When connecting to, or hosting a server, and you run into performance or network issues such as "rubberbanding" or "choppiness", see the information and troubleshooting steps below to identify and address the issue.
What is "Lag Compensation"
In Don't Starve Together, we use movement prediction by default, which may cause a delay in the animation while preforming actions and show you in a slightly different location than where you or other players are on the server.
This can be turned off in the settings by toggling "Lag Compensation" to None, which will trade the prediction with input lag (players will have to wait for the server to confirm their action before it will start).
Understanding Ping
Ping is the connection time of your network; basically how fast you get a response back after you’ve made a request. If a server is showing a low ping, this means a faster, more stable connection between your system and the host server.
It is recommended to join servers that are showing ping of 150 or below on the server list for optimal network performance.
Understanding the difference between a “Good”, “OK, and “Bad” Host
Generally, it is recommended to join or play with host servers who are showing low ping and whose performance is labeled “Good”.
When in-game, you can view the host’s performance by pressing the tab key. Performance can be labeled “Good”, “OK”, or “Bad”. A Good host, with a reasonably low ping will provide the optimal experience when playing Don’t Starve Together. While connecting to an OK or Bad host may cause occasional stalls or jitters during gameplay.
When connecting to a server, your game’s performance is influenced by the power of the host server hardware and network performance. Some factors that influence performance and connections are:
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Bandwidth - Bandwidth it is the amount of data that the network can transport from one computer to another. If there are programs (like downloads or torrents) that taking up bandwidth, network performance and stability is affected.
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Geographical Distance from Host - The closer you are to the host server, the faster the connection will be. The farther you are, the longer it will take to receive a response back from the host server.
- Server Hardware specs - If the host server’s hardware does not surpass the requirements for hosting, the server host as well as clients who connect to the server will experience poor game and network performance.
Poor Network Performance while playing over Wi-Fi (Wireless Connection)
In general, wireless connections can be unreliable for online gaming. To determine if your Wi-Fi or wireless router is causing connection issues, please ensure that your router’s firmware are up-to-date. If up-to-date, remove the router from your network, and connect your computer directly to the internet using a wired,ethernet connection to ensure the highest level of connectivity.
If your connection and performance improves after connecting your computer directly to the internet, your best, next step is to reconfigure your router to work with DST.
Please note that even with wired internet connections, there is a possibility that network issues can still occur. Here are some troubleshooting steps from the Microsoft Support website should you encounter issues with a wired internet connection.
Disable background applications
There are many background applications that start up automatically when your computer starts and monopolize your system performance. These background apps can cause network connectivity issues and even affect gameplay performance.
To determine if background apps running on your system are the cause of the issue, it is recommended that you close all unneeded background applications and check for improvement in overall system performance. Doing this before playing Don’t Starve Together will likely increase network and system performance.
If playing with someone within your local network
When playing an online game with someone located on your local network, your network connection quality or experience will be affected depending on your router configurations. We suggest configuring your router to work with online games before playing.
You can also try joining servers through the “LAN” filter on the server select screen. You will find a button on the left-hand side of the screen labeled "LAN" - just underneath "Online". This will directly connect to the local area network, instead of an online network - and bypassing any router configuration issues you may run into.
If MODS are installed and you are experiencing slowdown or lag
There are many variables within community-created mods that can potentially affect performance including compatibility, broken code, missing files, etc... To determine if mods installed are causing poor performance in-game:
- Disable all of your mods, then enable them one at a time to identify which one is causing the issue.
- Ensure that all the mods you are trying to use are up-to-date and compatible with your version of the game.
If both steps above does not work, go into your Steam folders for Don’t Starve Together and fully delete the contents of your game’s “Mods” folder. (\Steam\SteamApps\common\Don't Starve Together\mods\). Once all mod files have been deleted from your Steam folder for the game, unsubscribe all of your Don't Starve Together mods from the Steam Workshop, then try launching the game once more.
Troubleshoot and configure your firewalls
Firewalls blocks out rogue programs that try to reach your computer over the internet. Depending on your firewall settings, occasionally it may block a program that you want to have internet access on. Ensure that your firewall is allowing Don’t Starve Together to communicate with the network.
To allow a program to communicate through the firewall in Windows 7, take the following steps:
- Click Start | Control Panel | Windows Firewall.
- Click Allow a program or feature through Windows Firewall.
- Locate “Don’t Starve Together” in the list of Allowed Programs and Features.
- If it is present, make sure the boxes are checked for each network type you wish to allow the game on.
Viruses, Spyware, Adware and Malware Affecting Performance
If your computer has become infected with a virus or malware, you may notice unexpected behaviours, such as decreased network or system performance.
Potentially, if a computer is running slower than normal, continually stops responding, freezes often, or displays other odd behavior, there’s a chance that it is infected with a virus or some other type of malware. If your computer is experiencing these, please download and update your virus/security program to scan for and remove any unwanted background processes that could be affecting your system and network performance.
Additional Network/Connectivity Troubleshooting Resources
STEAM
Should the issue persist after following all troubleshooting steps above, please visit Steam Support's guide for networking/connectivity issues to find more troubleshooting steps that may be of help.
As well, you will want to check that certain programs are not running in the background that may interfere with Steam.
PLAYSTATION 4
Check to see if your PS4 system is having a connection issue to the PlayStation Network servers. Check out PlayStation Connectivity Support Page.
XBOX ONE
If your Xbox One (or your Xbox Live Account) is having a connection issue to the Xbox Live Servers; please visit Microsoft Support's Xbox One Networking troubleshooting guide.
NINTENDO SWITCH
If your Nintendo Switch is having a connection issue to the Nintendo Servers; please visit Nintendo's Network Internet Connection Troubleshooting guide.
If you have tried all troubleshooting steps and are still unable to play the game, please report your issue in the Don't Starve Together Bug Tracker with your logs and information for bug reports.