You guys have been doing DPS wrong, here's how I do it and why.

[watsyurdeal]

So I noticed a lot of talk about DPS numbers and what not, and something I’ve noticed, is that typically, these numbers are incorrect, or don’t accurately portray the balancing issues or problems with different guns.

So, let’s get to it, how do you calculate DPS? Well, here’s how I do it

(1000/Fire Interval)+1.0)(DamageBody Part Multiplier) *Damage Ramp Up/Fall Off

With some numbers added in for the M4

(1000/112)+1.0)(141) = 139 Body DPS
(1000/112)+1.0)(142) = 278 Headshot DPS

Now, I do not know how damage reduction for range works for Dirty Bomb, or how the limb damage comes into play, but this is how I do it.

1000 ms is equal to 1 second, so you can divide that by the fire interval to get an accurate number of shots fired in a second. BUT, you also MUST assume the player already started firing, and given how that works, there’s a delay between each shot, so the first shot is fired at 0 ms, then the next shot comes out at 112 ms, then 224, 336, 448, and so on. So to take care of that I just add 1.0 after I divide 1000 by the fire interval.

Then you multiply that by the damage, but you also need to account for body part multipliers and fall off, which is a little tricky. But by doing all of this you should be able to get a more accurate representation of how each gun performs.

The other thing is, Burst Rifles and Shotguns don’t quite follow these rules. Burst Rifles fire 3 shots, then there is a delay, and shotguns fire pellets, not a single shot at a time like the other guns do.

So DPS can be a good indicator of balance, but you need to be sure you are using all the right variables here.

In this instance I can compare the M4 and Grandeur, to see if they’re balanced. Let’s see.

M4

(1000/112)+1.0)(141) = 139 Body DPS
(1000/112)+1.0)(142) = 278 Headshot DPS

Grandeur

(1000/333)+1.0)(401) = 160.1 Body DPS
(1000/333)+1.0)(402) = 320.2 Headshot DPS

So as you can see, the Grandeur puts out a TON of damage per second, but of course, this is all assuming you can hit each shot accurately. This is why spread and player skill play such a big part in balance. By looking at just these numbers, one might say the Grandeur is hella op and needs a nerf, but if you’re smart you’ll realize this only paints one part of a much larger picture.

I’d say the Grandeur would be immensely underpowered if it had the same DPS as the M4, since the M4 is easily the easier to use weapon.

[Amerika]

It’s why I commonly use the term “paper dps” or similar when talking about weapon balance. Sure, you can throw numbers on paper around all day but the situations, skill required and the nature of the weapon factors in to how powerful the weapon is. The Blishlok has the worst DPS of all the SMG’s. But in the right situations it’s by far the most powerful SMG. Balance should not only be determined by numbers but by how many different situations where the weapon allows you to excel beyond other similar choices.

My comments about the burst rifles are also a good example. The situations they are extremely useful in when facing other high level players, who are very much prone to running quickly on hit. makes burst rifles situationally better at the higher end. This is due to the nature of front loaded damage and DB movement/evasion mechanics (that other games don’t have). The m4 is worse in that same scenario and it’s a situation you find yourself in constantly at the high level play and even regular play. There are other things that make bursts powerful but how the gun works is the main reason why it’s so useful and powerful that goes beyond just the numbers some people want to throw out.

[BananaSlug]

damage fall off is something like this: minimal range is the range where damage starts falling and maximum range is the range where it stops falling