What causes rubber banding in Ashes of Creation?

Rubber banding is caused by severe and inconsistent network latency (lag), where the game client and server disagree on the player's position, forcing the server to correct the player's location repeatedly.

Can I fix rubber banding on my end?

Yes, by ensuring you use a stable wired internet connection, turning off network-intensive applications, and troubleshooting your router for connectivity issues.

Is rubber banding ever a server issue?

Yes, if the game server is overloaded with too many players or is experiencing internal performance issues, it can cause packet loss and rubber banding for everyone in the area.

Ashes of Creation Rubber Banding Fix Guide

Rubber banding in Ashes of Creation is one of the most frustrating things right now. You’ll start walking, then suddenly snap right back where you started like you’re caught in a time loop. It’s mostly caused by unstable connections between you and the servers, but there are a few ways to reduce it.

Why Rubber Banding Happens

This issue isn’t tied to your FPS or graphics settings. It’s almost always a network sync problem. When your client and the server fall out of sync, your character position gets corrected over and over again. That’s what makes it look like you’re bouncing around.

Most players are seeing this around crowded points of interest or starter hubs. Reports from places like Lionhold, Aven’s End, and The Anvils confirm the lag gets worse near vendors and resource nodes. Players in Florida and parts of the East Coast also noticed heavier rubber banding than usual, suggesting possible routing or data center issues.

Common Triggers

These are the main causes of rubber banding during early access:

Heavy population load on specific regional servers
Connection drops between your ISP and Intrepid’s East Coast data centers
Using Wi-Fi instead of a wired connection
Steam launcher session desync after queue errors
Outdated network or GPU drivers

The devs have acknowledged ongoing server congestion since the Steam launch, so don’t be surprised if it’s worse during peak hours.

How to Fix or Reduce Rubber Banding

You can’t eliminate it completely until the servers stabilize, but these steps help a lot:

Use a wired Ethernet connection instead of Wi-Fi
Restart your router and game client after any long queue or error code
Update your network adapter and GPU drivers to the latest versions
Run ipconfig /flushdns and netsh int ip reset in Windows Command Prompt
Disable VPNs, packet shapers, or bandwidth limiters
Close overlays like Discord, NVIDIA, or Steam streaming
Switch to a different region temporarily, like EU, if your ping improves there

A few players reported rubber banding stopped completely after updating to NVIDIA’s December driver update, so that’s worth trying first.

When It’s Definitely Server-Side

If you and everyone in chat are rubber banding at the same time, that’s not your PC. That means the game’s network layer is overloaded. It’s especially noticeable when you can’t chop trees, can’t loot mobs, or rubber band in place while trying to gather. At that point, all you can really do is log out and wait a few hours until server load drops.

Final Blurb

Rubber banding in Ashes of Creation isn’t just annoying, it can make the game straight up unplayable during peak times. Still, most cases come down to temporary server strain and poor routing between players and Intrepid’s data centers. A stable wired setup and updated drivers go a long way, but the biggest fix will come from future server updates. For now, try hopping regions or playing off-hours if you want smoother gameplay.