Battlefield 4 Xbox One/PS4 Netcode for Some Servers Getting Better This Week

More than two years after its release, DICE continues to support Battlefield 4 with new updates. The developer has now announced that it's increasing the default "tickrate" for the game's "small" servers (32 players and below) from 30hz to 45hz. This applies only to Xbox One and PlayStation 4.

"This increase improves ALL networking delays of the game by ~11ms per action--a massive impact on the second-to-second gameplay," producer David Sirland said in the game's forums.

He added that after the release of Battlefield 4's Holiday Update, DICE tested a handful of tickrates, including 45hz, 50hz, and 55hz. Although 50hz and 55hz worked "pretty well" for most players, Sirland said he didn't want to roll out the change widely unless the studio could be sure it would positively affect all Battlefield 4 players.

As for why the tickrate is not being improved for 64-player servers, Sirland said DICE encountered some issues in testing and ultimately "did not feel confident that 64 players will work flawlessly on all maps for all players."

Because adjusting something like tickrate is a "big change," DICE has elected to roll it out slowly. It was enabled for servers on the North American east coast this morning and results and performance will be tested for the rest of today and tomorrow, February 10. On Thursday, February 11, the change will be implemented across the globe, provided everything goes well.

Sirland also encouraged Battlefield 4 players to send in their feedback during the testing period in this forum.

Battlefield 4 launched in October 2013 and had a tough, tough start. The game has since rebounded, and DICE has been steadily supporting it with technical updates like this and even new DLC, long after its DLC Pass content wrapped up.

Successor Battlefield Hardline was released in 2015, while a new Battlefield game is coming during the second half of EA's current fiscal year, which translates to sometime between October 2016 and March 2017.