(Please Sticky!) How to reduce the "lag compensation" MW3 adds to your client!

[absol89]

Straight from user Infinity7 in the game optimizations summary-thread! He works with IW and has provided many solutions. The most important are listed in this thread!

The MW3 engine tries to balance the matches by adding lag to people with high-performance computers and connections - which means: if you have high FPS and GPU usage and low ping or host, the game will see this as an advantage and add latency to your client. This means that the more GPU usage you have - the more time advantage your enemies will have over you!

To fix this and make the hit detection spot on, with high fps and low amount of added lag compensation you need to reduce your GPU usage by limiting some of the variables in the config_mp.cfg

Ingame - set your resolution to whatever your monitor is and antialiasing to 2x, shadows and depth of field and soften smoke edges to OFF, ambient occlusion to off, image quality to native and textures to high to prevent streaming

Now close the game and go to your config_mp.cfg and change these

seta r_distortion "0" - removes distortion from muzzle flash and fire and explosions
seta r_preloadShaders "1" - reduces the performance hit by not loading shaders as you play, good for older cards
seta sm_maxLights "0" - stops using gunfire and explosions as light source for shadows
seta r_texFilterAnisoMax "2" - better look than 4 (default) and less GPU usage
seta r_texFilterAnisoMin "2" - better look than 4 (default) and less GPU usage
higher aniso values makes you get picked as host more often, which is bad because of antilag

seta ragdoll_enable "0" - stops game from processing ragdoll movement (cpu demanding)
OR seta ragdoll_enable "1" and seta ragdoll_max_simulating "6" - reduces the number of ragdolls calculated

Try using these and it will feel like you are playing on a dedicated server again!

here is the proof

Originally Posted by Infinity7

Antilag and GPU-usage:
This game's antilag feature will slow down your updates from the server if your GPU-usage is too good because of the way the game engine ties in completed frames with uploaded packets. If you find the enemy is seeing you before you see them better try to reduce your GPU-usage. GPU-usage can be decreased by lowering the amount of AA used and possibly by reducing some Specular effects and maxlights. GPU-usage is more steady with less up & down spikes if Depth of Field is set to no. The amount of antilag effect you experience will vary from game to game (rather than from game lobby to game lobby).

Game's Advanced Video Menu:
Anti-aliasing -- 2x -- 2x is the game's default, actually aliases the lines very well, and works well with the other graphics options. Higher amounts of AA increase GPU-usage and would theoretically improve your gameplay if it weren't for the game's antilag feature which may slow down your updates from the server to compensate for your improved performance. Higher AA values such as 8x or 16x can be set in the game's config file too but if you find the enemy is seeing you before you see them better reduce your AA values.
Sync Every Frame -- No -- to keep your maxfps from being capped by your display's refresh rate
Shadows -- No -- set no only if it is slowing your performance
Specular Map -- Yes (?) -- lights reflect off objects. Some people say performance is better with this off, some say the opposite.
Depth of Field -- * No * -- Yes is default. GPU-usage is more steady & less spikey with dof disabled. As an alternative to having this on try r_depthPrepass config file tweak.
Ambient Occlusion -- * Off * -- set off only if it is slowing your performance
Soften Smoke Edges -- No -- try setting this to no only if your fps drops too much when viewing smoke
Bullet Impacts -- Yes
Image Quality -- * Native * -- highest quality setting & better looking than Extra. It will remove blurriness as well. Native is the only choice that uses your display's native resolution. The other texture quality choices will scale up 720p graphics to be that size. As an alternative to this see "Running the Game in a Window" section below.
Texture Quality -- Manual or Automatic (the next 3 things will not show up if this is set to Automatic)
Texture Resolution -- Extra -- increases GPU-usage and is the best-looking
Normal Map Resolution -- Extra -- increases GPU-usage and is the best-looking
Specular Map Resolution -- Extra -- increases GPU-usage and is the best-looking

^ specular is the most GPU using texture
which is why it should be on high (preloaded) instead of extra (streamed)

Config File Tweaks:
seta cl_packetdup "0" --- number of duplicate packets you send to server. "2" is default.
seta r_aaMaxQuality "0" --- this value works with the aaSamples value. The default value is "0". Higher values make for higher-quality graphics rendering.
seta r_aaSamples "2" --- this value works with the aaMaxQuality value. The default value is "2". If this is set to "2" then you've got 2x AA. Increasing the amount of AA will increase the amount of GPU-usage however the game's antilag feature may slow down your updates from server when it sees the improved performance. To understand how aaMaxQuality and aaSamples work together see URL: http://developer.nvidia.com/csaa-cov...g-antialiasing
seta r_depthPrepass "All" (same as setting "2") --- use this as an alternative to having Depth of Field turned on. It gives an added depth effect and may not slow performance very much. If you set the value to "World" (same as setting "1") then the depth effect is only for the background scenery that is way off in the distance far beyond the playable map area. "0" is default and should be set that way if Depth of Field is kept enabled.
seta r_distortion "0" --- disables a blurry visual effect
seta r_dof_enable "0" --- same thing as disabling Depth of Field in game's menu
seta r_imageQuality "0" --- highest quality setting (same as setting Image Quality Native in game graphics menu)
seta r_preloadShaders "1" --- makes all shaders load up before the game starts rather than some loading up later
seta r_rendererPreference "Default" --- olders card may benefit by changing to "Shader model 2.0" instead.
seta sm_enable "0" --- same thing as disabling Shadows in game's menu
seta sm_maxLights "0" --- will reduce number light flashes, may improve fps some claim. "4" is default.
seta r_texFilterAnisoMax "2" --- max Anisotropic setting, "4" is default but a value of '2" here combined with an AnisoMin value of "2" gives a better look than defaults.
seta r_texFilterAnisoMin "2" --- min Anisotropic setting, "1" is default but a value of "2" here combined with an AnisoMax value of "2" gives a better look than defaults.
seta snd_enableEq "0" --- stops game from processing sound equalization
** Note ** about modifications to config_mp.cfg file: Backup config file 1st, commonly found at 1 of these 2 locations:
C:\Program Files\Steam\steamapps\common\call of duty modern warfare 3\players2\config_mp.cfg
C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\call of duty modern warfare 3\players2\config_mp.cfg
"Open With..." and select Wordpad (not Notepad). When you're done making changes do "Save" rather than doing "Save As" so that the file extension won't get changed.

This actually helped me get my first above 5 KDR match to earn the star player challenge and the mastodon title, try it!

So basically reduce the QUALITY of my game to even be able to play properly this is such bull.

Thanks for the information though, It's just such a bad way of balancing things since they were never broken before when ONLY the host really had an advantage.

[lmaobox]

Proof?

Originally Posted by absol89

The MW3 engine tries to balance the matches by adding lag to people with high-performance computers and connections - which means: if you have high FPS and GPU usage and low ping or host, the game will see this as an advantage and add latency to your client.

Completely agree !

Since i have set "Low Priority" (defaut is "High"), i don't lag anymore !

[absol89]

added source (proof) to OP, thanks for responding!

[tek85]

Makes absolute sense. +rep and many thanks! I can't wait to get home and try this.

[Genda1ph]

You may have seen there is no way to detect host by best ping.
So this theory is quite plausible.

[HarleyFLSTF]

Bab321, just to clarify, where do you go to set priority from high to low?

[tek85]

Originally Posted by HarleyFLSTF

Bab321, just to clarify, where do you go to set priority from high to low?

I could be wrong, but I think he means in the Task Manager. Alt+tab out of the game, press ctrl+shift+esc and find the process for MW3 (I believe it's iwmp5.exe or something like that), right click it, then select "Set priority" and choose low.

[HarleyFLSTF]

thanks tek85, another thing to try if the other doesn't work.

[Alex1981]

Originally Posted by HarleyFLSTF

Bab321, just to clarify, where do you go to set priority from high to low?

In your router's QoS settings. On mine, I set a GameFuel Rule and gave it a priority of 255 (the lowest priority.) 180 degree change.

I suppose changing CPU priority might help, too. But I know changing the network priority helped me.

[HarleyFLSTF]

ok thanks, I wasn't sure which you meant, router or CPU. Now that I think about it, I believe changing CPU priority may make it worse, as that would increase GPU usage which is what the lag-compensation software reads and adjusts to.

[tek85]

Originally Posted by Alex1981

In your router's QoS settings. On mine, I set a GameFuel Rule and gave it a priority of 255 (the lowest priority.) 180 degree change.

I suppose changing CPU priority might help, too. But I know changing the network priority helped me.

This is probably what he meant. I will have to try this too. Thanks Alex!

[absol89]

the QoS settings will only worsen your connection, limiting gpu will just make the compensation go away without messing with the connection

[digitaljace]

Try using these and it will feel like you are playing on a dedicated server again!

Why not just play on the dedicated servers then? there are plenty of them and you will be supprised how many players actualy use them, and you dont need to bother waiting to unlock your favorite weapon as they are all unlocked already.
But if you want to play on the laggy cheat filled p2p system just to get a fancy emblem then you carry on....