REMATCH’s planned Netcode 2.0 overhaul puts the server in charge of contacts, aiming to reduce rollbacks at the cost of a short animation display delay. Its first beta was tentatively scheduled for October 13; that was a provisional target, not a confirmed launch date.
The team outlined the changes in the October 9 post, without confirming a beta start time. Rollbacks occur when the server corrects an action already shown on screen. The proposed approach delays the visual result so that contacts can reflect the server’s decision before players see them. These are announced changes, rather than confirmation that the overhaul has reached public servers.
The server takes charge of tackles and catches
Under the current system described by the team, the client—the game running on the player’s machine—initiates and predicts contacts, which the server then checks. Netcode 2.0 moves both contact prediction and resolution to the server, with the result displayed afterward.
This covers tackles, dives, catches and ball controls, among other actions. The intended benefit concerns those moments when an apparent interaction with the ball or another player is subsequently revised. By deciding contacts before displaying them, the team expects to reduce how often the screen shows an outcome that needs correcting.
The total duration of contact animations is intended to remain unchanged. Instead, the team is adjusting the internal timing of their wind-up phase. That adjustment is separate from the wait before an animation appears: a later visual start does not mean the animation itself lasts longer.
Animations wait, but inputs are sent immediately
The first beta is designed to use a fixed 50-millisecond display delay for character animations. Inputs will still be sent to the server immediately. Players would therefore see their character begin an animation later, without an additional delay being imposed on the transmission of their commands.
An adjustable display delay is planned for a subsequent beta, which the announcement does not date. The distinction matters for anyone expecting to tune the setting: the initial beta’s value is fixed, while customization belongs to the later stage.
High-ping players face a different trade-off
The team expects fewer rollbacks, not their elimination. Packet loss, unstable ping and very high ping can still lead to corrections. It also warns that players with high ping may see more corrections on their own screens, particularly during fast actions. The expected improvement therefore does not amount to a promise of smoother visuals for every connection.
For feedback and bug reports, the studio asks players to use Feature Upvote and provide specific examples. Reports should include reproduction steps, how often the issue occurs and the input device used; videos should show the player’s inputs. Those details give the team the sequence of actions and conditions needed to investigate a problem.
Several gameplay improvements have also been put on hold while the team works on the networking overhaul. It intends to resume that work after Netcode 2.0, without giving a timetable.
The proposal’s central compromise is clear: let the server settle contacts before showing them, accepting a brief visual delay to reduce later reversals. Whether that balance delivers the expected improvement still needs to be established through beta results.
See also our REMATCH game page.
