Inputlag.science – Repository of knowledge about input lag in gaming

iknowstuff 9 minutes ago | parent | next [-]

quite a few syntactical errors on this website. I’d suggest running it through an LLM and telling it to fix the mistakes without altering anything else!

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hoten an hour ago | parent | prev | next [-]

One area of focus missing here is game streaming / remote play (Steam Link, Moonlight, etc. over a local network).

I've come to accept input lag, but mostly play games where it doesn't matter (simple platformers, turn-based games, etc). I know steam link from my home desktop to my ~5 year smart TV is adding latency to my inputs – though I can't tell if it's from my router, desktop, or TV – but I've come to accept it for the convenience of playing on the couch (usually with someone watching next to me).

I know some blame is on the TV, as often if I just hard-reset the worst of the lag spikes go away (clearly some background task is hogging CPU). And sometimes the sound system glitches and repeats the same tone until I reset that. Still worth putting up with for the couch.

	▲	iknowstuff 14 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		Build a sffpc, have it by the tv :)

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wa008 an hour ago | parent | prev [-]

Input lag is one of those things you feel before you can explain it. Good to finally have a resource that breaks down the full chain — controller, engine, display — instead of just blaming the monitor like everyone does

The engine section is the part most developers seem to ignore. A locked 60fps doesn't mean 16ms latency, and that gap make me surprise

	▲	tadfisher an hour ago \| parent [-]
		I used to get into arguments all the time about how triple-buffering reduces latency, and I think it's because we lacked resources like this; people assume it adds the additional back buffer to a queue, when the traditional implementation "renders ahead" and swaps the most recently-completed back buffer. It's a subtle difference but significantly reduces the worst-case latency vs. a simple queue. I think most people get their information from help blurbs in settings menus for PC games, which are often hilariously vague or incorrect.