many routers, 3 different modems (issued from ISP), 3 different eth. cables, different gaming consoles and PC to make sure issue is not on my end. Nothing changes unless they reboot my modem from their end. 130ms ping (just ping) isn't that bad (for me) but there is an extra delay making it feel like 300ms+ ping. Also, not everyone has this experience when gaming where I live. Showed clips to friends that play the same game in the same servers and they said theirs isn't like that/doesn't happen to them. If, what's happening to me is "normal" for my ping, then why would ppl (streamers) VPN to the same servers I'm in where they're pinging 170ms+ and have the same bad experience, when they can just play in their server region and get 20ms ping and the best experience???

Any techie ppl in here ever seen/heard of my issue and know or kinda know the issue so I can let my ISP know? PLEASE HELP!!!

 

[bill001g]

The ISP tech manager is totally right not because he is a manger but because he likely is a trained professional in his profession. Lots of low level techs that don't have a clue at ISP but he is correct.

Ping/latency is caused by primarily by distance which does not always follow the shortest path. You can do nothing about it because you have no control over how ISP connect to each other and where they connect. The second cause of high latency would be overloaded connections where data must wait.
This is not very common anymore and in most cases you can not do anything about it when it is in a ISP router far away from you. If you are overloading you own internet connection that you might be able to correct.

As you also indicate the raw ping number does not have a huge impact on games. They introduce artificial delays so someone with a very low ping time does not have a advantage. This is why you can use a VPN with it extra delays and still play ok. It varies a bit between games but even a 100ms difference tends to be ok. Now there
are private servers for some games that turn this number down very low but these are used when everyone is on a lan.

Your problem is you are likely reading tech information on game forums. Unlike the ISP manager these people are mostly kids living in mom basement whose only skill is pushing buttons in a game. They have never worked doing network support or even game development but they think they are experts because they push buttons inside a game program.

You can not trust the ping times you see in game you must do actual testing with a real ping command best on a different device in your house. Games many times will get stuck in say a video rendering routine and when they finally get done and check the network they blame the delay on the network when the packet has been sitting there ready to be read while it game was busy doing something else. If you always see consistent latency with a real ping command then it is likely something other than a network issues.

There are so many things that cause this inside of games. Most times it is some video setting since that is what increases the load both on the GPU and CPU. If you get either overloaded you get delays which can cause the lag you see in game.

 

[Baggedblue70]

The ISP tech manager is totally right not because he is a manger but because he likely is a trained professional in his profession. Lots of low level techs that don't have a clue at ISP but he is correct.

Honestly, I vey much dislike when ppl say so and so went to school for this and that and so he's right and so didn't so he's wrong. I'll take someone with experience over just because someone went to school for something. That's just me tho. But if you discount just about everything I said and my examples then yeah, he's totally right because he's a trained professional. I have had Type 1 diabetes for 35+ years. My doctor said if my glucose level drops below 60mg then I'll have severe hypoglycemia where I'd be sweating and all other things. But, if I told you that I've had my glucose levels at 40mg plenty of times and felt fine...am I wrong and don't know what I'm talking about because I didn't go to school to be a doctor?

As you also indicate the raw ping number does not have a huge impact on games. They introduce artificial delays so someone with a very low ping time does not have a advantage. This is why you can use a VPN with it extra delays and still play ok. It varies a bit between games but even a 100ms difference tends to be ok. Now there
are private servers for some games that turn this number down very low but these are used when everyone is on a lan.

That "artificial delay" you're talking about is called "lag compensation". So, if what you say is true about not having an advantage, then why do ppl with 30ms ping and below easily kill me regardless of their skill level? And ppl with higher ping 170ms and above kill me in the same manner?

Your problem is you are likely reading tech information on game forums. Unlike the ISP manager these people are mostly kids living in mom basement whose only skill is pushing buttons in a game. They have never worked doing network support or even game development but they think they are experts because they push buttons inside a game program.

I'm talking from experience, years of experience and trying different things and educating myself. The answer(s) I'm looking for aren't on any forums. Even Google doesn't know. Unfortunately not many ppl have this issue or they don't know it's an issue so it's very much not Googled. How can I have vastly different experiences with the same 130 ping in the same gaming servers? 130 ping getting killed instantly. Standing behind the enemy shooting him in the back but I die and it showed the enemy was instead standing behind me shooting me in the back.

Ask them to just reboot my modem or whatever, jump on the same game, get in to the same servers, same 130ms ping, but NOW not dying instantly. Enemy now dies when I'm behind them shooting them in the back.
My brother and I had this same ISP. We always played together, same game same server. So, our ping times are identical. BUT, noticeably different experience. He lived less than 10 minutes away from me.

There are so many things that cause this inside of games. Most times it is some video setting since that is what increases the load both on the GPU and CPU. If you get either overloaded you get delays which can cause the lag you see in game.

As stated, I have used many different gaming consoles as well as PC. Also, said, when my ISP reboots my modem or anything else, that delay isn't there. So, in my case it isn't this.

Thanks for your reply.

 

[bill001g]

You just want some magic solution without actually testing. Your feelings that it is a network issue mean nothing without proof. Maybe I should just randomly say it is a power problem and you should buy a new power supply.

You need to actually test with a ping command and see if you are actually getting packet loss or random delays. You can't expect the ISP to fix it when you have no proof and their testing show no issues. It could be something they can't see but they can't fix something they can't detect.

It is much more likely this is some setting in the game but again you need to rule things out.

 

[Baggedblue70]

You just want some magic solution without actually testing. Your feelings that it is a network issue mean nothing without proof. Maybe I should just randomly say it is a power problem and you should buy a new power supply.

You need to actually test with a ping command and see if you are actually getting packet loss or random delays. You can't expect the ISP to fix it when you have no proof and their testing show no issues. It could be something they can't see but they can't fix something they can't detect.

It is much more likely this is some setting in the game but again you need to rule things out.

Sorry bill if I offended you. I've done ping command and just about everything else that I know of on my end. No packet loss and also, the game like most online (FPS) games show a notification when you get packet loss. Normally, if you get packet loss in game, it's very noticeable. You will start "lagging" where your character starts skipping or glitching.

How is it not a network issue if the "delay" I am talking about goes away 90% of the time when they reboot or change something on their end? Or if there is an island wide power outage, then when power is restored, that "delay" is gone for some time. It is not a setting in game. Sorry again, not trying to offend you but doesn't sound like you game online. My ISP's tech manager doesn't so it's kinda hard for him and others that don't, understand what I am trying to explain.

I don't expect them to "fix" it and not looking for some magic solution. I understand it is something that is hard to figure out. I just want them to try different things on their end and cross it off the list as I asked the manager. I am only told the lines are clean and they don't see any issues. The proof as I stated earlier is the clips showing what I am talking about. I have showed it to an employee of my ISP that also plays the same game and has the same internet service. He laughed and said, "That doesn't happen to me. Mines not that bad." I live on a small island about 35miles long and 15miles wide. So, everyone here that has internet has one of the two providers. Everyone here that plays online games will tell you that how good it is (for online gaming) depends on where you live on the island. Even tho you have the same ISP, you can have totally different experiences. Even tho we all have identical ping times to the same server in the same game.

Also, my cousin has a friend that works for my ISP. He comes out and messes with the pedestal where the internet leads to the drop to my home. When he does, that "delay" goes away but again, only for couple hours, days, or a week.

Are none of the things I have stated not proof? I have changed and tried everything on my end. No change in the "delay". They try or change something on their end, "delay" is gone. This "delay" is on all games I've played. So, not "it's just the servers/game".

 

[bill001g]

Your problem is you are saying....look at my video it is proof. How do I know it is not the capture software, the game, some video driver,some issue with a patch in windows etc etc. Now it can be caused by random network issues but you then claim the game doesn't say you get network loss. So that too shows it is not a actual network issue.

You need to find something that show the problem that is simpler. The ISP is not going to play a game to test a connection..especially if they don't play game personally. Their testing tools and yours if ping is clear show there is no network problem. So now you either look for the problem being something else or you need to find another tool that will show the problem actually is with the network.

 

[Baggedblue70]

Your problem is you are saying....look at my video it is proof. How do I know it is not the capture software, the game, some video driver,some issue with a patch in windows etc etc. Now it can be caused by random network issues but you then claim the game doesn't say you get network loss. So that too shows it is not a actual network issue.

You need to find something that show the problem that is simpler. The ISP is not going to play a game to test a connection..especially if they don't play game personally. Their testing tools and yours if ping is clear show there is no network problem. So now you either look for the problem being something else or you need to find another tool that will show the problem actually is with the network.

Okay. When I play the game. When anyone on the game dies. It immediately shows you how you died. So, my recordings show me and what I am doing before I die then shows the enemy and what he was doing about 5 seconds before and up to when he killed me. It also shows my Ping and shows the enemy's ping. I'm not getting packet loss. Not network loss. And their is packet loss randomly and rarely but that is mostly the serve. I know this because when it does ever happen, I ask my teammates if they just lag as well.

Look man. I am not a kid. And I am not some idiot. I know they're not going to play a game or whatever. I have tried on THREE different gaming consoles and a PC. I have taken the same gaming console and PC to my brothers house and did not experience the issue. This has also been told to the manager. I have done this and many other things to rule out anything on my end before I even brought it up to my ISP.

Again, I have done just about everything on my end. Nothing changes. Minutes later, call my ISP. ISP does something on their end, "delay" is gone. So, how can it be anything else dealing with my consoles or my PC? So, all of them have a issue and not the ISP?

Came here to look for help from anyone who has experienced or know anything about this. NOT to be talked down on or talked to like I don't know anything or I'm some kid that just pushes buttons.