How Important Is Your Computer Spec In Ns?
NegaBenji
Join Date: 2003-01-09 Member: 12058Members
Join Date: 2003-01-09 Member: 12058Members
<div class="IPBDescription">CPU power, ping etc...</div> I've noticed this kind of thing for a while, but it's really been getting on my nerves recently. As an alien, I've been running into marines who can kill you in under half a second with an unupgraded LMG - slightly longer if you have carapace, but still not requiring a full clip. Which is fine, they're probably a good shot. The problem is, whenever *I'm* a marine, it feels like my gun is some kind of nerf cannon. I've been in close-range firefights where I've spent an entire clip, but not taken the skulk down (this is right at the start of the game). I'm not exactly a fantastic shot, but there is no way that I'm not getting enough hits in at that range to take down a vanilla skulk. I've found non-moving skulks which take an entire clip to go down from a couple of feet away. Lerks survive prolonged fire, whereas when I play as a lerk even cara leaves you dangerously vulnerable. Yet pistols are great - every shot is going where you point it, and a few well-placed bullets can take aliens down nicely. So how does the netcode work on NS? Do you have to lead shots at all? Is blood drawn client-side without necessarily indicating a hit?
It's not always like this - sometimes everything seems to go right, but the other times (especially with non-moving targets) just seem too weird to entirely mark down as having a bad day. I've heard a few other people complain about this - but how common is it?
As far as my spec goes, I'm running a 700MHz AMD and a 440MX - not great, but I get a pretty stable fps of around 20-30, more like 10 in an intense fight though. My ping is usually between 30 and 230, depending on the server <!--emo&:p--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif'><!--endemo-->
Any clues?
It's not always like this - sometimes everything seems to go right, but the other times (especially with non-moving targets) just seem too weird to entirely mark down as having a bad day. I've heard a few other people complain about this - but how common is it?
As far as my spec goes, I'm running a 700MHz AMD and a 440MX - not great, but I get a pretty stable fps of around 20-30, more like 10 in an intense fight though. My ping is usually between 30 and 230, depending on the server <!--emo&:p--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif'><!--endemo-->
Any clues?
Comments
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I've got a 850 Mhz Pentium III and a Geforce2 MX 400.
Check out this post:
<a href='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/index.php?act=ST&f=1&t=28768' target='_blank'>Roob's Vsync/fps Guide</a>
That was posted here a few days ago.
I've got a 850 Mhz Pentium III and a Geforce2 MX 400.
Check out this post:
<a href='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/index.php?act=ST&f=1&t=28768' target='_blank'>Roob's Vsync/fps Guide</a>
That was posted here a few days ago. <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
Heh, thanks - I'll give it a go, but I don't think my card is the weak link here... I've messed with so many settings without seeing any difference, even switching res doesn't affect it. Hell, I've accidentally left Quincunx antialiasing on once and I didn't see a drop in framerate. Although I'm sure the current version of HL runs worse than the older ones. But yeah, you have a whole 150MHz extra and my memory is limited to 100MHz too. Poor me
Athlon 1,33 Ghz
256 DDR-400
GeForce 3 (the first ones, not Ti)
plays at around 75 fps in normal conditions
I've got a 850 Mhz Pentium III and a Geforce2 MX 400.
Check out this post:
<a href='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/index.php?act=ST&f=1&t=28768' target='_blank'>Roob's Vsync/fps Guide</a>
That was posted here a few days ago. <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Heh, thanks - I'll give it a go, but I don't think my card is the weak link here... I've messed with so many settings without seeing any difference, even switching res doesn't affect it. Hell, I've accidentally left Quincunx antialiasing on once and I didn't see a drop in framerate. Although I'm sure the current version of HL runs worse than the older ones. But yeah, you have a whole 150MHz extra and my memory is limited to 100MHz too. Poor me <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
actually a processor that lold won't be hindered by slow ram as the fsb is only 100mhz. And the extra 150mhz shouldn't make that much of a difference.
P4-2ghz with geforce 4 ti4800, WinXP
fps 100
No problems
P4-2.4ghz with Geforce 4 ti4400, WinXP
fps 100
No problems
P4-2.4Ghz with Geforce 4 MX440, Win XP
fps 100 but drops to 50ish on very busy screens
No problems
P3-750 with GeForce3 ti200, WinXP
fps 70, but detail to minimum and drops as low as 14 in comm chair at times
Playable but I miss the P4's when I'm on this one
AMD K6-2 450 with kyro2, WinME
fps 25 but drops to 5 at busy times
Don't even bother!
The Gf3 took the P3 to playable levels but JP's are still sluggish on the p3 comapared to the P4's and playing in Comm is harder as you spend some time fighting frame rates!
So yes, having a decent PC does improve the game. I'd go as far as saying anything over 18months out of date requires an adjustment in your expectations. The same is true for many games so it's no big deal and a new mboard, ram P4-2gig and Gf4mx card shouldn't set you back more than £200.
It might not be worth £200 to play 1 game but you need this kind of spec for many other multimedia applications now. Think about it, if that £200 gives you an extra 60 hours of entertainment from your PC then it's actually quite cheap. If you have the PC for it then NS is a great game.
Your money, your choice.
tbh though your problem sounds more aim related. If you empty a clip into a skulk he dies whatever your frame rate. So you must be emptying your clip around the skulk. Take a look at the alien hit boxes - I've got them somewhere on my site... hang on...
<a href='http://www.lastresort.dsl.pipex.com/nstraining.shtml' target='_blank'>yes here it is</a>.. the short of it is your possibly trying for headshots after playing other fps games like cs and in NS that's just a bad plan <!--emo&;)--><img src='http://www.natural-selection.org/forums/html/emoticons/wink.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='wink.gif'><!--endemo--> as you can see some of the hitboxes are very small and extend out of the aliens models but none of them cover the head.
(i just saw the onos image link is broken - aim for the lower belly just in front of the rear legs.)
As for playing alines on a low spec pc... I'd stay clear of lerk and use stealth tactics or go gorge. Don't attack in vents unless you hold duck when you do it and dont come up under a marine on a ladder.
There is also a possibility your lag prediction is ofset from your actual lag. Your pings seem to jump about a lot depending on server so it sounds like you have a good connection but you aren't very choosy about the game you join.
From <a href='http://half-life.gamehelp.com/console/net.html' target='_blank'>http://half-life.gamehelp.com</a>:-
<b>pushlatency -50 </b>= set pushlatency
<ul>(try around -1/2 to -1 times ping) -- some people say using non-integer values (like -100.0521) reduces lag</ul>
SO GET SKILL
Make sure you have the latest geforce drivers from www.nvidia.com, these drivers can give you up to a 25% performance increase over the v30 ones. (on v43 atm, i think)
Use netgraph to check your frame rate, if it drops below 24 fps (the rate a film is displayed at) you probably want to lower your resolution (800 * 600 should be fine) (I find a lower res seems to make things a little easier (dont know why?)).
Yes the hits are randomly generated client side, you have to wait for the server to calculate what actually happened.
from my experience half life seems more or less equally dependant on processor speed, ram, and graphics card. Antialiasing is basically the only advanced graphics function you can use (has to be forced through your graphics card settings). So if you can cope with "pixilated" graphics then you should only need a geforce 2, 1000mh\ processor, and 256meg of ram to run in 1024, which I find to be the optimum resolution.
SO GET SKILL <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
What FPS do you get on that machine. Honestly, if I was getting 20 fps I'd just give up. It's fine for Morrowind (now <b>that's</b> a bad engine) 'cause that's single-player, but multiplayer? Nuh, that's a huge penalty.
-NegaBenji->>
Still, I don't see how you're getting fps like that on such a system. I could have sworn that such a rig could do better...
As for myself... 85fps solid. Of course I <i>could</i> go higher but my monitor caps at 85Hz so... 85 fps max for me (taking off vsinc and its effects are not worth the extra 15fps I wouldn't be able to see IMO). <!--emo&:(--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/sad.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='sad.gif'><!--endemo--> Was not impressed with that, I had gotten a high-spec machine but ran out of money and thought well, I don't <i>need</i> that extra fps, generic monitor it is then.
SO GET SKILL <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
How about giving him some productive advice? That's not even an answer to his question. He aksed if computer specs can cause this or does he just need to shoot better.
And your wrong, comp specs do mean something. If you didn't have any comp specs, you wouldn't be playing NS now would you?