So, what changed on the server? @Devs

[DarrenPR]

tl;dr: Could a dev explain why the server responded much more quickly between January 11, 2018 and January 16, 2018, and understand & possibly fix the issue so it does not happen in the future, and could they also reset LB times (again) for the season?

My hope for this post is to get some kind of response from somebody at SpaceTimeStudios who has access to the back-end servers who can explain what happened will respond to this post with information, and dish out the appropriate fix to the issue mentioned below.

As commented in the sneak peak Here, what happened to the game server between January 11, 2018 post-update and January 16, 2018?

Here's what I noticed: Ping, on average, was 33% lower during this time period. I personally went from 150 ping on average everywhere to under 100 ping on average everywhere. Other players I have discussed this with noticed the same thing. The game felt more responsive as a result, and inputs to the server registered more quickly than they would normally otherwise register.

Who noticed: After having talked with some players, only timed Leaderboard runners actually noticed the snappier, more responding server. There were several people who claimed that "jewel farming is nerfed" or "gold drops in maus is lower now" or even that "mobs are harder to hit", but could not explain why it felt that way.

How does this impact the game: After January 16, 2018, the game seems to have returned to it's "normal ping state". I am now back to the usual 150 ping on the hud at all times regardless of where I am in game, how I configure my router, which game client I choose (I play on chrome) or even which NaCl/Chrome options I turn on or off. As mentioned earlier, Leaderboard runners noticed the ping difference. For Leaderboard times, every millisecond counts. With the server responding more quickly to requests, those who were paying attention took to the Leaderboards and re-ran any map for which this might affect the times (Arena, Hauntlet, most of the crypts maps, a few timing-based Elite maps such as elite Southern Seas, etc). Not to my surprise, the times were vastly improved simply because of the change to the game server's response time. Arena's best time (which has been basically determined to be the best time physically possible) was lowered by 3 seconds with ease, Hauntlet times were reduced by 5-6 seconds with relative ease, and the same can be said for the other maps for which this change affected. There is nothing implicitly wrong with this having changed. However, now that the server is back to responding in the way it did prior to the aforementioned time frame, the faster times are no longer possible. For example, as I know this personally, the Arena time is back to being a "best possible time" of around 1:12 - meaning no matter how fast you can click or kill bosses, even with a perfect run you will only hope to achieve a 1:12.XXX time. If you look on the leaderboard, every time that exists as of the posting of this thread was set within the time frame that I mentioned above, and is also under this 1:12.XXX threshold many of us who run arena consider "the best time possible". I do not have personal experience with many of the other maps for which this change affected, but I can only imagine that a similar story can be told for them as well. I also speculate this change in server responsiveness is what caused others to believe that there was a "jewel farm nerf", "gold drop nerf in maus", or having "mobs are harder to hit", but I cannot confirm this other than anecdotally seeing the correlation.

So, why does this matter: For most players, this means nothing to them. For people who wanted to try a Leaderboard time and was waiting until last minute or otherwise did not take advantage of this time frame, it means everything. As mentioned, there are a number of times currently set on the Leaderboard, which were set during this time frame, that are literally impossible to beat now that the server responsiveness has gone back to its "normal ping state". To put it another way, the people who had times on the board for any of the maps this affected and who were knocked off because of this higher responsiveness leading to lower times, have 0 chance to reclaim their positions on the leaderboard so long as the server stays in its "normal ping state". As one might imagine, this could lead to some angry/discouraged players as they realize they have no hopes of claiming their time back.

What do I think should be done: In all honesty I believe that someone who has access to the back-end server(s) should investigate this sudden change and root cause why it changed, why it changed back, and what we can do in the future to avoid such a drastic change in what is essentially game mechanics. My current theories are that decommissioning a few games reduced the load on the server(s) and more recently, STS executing their "clean up forged energy" script is causing the ping rise. I, however, do not have access to the server logs, so this is simply speculation. Secondly, and this one is dependent on whether or not the server responsiveness can be brought back down to what it was during the January 11-16 time frame again permanently, is I believe the Leaderboards should be reset yet again this season. Much like when the Nightmare set worked in all maps and was considered "unfair for times" after the patch, this difference in timing mechanic, in my opinion, is also "unfair for times" as it results in literally impossible to beat times on the Leaderboard. Now with that said, full disclosure: I am on the board, with times that are now impossible to beat, so if someone suggests I'm "crying over not getting a spot on LB", this is simply not true and I ask that we have a more productive conversation around this fundamental game mechanic change.

So, I hope to hear back from someone who access to the server logs and has looked into this issue and can explain what happened, as well as provide a fix to the problems mentioned in this post.

Thanks,
Darren

[Kakashis]

most people who achieved impossible times to beat wouldn't be as honest as you!

[frynoodlez]

yep true stuff

[|Ares|]

So you are basically trying to say because of ping change you can't get a rec on timed Leaderboard?

[MasterP]

tl;dr: Could a dev explain why the server responded much more quickly between January 11, 2018 and January 16, 2018, and understand & possibly fix the issue so it does not happen in the future, and could they also reset LB times (again) for the season?

My hope for this post is to get some kind of response from somebody at SpaceTimeStudios who has access to the back-end servers who can explain what happened will respond to this post with information, and dish out the appropriate fix to the issue mentioned below.

As commented in the sneak peak Here, what happened to the game server between January 11, 2018 post-update and January 16, 2018?

Here's what I noticed: Ping, on average, was 33% lower during this time period. I personally went from 150 ping on average everywhere to under 100 ping on average everywhere. Other players I have discussed this with noticed the same thing. The game felt more responsive as a result, and inputs to the server registered more quickly than they would normally otherwise register.

Who noticed: After having talked with some players, only timed Leaderboard runners actually noticed the snappier, more responding server. There were several people who claimed that "jewel farming is nerfed" or "gold drops in maus is lower now" or even that "mobs are harder to hit", but could not explain why it felt that way.

How does this impact the game: After January 16, 2018, the game seems to have returned to it's "normal ping state". I am now back to the usual 150 ping on the hud at all times regardless of where I am in game, how I configure my router, which game client I choose (I play on chrome) or even which NaCl/Chrome options I turn on or off. As mentioned earlier, Leaderboard runners noticed the ping difference. For Leaderboard times, every millisecond counts. With the server responding more quickly to requests, those who were paying attention took to the Leaderboards and re-ran any map for which this might affect the times (Arena, Hauntlet, most of the crypts maps, a few timing-based Elite maps such as elite Southern Seas, etc). Not to my surprise, the times were vastly improved simply because of the change to the game server's response time. Arena's best time (which has been basically determined to be the best time physically possible) was lowered by 3 seconds with ease, Hauntlet times were reduced by 5-6 seconds with relative ease, and the same can be said for the other maps for which this change affected. There is nothing implicitly wrong with this having changed. However, now that the server is back to responding in the way it did prior to the aforementioned time frame, the faster times are no longer possible. For example, as I know this personally, the Arena time is back to being a "best possible time" of around 1:12 - meaning no matter how fast you can click or kill bosses, even with a perfect run you will only hope to achieve a 1:12.XXX time. If you look on the leaderboard, every time that exists as of the posting of this thread was set within the time frame that I mentioned above, and is also under this 1:12.XXX threshold many of us who run arena consider "the best time possible". I do not have personal experience with many of the other maps for which this change affected, but I can only imagine that a similar story can be told for them as well. I also speculate this change in server responsiveness is what caused others to believe that there was a "jewel farm nerf", "gold drop nerf in maus", or having "mobs are harder to hit", but I cannot confirm this other than anecdotally seeing the correlation.

So, why does this matter: For most players, this means nothing to them. For people who wanted to try a Leaderboard time and was waiting until last minute or otherwise did not take advantage of this time frame, it means everything. As mentioned, there are a number of times currently set on the Leaderboard, which were set during this time frame, that are literally impossible to beat now that the server responsiveness has gone back to its "normal ping state". To put it another way, the people who had times on the board for any of the maps this affected and who were knocked off because of this higher responsiveness leading to lower times, have 0 chance to reclaim their positions on the leaderboard so long as the server stays in its "normal ping state". As one might imagine, this could lead to some angry/discouraged players as they realize they have no hopes of claiming their time back.

What do I think should be done: In all honesty I believe that someone who has access to the back-end server(s) should investigate this sudden change and root cause why it changed, why it changed back, and what we can do in the future to avoid such a drastic change in what is essentially game mechanics. My current theories are that decommissioning a few games reduced the load on the server(s) and more recently, STS executing their "clean up forged energy" script is causing the ping rise. I, however, do not have access to the server logs, so this is simply speculation. Secondly, and this one is dependent on whether or not the server responsiveness can be brought back down to what it was during the January 11-16 time frame again permanently, is I believe the Leaderboards should be reset yet again this season. Much like when the Nightmare set worked in all maps and was considered "unfair for times" after the patch, this difference in timing mechanic, in my opinion, is also "unfair for times" as it results in literally impossible to beat times on the Leaderboard. Now with that said, full disclosure: I am on the board, with times that are now impossible to beat, so if someone suggests I'm "crying over not getting a spot on LB", this is simply not true and I ask that we have a more productive conversation around this fundamental game mechanic change.

So, I hope to hear back from someone who access to the server logs and has looked into this issue and can explain what happened, as well as provide a fix to the problems mentioned in this post.

Thanks,
Darren

So.. besides undim fields, which youve had before the update, and arena. What else has changed? Have you tried the other maps before and after the update to come to your conclusion? Probably not. The only maps to be affected were elite southern seas and one of the ydra or bracken maps if i recall. And as i remember, you were not on any other time before the update that you speak off. So why must it suddenly be reset to your liking if you never attempted them before? When others have put the time and effort into running and the gear. p.s many of the times were done before so called good ping and after it. Nothing changed. There are some times from months ago, 2/3months ago still around. Want to give us a break down on those ??

If this has any truth to it.. sts should do a statistics check. Compare times before and after this update. See what the differences where and make a decision going forth from there. Its childish to just ask for it to be reset based on one person's assumptions.

The only dodgy thing was letal sharks getting on LB.. but that was before the update.

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[Azerothraven]

This is just selfish as far as I can see.

It is unfair to reset times because everyone had put a lot of effort, time and money into getting to LB prior claimed ping change. My pt ran Gold Mine for 8 hours on 17th Jan 6:32 PM GMt +6( My ping was 300-490). Why should our time be wiped for supposed performance? Remember this is just 1 party and 1 record so imagine all the others who worked hard to achieve their timed run.

It is rather selfish to ask for reset just because a few people may have an advantage for a short duration. In any case,

BIG NO to reset time. Those who got wiped should just accept life isn't fair. If it was reduced by 33% then it was reduced for all so they didn't take the opportunity so it is their misfortune. STS can investigate if they want but they should be held responsible for their server being better than normal. No change is required.

More people will be angry if timed runs are reset than those who lost their place on LB


P.s.
The boss spawns faster in South gates if u go 3 players btw that is why time was reduced significantly.
As for Shuyal Arena ( when i saw 1:09 i was like wtf)

[DarrenPR]

This is just selfish as far as I can see.

If raising my hand and saying "me and like 1 other dude took 75% of all times available because of something strange that happened for a couple days and now those times are literally impossible for anybody to else to beat because of it, and I don't think it's fair to everybody else that this happened, can you please look into it?" is selfish, I think we have a very different view of what selfish actually means. I find being against this and not caring about any other people but oneself because of 1 time that didn't happen to be affected by it to be quite selfish, in my opinion.

But, drama aside, something did have an effect on the server for 5 days and I would very much like to know what it was.

[Azerothraven]

If raising my hand and saying "me and like 1 other dude took 75% of all times available because of something strange that happened for a couple days and now those times are literally impossible for anybody to else to beat because of it, and I don't think it's fair to everybody else that this happened, can you please look into it?" is selfish, I think we have a very different view of what selfish actually means. I find being against this and not caring about any other people but oneself because of 1 time that didn't happen to be affected by it to be quite selfish, in my opinion.

But, drama aside, something did have an effect on the server for 5 days and I would very much like to know what it was.

I think asking to look into it is not selfish. But asking to reset all records is.

Is it possible these few people have better gear now they used/ have improved their strategy?

I would be curious to find out what caused server to be better but it is not sufficient enough to reset LB. E.g. I believe the NM set working in all maps was worth reset but not this. Although I do see the issue of same people hoarding all maps and should give others a chance.

[extrapayah]

as per my observation, at the start of ankhs week update, i can feel that the game performance in small maps is a lot faster, but town and maps with a lot of objects/mobs is a lot slower. original poster took the advantage, and refresh leaderboard arena time, now after some time, imo 1 day before 2x story tokens, performance is somehow back to normal.

so let's clear some misunderstanding here, original poster took the advantage, so resetting lb will only nullify the advantage. then again, no matter who took the advantage, timed record shouldn't be based on limited time advantage like this. e.g. we wouldn't want to have a single day in the season where timer moving slower than normal, right? what's the point in trying after that then?

better reset and complaint now rather than at the end of the season. tbh i don't mind not resetting the lb, since i also took the advantage. and it's not like we took it in 1 try too, we spend more than 6 hours in 2 days of trial and error.

[Alwarez]

They have a new programmer

I don't run lb but cs was refreshing lists a lot faster recently

[|Ares|]

If raising my hand and saying "me and like 1 other dude took 75% of all times available because of something strange that happened for a couple days and now those times are literally impossible for anybody to else to beat because of it, and I don't think it's fair to everybody else that this happened, can you please look into it?" is selfish, I think we have a very different view of what selfish actually means. I find being against this and not caring about any other people but oneself because of 1 time that didn't happen to be affected by it to be quite selfish, in my opinion.

But, drama aside, something did have an effect on the server for 5 days and I would very much like to know what it was.

Honey, Im running these maps since around 2 months. Some timers have been slightly improved since then and it happened before any recent server change. Only few maps changed when it comes to mobs/boss spawn and that's it.

[frynoodlez]

I'm just wondering which maps changed/what happened, reset seems a bit much, but if sts could say EXACTLY what they changed in each map that would be helpful (i.e. more in-depth update notes).

[|Ares|]

I'm just wondering which maps changed/what happened, reset seems a bit much, but if sts could say EXACTLY what they changed in each map that would be helpful (i.e. more in-depth update notes).

One of the "advantages" as Extrapayah mentioned was probably quicker boss spawn at Southern Seas elite map. Other example is pretty messed up mob spawn moment at Ydra Outskirts.

[DarrenPR]

I'm just wondering which maps changed/what happened, reset seems a bit much, but if sts could say EXACTLY what they changed in each map that would be helpful (i.e. more in-depth update notes).

Any and all maps that have a "delay" in boss or mob spawns. Basically every map where there is an animation for spawning something. At least that was my observation.

[frynoodlez]

Any and all maps that have a "delay" in boss or mob spawns. Basically every map where there is an animation for spawning something. At least that was my observation.

Yeah I guess I noticed that in southern seas and hauntlet for sure, kinda sad, hopefully they can make it like Jan 11-Jan 16 permanently.

[extrapayah]

One of the "advantages" as Extrapayah mentioned was probably quicker boss spawn at Southern Seas elite map. Other example is pretty messed up mob spawn moment at Ydra Outskirts.

interesting info there! that made me think probably before 1/11 the game only trying to spawn/load enemies at predetermined time/or when the players is close to spawn point, while in between 1/11 and 1/17 the game load/spawn everything at the start.

if it's true and if i'm asked which one do i like, i'd probably say the one before 1/11, because initial high load will disrupt many kind of elixir-based farming.

[Tatman]

I think asking to look into it is not selfish. But asking to reset all records is.

Is it possible these few people have better gear now they used/ have improved their strategy?

He already has his impossible-to-beat times. As do - I suspect - all the others who are rallying against the premise of this thread. So maybe think again who is selfish and who isn't.

As for the second question: No, it's impossible to beat some current leaderboard times, no matter what gear you have.

As for the people who claim that times have been gradually taken for the last couple months - well, some maps do have a timestamp (Hauntlet, Arena). Everyone can go check whether they were taken in the last couple months or in a short span of a few days.

What I'd like to see at the very least is an explanation from the devs about what happened. Whether they reset lb or not isn't something we can influence, I'd assume. But I hope they at least investigate and come up with an explanation. Because what happened in those several days is certainly not okay and not fair to anyone who may have wanted to try their luck with timed runs.

[Ryvz]

"Here's what I noticed: Ping, on average, was 33% lower during this time period. I personally went from 150 ping on average everywhere to under 100 ping on average everywhere. Other players I have discussed this with noticed the same thing. The game felt more responsive as a result, and inputs to the server registered more quickly than they would normally otherwise register.

Who noticed: After having talked with some players, only timed Leaderboard runners actually noticed the snappier, more responding server. There were several people who claimed that "jewel farming is nerfed" or "gold drops in maus is lower now" or even that "mobs are harder to hit", but could not explain why it felt that way."

Noticed the same, it was quite obvious for me as i'm constantly used to seeing yellow ping on my HUD 300-350. Being from South Africa, to get green ping 266-284 stable,everyday, was quite amazing. So it seems there are ways for the server/game to be snappier and ping to be more responsive as Darren mentioned.

Why can't we have it like this all the time? It benefits players living far away from the server. There are other games which have recently added options to help players have a better gaming experience. Things like SPEED MODE / Increased Framerate. Which are meant to help get better ping and stability. Perhaps Sts can look into something, in terms of sharpening the servers ping response/stability, to benefit all.

Regards

Ryvz (Gimmmeeeee Greeeeen Pingssss)

[Jakubson]

We spend lot of time to set good #1 times in pure/lix arena and during date darren mentioned they could run 2s faster.

So i am asking you sts guys too, if because of i couldnt run during that days i will lost banner or u will do something with that....

Thanks for reply, ur customers wants know what trully happened.

[hastlin]

I just finished run hauntlet and i think hauntlet become difficult unlike before when i run between 11 january - 16 january. I think hauntler or other map back to normal. So how about records that have been recorded in leaderboard.? To make it fair sts need to reset timed run in leaderboard.

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