Counter-Strike Source Hit Registration

[6StringSamurai]

I know alot of you have been commenting on the hit registration in Counter-Strike Source, while I do not claim to be an expert by no means, I do know what has worked for me. Also, of the 5 other people I had try this, their remarks were usually something like "Holy Sh*t people are dying when I shoot them now!"

So, how do you improve your hit registration, while I am not going to get into the ins and outs of the netcode here is what I added to my config to achieve more satisfactory results.

either add to config.cfg or create a new file called autoexec.cfg and add it in there.

//netcode adjustment

cl_cmdrate 101
cl_interp 0.01
cl_interpolate 0
cl_lagcomp_errorcheck 1
cl_lagcompensation 1
cl_updaterate 66 //for 66tic servers use 100 for 100tic server
cl_smooth 0
rate 25000

Others swear by using this: it does not work as well for me (5mbit cable)

cl_cmdrate 101
cl_interp 0.01
cl_interpolate 1
cl_lagcomp_errorcheck 1
cl_lagcompensation 1
cl_updaterate 101
cl_smooth 1
rate 25000

Losing your crosshair, can't find a color that contrasts? Check here.

 

[tuteja1986]

CS addiction has too stop , but WOW addiction is worse.

 

[6StringSamurai]

Originally posted by: tuteja1986
CS addiction has too stop , but WOW addiction is worse.

That has what to do with hit registration? btw I am worse than addicted, been playing CS since alpha stage...

 

[43st]

I had a script to increment cl_cmdrate and cl_updaterate by a value of 10, I could then just use a binding to set it on the fly. I could never get into cl_interpolate 0, this made leading shots nearly impossible for me. It may be a real-world, latency accurate, representation but the flow, or lack of flow, made it very hard to hit anything that was moving.

And even with all this being perfect you're still at the mercy of the server, and if it's lagging, or slow then there's not much you can do. In the end CS was just too hit or miss for me with regard to network accuracy. Some nights I would be on fire, I felt like I saw the enemy up to a second before they saw me. On other nights it was the exact opposite and I would die before I even rounded the corner. It's fine on a LAN where skill determines the game, via the internet it's just an exercise in frustration.

All that said, it's still a fun game. I'm also looking forward to Team Fortress Source.

 

[6StringSamurai]

Originally posted by: 43st
I had a script to increment cl_cmdrate and cl_updaterate by a value of 10, I could then just use a binding to set it on the fly. I could never get into cl_interpolate 0, this made leading shots nearly impossible for me. It may be a real-world, latency accurate, representation but the flow, or lack of flow, made it very hard to hit anything that was moving.

And even with all this being perfect you're still at the mercy of the server, and if it's lagging, or slow then there's not much you can do. In the end CS was just too hit or miss for me with regard to network accuracy. Some nights I would be on fire, I felt like I saw the enemy up to a second before they saw me. On other nights it was the exact opposite and I would die before I even rounded the corner. It's fine on a LAN where skill determines the game, via the internet it's just an exercise in frustration.

All that said, it's still a fun game. I'm also looking forward to Team Fortress Source.

It's odd that you have to "lead" shots. Your correct Cl_interpolate 0 does make for choppy gameplay if you do not have a low-ping with the server, I play on my own clan server and ping around 40. Also, cl_interpolate 0 allows the hitboxes and the models to be perfectly synced, so if you aim at the model head, you will hit the head hitbox. I normally have a 2.0 kd ratio on my server. Update rate you should always lock to the tickrate of the server, meaning it should always be 33, 66, 100, because that is how often the server is refreshing and you want to lock your client to pull updates in sync with when the server refreshes. Also, if you jump around servers alot, you are going to notice hit reg problems, as 43st said real world conditions have to be accounted for, but your best bet is to find a server or two that you do well on and stick with those.

 

[43st]

Yeah, lead is maybe the wrong term. What I mean is that I usually aim by letting the player run into my bullet. I lead his head by 1 foot or so and let him run into my cross hair. If interpolate is off I have no accurate method of doing this since he's just frames moving, and not a fluid motion. Of course squat and fire is different and if he stops moving to aim then it's easy to nail him, but most of my kills usually come from him not seeing me.

I never figured out how to find the server tickrate so I just made it adjustable. Probably not the best solution.

 

[KeithTalent]

Ok, completely n00b questions for you:

1. Does adding those 8 lines to to the config file just increase your accuracy? Not sure what all of those lines mean, so I am just asking for a plain answer.

2. Is this cheating in any way, i.e. would I get VAC-banned from making this change?

3. Is this only useful for really good players or will a crappy player like me notice a difference?

Sorry for the stupid questions

Cheers, KT

 

[6StringSamurai]

Originally posted by: KeithTalent
Ok, completely n00b questions for you:

1. Does adding those 8 lines to to the config file just increase your accuracy? Not sure what all of those lines mean, so I am just asking for a plain answer.

2. Is this cheating in any way, i.e. would I get VAC-banned from making this change?

3. Is this only useful for really good players or will a crappy player like me notice a difference?

Sorry for the stupid questions

Cheers, KT

Not stupid questions at all Keith,

1. It does not increase your accuracy in anyway, but instead of pumping a full clip into a guy to kill him, now your hits should register better thus, taking less time to kill.

2. No, there is nothing you can modify or add to the config.cfg or autoexec.cfg to ever get you VAC banned, some servers lock which CVARS you can change to attempt to make a level playing field, these cvars simply adjust your connection rate to gain optimal synch between you and the server.

3. Regardless of your skill level, you should see an increase in your K ratio between this and a default CS config. When I get home I will post some other things out of my config as well.

Be aware, that this is not a guarantee that every shot you fire will register perfectly, but it damn sure makes it feel like 95% or higher register IMO.

 

[6StringSamurai]

Originally posted by: 43st
Yeah, lead is maybe the wrong term. What I mean is that I usually aim by letting the player run into my bullet. I lead his head by 1 foot or so and let him run into my cross hair. If interpolate is off I have no accurate method of doing this since he's just frames moving, and not a fluid motion. Of course squat and fire is different and if he stops moving to aim then it's easy to nail him, but most of my kills usually come from him not seeing me.

I never figured out how to find the server tickrate so I just made it adjustable. Probably not the best solution.

The problem that incrementing those will produce is Choke or Loss, both of which you wont to have at 0, if you send to many commands to the server or if you cant accept updates fast enough then you will get choke or loss. These can be seen by using net_graph 3

 

[KeithTalent]

Originally posted by: 6StringSamurai

Originally posted by: KeithTalent
Ok, completely n00b questions for you:

1. Does adding those 8 lines to to the config file just increase your accuracy? Not sure what all of those lines mean, so I am just asking for a plain answer.

2. Is this cheating in any way, i.e. would I get VAC-banned from making this change?

3. Is this only useful for really good players or will a crappy player like me notice a difference?

Sorry for the stupid questions

Cheers, KT

Not stupid questions at all Keith,

1. It does not increase your accuracy in anyway, but instead of pumping a full clip into a guy to kill him, now your hits should register better thus, taking less time to kill.

2. No, there is nothing you can modify or add to the config.cfg or autoexec.cfg to ever get you VAC banned, some servers lock which CVARS you can change to attempt to make a level playing field, these cvars simply adjust your connection rate to gain optimal synch between you and the server.

3. Regardless of your skill level, you should see an increase in your K ratio between this and a default CS config. When I get home I will post some other things out of my config as well.

Be aware, that this is not a guarantee that every shot you fire will register perfectly, but it damn sure makes it feel like 95% or higher register IMO.

Sounds great, thanks so much for the reply. I am going to give this a try when I get home after work.

 

[rstrohkirch]

Originally posted by: KeithTalent
Ok, completely n00b questions for you:

I'll try to answer your questions rather simply

1. Does adding those 8 lines to to the config file just increase your accuracy? Not sure what all of those lines mean, so I am just asking for a plain answer.

The cmdrate and the updaterate determine how much data is sent from your computer to the server and from the server to your computer. So, this potentially allows for better gameplay accuracy in two ways if the server is running higher then the standard 33tick(updates per second)

1.) The server is updated more often and because of this less stuff will be missed...everyone will gain this advantage no matter what their settings are. It's to your advantage to play on 66/100 tick servers with less people.

2.) Your computer is getting updates more often so there will be less interpolation and you will see more accurate occurances of the events around you. You will obviously need to up your data settings for this.

2. Is this cheating in any way, i.e. would I get VAC-banned from making this change?

No, they are simply adjustments to your client side

3. Is this only useful for really good players or will a crappy player like me notice a difference?

No one can tell you that and it really depends on the server you're on and you as a player
You may do all this stuff and jump on this 20 player 100 tick server and feel like you're doing much worse then you normally do


Couple of things I do want to mention though.

If you turn on net_graph 3 in the console you will get a very nice little graph that will easily tell you what tick rate the server is running at. You will get two numbers at the bottom, one is your incoming and one is your outgoing packets. If you set both your cl_cmdrate and cl_updaterate to 101 and then hop on a 33 tick server, you will in fact seen 101 out and only 33 coming in.

Also, one GOOD way to tell if you're on a good server is it has a CONSTANT incoming packet rate. There are so many (nearly all that allow more then 20 players) 66/100 tick servers out there that overload their server with more players then their bandwith can handle. You will start the round on this "100" tick server and your incoming may only be 15-20! As players start to die off it will slowly go up. So for the first half of the round these servers have far worse reliability and accuracy then your well kept 33tick down the street.

Just a thought




FYI, last time I checked cl_interp was no longer an adjustable command on servers with sv_cheats 0 because of the amount of control you had over the lookup time period

 

[KeithTalent]

Originally posted by: rstrohkirch

The cmdrate and the updaterate determine how much data is sent from your computer to the server and from the server to your computer. So, this potentially allows for better gameplay accuracy in two ways if the server is running higher then the standard 33tick(updates per second)

1.) The server is updated more often and because of this less stuff will be missed...everyone will gain this advantage no matter what their settings are. It's to your advantage to play on 66/100 tick servers with less people.

2.) Your computer is getting updates more often so there will be less interpolation and you will see more accurate occurances of the events around you. You will obviously need to up your data settings for this.

3. Is this only useful for really good players or will a crappy player like me notice a difference?

No one can tell you that and it really depends on the server you're on and you as a player
You may do all this stuff and jump on this 20 player 100 tick server and feel like you're doing much worse then you normally do


Couple of things I do want to mention though.

If you turn on net_graph 3 in the console you will get a very nice little graph that will easily tell you what tick rate the server is running at. You will get two numbers at the bottom, one is your incoming and one is your outgoing packets. If you set both your cl_cmdrate and cl_updaterate to 101 and then hop on a 33 tick server, you will in fact seen 101 out and only 33 coming in.

Also, one GOOD way to tell if you're on a good server is it has a CONSTANT incoming packet rate. There are so many (nearly all that allow more then 20 players) 66/100 tick servers out there that overload their server with more players then their bandwith can handle. You will start the round on this "100" tick server and your incoming may only be 15-20! As players start to die off it will slowly go up. So for the first half of the round these servers have far worse reliability and accuracy then your well kept 33tick down the street.

Just a thought

FYI, last time I checked cl_interp was no longer an adjustable command on servers with sv_cheats 0 because of the amount of control you had over the lookup time period

Fascinating stuff, thanks. So in summary (just sort of thinking out loud here) for the greatest consistency and playability I want to be on a 100 tick server (I have always wondered what that meant as I see all kinds of server names with that in the title) with a constant incoming rate, which I can monitor with that graph command.

Do I access the console with the ~ key or do I need to do something else to get that command to work?

Does the upload speed from my ISP have any bearing on the 'updaterate' or is this command exclusive of that?

Thanks again, KT

 

[6StringSamurai]

Originally posted by: KeithTalent

Originally posted by: rstrohkirch

The cmdrate and the updaterate determine how much data is sent from your computer to the server and from the server to your computer. So, this potentially allows for better gameplay accuracy in two ways if the server is running higher then the standard 33tick(updates per second)

1.) The server is updated more often and because of this less stuff will be missed...everyone will gain this advantage no matter what their settings are. It's to your advantage to play on 66/100 tick servers with less people.

2.) Your computer is getting updates more often so there will be less interpolation and you will see more accurate occurances of the events around you. You will obviously need to up your data settings for this.

3. Is this only useful for really good players or will a crappy player like me notice a difference?

No one can tell you that and it really depends on the server you're on and you as a player
You may do all this stuff and jump on this 20 player 100 tick server and feel like you're doing much worse then you normally do


Couple of things I do want to mention though.

If you turn on net_graph 3 in the console you will get a very nice little graph that will easily tell you what tick rate the server is running at. You will get two numbers at the bottom, one is your incoming and one is your outgoing packets. If you set both your cl_cmdrate and cl_updaterate to 101 and then hop on a 33 tick server, you will in fact seen 101 out and only 33 coming in.

Also, one GOOD way to tell if you're on a good server is it has a CONSTANT incoming packet rate. There are so many (nearly all that allow more then 20 players) 66/100 tick servers out there that overload their server with more players then their bandwith can handle. You will start the round on this "100" tick server and your incoming may only be 15-20! As players start to die off it will slowly go up. So for the first half of the round these servers have far worse reliability and accuracy then your well kept 33tick down the street.

Just a thought

FYI, last time I checked cl_interp was no longer an adjustable command on servers with sv_cheats 0 because of the amount of control you had over the lookup time period

Fascinating stuff, thanks. So in summary (just sort of thinking out loud here) for the greatest consistency and playability I want to be on a 100 tick server (I have always wondered what that meant as I see all kinds of server names with that in the title) with a constant incoming rate, which I can monitor with that graph command.

Do I access the console with the ~ key or do I need to do something else to get that command to work?

Does the upload speed from my ISP have any bearing on the 'updaterate' or is this command exclusive of that?

Thanks again, KT

I would say:

2-12slot servers 100tic
12-32 - 66tic
32 and up 33tic

I have yet to see a 100tic server that played more than 16 that did not have choke and loss out the arse. 100tic is normally reserved for private match servers as you notice the benefit moreso in that environment. A 64man 100tic unless, its on its own dedicated box, with grade-a componants and a great connection, will not play well. Most servers are rented from gamehosting companies who load multiple servers onto one box.

 

[6StringSamurai]

Originally posted by: rstrohkirch

FYI, last time I checked cl_interp was no longer an adjustable command on servers with sv_cheats 0 because of the amount of control you had over the lookup time period

Hey, do you have a link for that info? I knew it was locked at a min of .01 and zblock locks it at .1 but nothing about it not being adjustable at all.

 

[rstrohkirch]

Fascinating stuff, thanks. So in summary (just sort of thinking out loud here) for the greatest consistency and playability I want to be on a 100 tick server (I have always wondered what that meant as I see all kinds of server names with that in the title) with a constant incoming rate, which I can monitor with that graph command.

Like 6string mentioned, 66/100tick on a server sucks down a LOT of bandwith and most server just use it as a draw to get players in. If you like like servers with 10-20 players on it then I'd try to find a server that is usually full and has a nice incoming rate that is stable. There are a few servers out there with 20 players and the DM mod that are generally full and provide 70-100 constant up that would provide an excellent chance for you to get better at the game. For regular gameplay I would just try to find a server that can keep up a good 33 or higher input without any problems...once you start paying attention to your incoming you may find that harder then you think. =]

I'm the kind of player who enjoys large 40+ servers....so I know that because of this gameplay accuracy is going to be inherently worse. You won't see me bitching about missing some guy because I know it's the price I pay for joining that type of server.

Do I access the console with the ~ key or do I need to do something else to get that command to work?

You are correct, it is the ~ key. You may have to enable the console under options/advanced options? I'm at work so I can't tell you for sure

Does the upload speed from my ISP have any bearing on the 'updaterate' or is this command exclusive of that?

Technically yes but you should only need like 4-8kb upstream so 99% of all broadband connections should be fine

 

[rstrohkirch]

Originally posted by: 6StringSamurai

Originally posted by: rstrohkirch

FYI, last time I checked cl_interp was no longer an adjustable command on servers with sv_cheats 0 because of the amount of control you had over the lookup time period

Hey, do you have a link for that info? I knew it was locked at a min of .01 and zblock locks it at .1 but nothing about it not being adjustable at all.

I'm at work right now and can't look at anything related to gaming

A quick easy check to see if I'm right would be to join a standard server and try changing the command in the console. You will get a message saying you can not change this command on sv_cheat 0 servers if this is indeed the case.

 

[KeithTalent]

Thanks again guys. I mainly play on a 32 person 24/7 Office server right now, but I will be very interested to see what kind of rates I get there. I have a feeling it suffers from what was described above, where it starts out horribly, but gets better as people die off.

This is a great and informative thread; and I thought I was not going to learn anything at work today

 

[6StringSamurai]

Originally posted by: rstrohkirch

Originally posted by: 6StringSamurai

Originally posted by: rstrohkirch

FYI, last time I checked cl_interp was no longer an adjustable command on servers with sv_cheats 0 because of the amount of control you had over the lookup time period

Hey, do you have a link for that info? I knew it was locked at a min of .01 and zblock locks it at .1 but nothing about it not being adjustable at all.

I'm at work right now and can't look at anything related to gaming

A quick easy check to see if I'm right would be to join a standard server and try changing the command in the console. You will get a message saying you can not change this command on sv_cheat 0 servers if this is indeed the case.

yeah I am at work to, sucks to be us eh? lol I will check it tonight and if that is the case I will modify the OP to remove that out. Luckily for me Steampowered.com is not blocked at work so far

 

[6StringSamurai]

Originally posted by: KeithTalent
Thanks again guys. I mainly play on a 32 person 24/7 Office server right now, but I will be very interested to see what kind of rates I get there. I have a feeling it suffers from what was described above, where it starts out horribly, but gets better as people die off.

This is a great and informative thread; and I thought I was not going to learn anything at work today

Hope it works out for you man, I will be on tonight, add me to friends (Stratcat@sc.rr.com) or you can catch me on my server, 69.65.32.136:27015 if you wanna play.

 

[KeithTalent]

Originally posted by: 6StringSamurai

Originally posted by: KeithTalent
Thanks again guys. I mainly play on a 32 person 24/7 Office server right now, but I will be very interested to see what kind of rates I get there. I have a feeling it suffers from what was described above, where it starts out horribly, but gets better as people die off.

This is a great and informative thread; and I thought I was not going to learn anything at work today

Hope it works out for you man, I will be on tonight, add me to friends (Stratcat@sc.rr.com) or you can catch me on my server, 69.65.32.136:27015 if you wanna play.

Will do, thanks! I'll check out your server as well!

 

[TheRyuu]

How come with I use these, everyone walks really choppy and when I'm dead (like looking at someone else, first person) it's also really choppy?

What settings should I adjust to get rid of that?

 

[TheRyuu]

NVM, it doesn't seem to be choppy anymore.

One thing though, when I use net_graph 3, my choke seems to get up there sometimes.
First, is that bad.
Second, what can I do to make it better if it's bad.
Third, is the choke there because of the new settings, or would it just always be there anyway?

 

[Rumple]

Our servers are all on dedicated boxes and run at either 100 tic or 66 tic.

We currently are upgrading one and it will be a 30 man 66 tic vanilla CSS server. No mods or FF or anything.

We have a Gungame one up that is 26 man 100 tic. 166.70.135.168:27018

And also a 40 man with Mugmod and sniper restrictions. 2 awps and 1 Auto per team. 166.70.135.168:27015

Come check us out if you want smooth running servers and cool people. There are always admins on and we are all very fair. Good quality of competition for the most part.

I have been using these same commands in my autoexec for a couple of years and i will agree they work wonderfully.

Let me know if your from here if you see me on my name is Drugstore Cowboy on our servers. Our server website is http://www.blackopselite.com/

 

[rstrohkirch]

The reason is most likely because you turned cl_interpolate off
It does what the word means, it makes up frames until it reaches the number of fps you are currently running at

Tick rate can be thought of as frames per second. If the server is only giving you 30 incoming then you are only receiving 30 frames per second of information. So with option off the player animations will look very jerky, with it on your computer will make up frames of animation to make what you are currently running at.


Choke simply means you are sending more data then the server is using. It's not really that bad simply because you are technically always getting choke if you are running at more fps then the server is taking in. For example, the server only set to 30 tick and you are running 90 frames in a certain section of the map. Even if you have your upload rate set to 30, your computer is still making more frames and therefore all the information on your client is not being sent to the server. Loss on the other hand is bad as it means something happened on the server and your client didn't get the update.

I just checked and it looks like cl_interp can still be changed, though the minimum is .01

 

[rstrohkirch]

Really, the reason why we can't have these high player fancy 66/100 tick servers is more then likely(I say this since I don't run a server) the fact that the dedicated server isn't multi-threaded...which is rather ignorant. Having the server update set at those kind of numbers really hits the cpu. Obviously the new intel cpu are are good bit faster but just think of the kind of gameplay you could have if the server supported 4+ processors....100tick all day no problems =]