GAME FAQ's & TIPS

Q: What are "ping" and "lag" and how do they affect the game?

A: Ping is the amount of time it takes for your computer and the host-server to communicate with each other.  Your computer needs to send data about your game to the server. For example; your position, the direction you are facing, what weapon you have, and the direction and location of any ammo you are firing (bullets, nades, rockets).  The host-server needs to send the same data about all of the other players, back to your computer.  If there is any delay in the flow of this data (ping is greater than zero) then that is "lag", and as a result you will see the game (players and everything else) as it WAS, not how it IS. Therefore, you should always test the server's lag to determine how far you need to lead your targets when shooting.  Test lag by entering some text and counting how long it takes for the text to appear.  This is a good measure of lag, you can then adjust your shots accordingly.

(If you have lag of more than 1 second, you should probably try joining a different server.)

SOME CAUSES OF LAG:

1: Slow connection. (Either the player's or the host-server's)

2: Intense action. (Too much shooting, nading, explosions, etc.)

3: Too much AI (artificial intelligence) in the map. (Bad-Guys, Penguins, Birds, Pirahnas, etc.)

4: Too many moving objects in the map. (Choppers, Vehicles, Spotlights, etc.)

5: Too many players in the game.

Q: I just shot and hit a player 20 times, I even saw the blood fly, why didn't they die?

A: POSSIBLE REASONS....

1: LAG.  If you have even a little lag and the player was moving, then the appearance of blood usually means that you were not leading the target enough.  Unless you have nearly ZERO lag, the ONLY time you will see blood during a kill, is if the player is standing still. 

2: SPAWN INVINCIBILITY.  When a player first spawns, they are invincible for a short period of time (4-6 seconds).  Therefore, if you shoot them they will not die until the spawn invincibility expires, or they start shooting.

Q: A player looks like they are "falling," "jumping" or "flying," are they cheating?

A: MAYBE.  If the player is on something elevated, like a tower, bridge, or the roof of a hangar or building, then sometimes they may appear to "glitch."  Even though it appears they are falling, jumping or flying, they really aren't.  Fortunately, the "glitching" makes them very easy to spot, so if you want to kill them, just shoot at the spot it appears they are "falling" from.  They may also appear to "glitch" momentarily if they jump from an elevated location such as a cliff, tower, roof or bridge.  This "glitching" is just an unfortunate part of the game, it is not considered cheating.  However, if a player constantly appears to "fall" or "fly", then they are most likely using a "flying cheat" trainer.

Q: When I look around the map, my display gets "jerky" or "glitchy"....why?

A: FRAME RATE LOSS, which is NOT the same as lag.  Frame rate loss usually occurs when there are too many objects in your field of view for your computer's processor or video card to handle.  This can also cause objects to partially or completely disappear.  Objects exploding (such as clays, satchels, vehicles, etc.) can also cause temporary frame rate loss.  It is just part of the game.  However, there are some things you can do to minimize both frame rate loss and object glitching....

1: TURN OFF SKY DETAILS.  This can be done by pressing the "~" key and typing "sky" at the command prompt.

2: LOWER YOUR DISPLAY RESOLUTION.  Press "V" to cycle through the different resolutions.  Usually 640 x 480 is sufficient.

3: TURN OFF SCOPE UNTIL YOU NEED IT.  Turn off your scope by pressing the "S" key.  Press it again to turn it back on.

4: TRY THE "TURBO" COMMAND.  Try it by pressing the "~" key then typing "TURBO" at the command prompt, or by pressing "H" key.

Q: What is a "CI?"

A: CONNECTION INTERRUPTED.  This happens when your computer and the host-server cannot maintain a connection.  When CI's occur, you will see appearing in the upper right-hand corner of your view, the words "Connection Interrupted" and a number indicating the length of time (in seconds) your interruption has lasted.  If you get a CI, they are normally only temporary, after which your game will re-connect to the host-server. However, sometimes CI's can be permanent, then you will have to exit and re-join the game.  An occasional CI is normal, but if you get them frequently, there is a problem either with your internet connection, or the host's.  If you get them frequently no matter which server you are joined to, the problem is probably with your internet connection.  If you get them frequently only in certain servers, then the problem is probably the host's connection.

SOME CAUSES OF CI's:

1: Same factors that cause lag.

2: ISP drops your internet connection.

3: Hosts game or computer freezes up.

Q: A player runs REALLY fast...are they cheating?

A: MAYBE.  If the player does it constantly and continuously, then they are most likely running a "run-fast" cheat trainer.  However, if you just had a CI, then upon re-connecting, your game will "catch-up" on all of the action that took place while it was disconnected, which may cause everything to temporarily appear like it's being fast-forwarded.

Q: One player is more difficult to kill than the others...why?

A: POSSIBLE REASONS....

1: THEY ARE THE HOST.  Because the host's server processes and communicates the game data for all players, the host's version of the game is the most accurate.  This is known as "host advantage." Everyone else has at least some lag, so they're game is always just slightly behind the host's game.  Therefore, if there is enough lag, it is possible for the host to run around a corner and shoot you even before you see him.  If there is very little lag, then the host's advantage is negligible.

2: THEY HAVE A LARGE AMOUNT OF LAG.  If a player has a large amount of lag, then by the time their location data gets sent to your game, they may have moved a significant distance.  Therefore, where you see them is not where they really are.  This makes them more difficult to kill if you do not account for the lag.

3: THEY ARE A SKILLED PLAYER.  Some players are more skilled at avoiding getting shot than others.  They may  zig-zag, hop, skip, jump, and go prone, all to make it more difficult for you to shoot them.

Q: A player knifed me from 10 feet away!....how?

A: POSSIBLE REASONS...

1: HOST ADVANTAGE.  Although it may appear as though the player was 10 ft away, if the player was the host, he was actually closer, but by the time your game received the location data from the host-server, it was too late.

2: KNIFE "LAG".  Were you chasing after the player?  If so, a player can knife while running, then, due to lag, if you run through the spot where he was when he knifed....ouch, you're dead!  I call this "knife-bombing" because it's like you're running around dropping knife bombs similar to clays for players to run through a split-second later.  This works REGARDLESS OF WHICH WAY YOU ARE FACING!  Unless a player is standing still, or there is ZERO lag (rare), almost all knife kills occur this way.