Nintendo isn’t using dedicated game servers for Splatoon 2 multiplayer, and it shows. Splatoon 2’s multiplayer tick rate is just at 16 Hz, meaning that data is sent 16 times per second between players. Normally, first person shooters have tick rates of at least twice that.
Instead of dedicated servers, Nintendo uses a peer-to-peer system, which is cheaper to run, but nowhere near as stable or fast.
A new in-depth analysis of the Splatoon 2 multiplayer network show that the game is running even slower than Splatoon 1, which used the same network setup. Splatoon 2’s tick rate is 30% slower than Splatoon 1’s.
If you noticed lag or bad hit registration in Splatoon 2, that’s mainly because of its 16 Hz tick rate. By comparison, Battlefield 1 and Overwatch tick rates at at 60 Hz. Call of Duty Infinite Warfare tops them all with 100 Hz.
Given that Splatoon 2 is a slower-paced multiplayer game, the tick rate doesn’t have as much impact as in Call of Duty, but it’s still not ideal. Nintendo is using an outdated peer-to-peer connection setup, where everyone else is using dedicated servers.
In fact, Splatoon 2 is so slow even Minecraft is faster in this regard, as the chart below shows.
Next year, Nintendo will launch a paid online service for the Switch, and that better include dedicated servers, because no game should run at 16 Hz and use peer-to-peer connection for a paid online service.
Have you experienced any lag or issues with Splatoon 2 so far? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
