Technology

How BreakLag makes matches faster and smoother

Three parts work together when you press Boost. Here is how each one works, and what it doesn't do.

PingScout™

Every time you join a server, BreakLag measures every route to that exact server and picks the best one from the very first packet.

How it works

  • It measures the direct route and the route through each relay running in your Boost (up to 3) side by side, in about a second, before the first packet leaves.
  • It measures to the exact server you're playing on, not to a nearby node.
  • A relay is picked only when it's faster than going direct — by as little as 1 ms. If direct is better, you go direct.
  • Two exceptions, both from your past matches to the same server: if the direct route keeps losing packets, PingScout accepts a relay up to 5 ms slower so LossShield can rebuild them; if a relay has been steadier (less jitter, fewer lost packets), it can win while up to 2 ms slower.
  • The route stays for the whole match — no mid-match switch to drop you. Joined a different server? PingScout measures and picks a new route for it.

Limits

  • "Every route" means direct plus the relays running in your Boost, not every region.
  • When your direct route is already good, a relay can be slower. PingScout then keeps your match direct, so your ping doesn't drop.

LossShield™

When the connection starts dropping packets, BreakLag adds repair packets or sends copies to cover them, then turns itself off once the network is fine.

How it works

  • From 0.5 % loss (measured every 2 s): one repair packet for every up to 8 game packets.
  • From 3 %: each packet is sent twice. From 5 %: three times.
  • When loss eases, LossShield steps down after 15 s to what the loss still calls for (3 copies → 2 → 1). Your connection carries extra packets only while packets are being lost — not triple traffic for the rest of the match after one short burst.
  • Under 0.3 % for 15 s: it turns off.
  • It covers both directions: each end reports its packet loss to the other every second.

Limits

  • A repair packet rebuilds only 1 lost packet per group. Bursts of loss rely on the copies, and packets can still be lost.
  • The goal is no stutter from packet loss, not a promise of "no stutter ever".

Premium Route

Game packets join a global backbone at the entry point nearest you and ride it to a BreakLag relay beside the game server, instead of crossing the public internet hop by hop. What you get: a steadier ping, less jitter and less packet loss, most of all at peak hours or when the server is far away.

How it works

  • Anycast: your PC enters at the nearest of many entry points around the world, so the first stretch over the public internet is short.
  • From the entry point to the relay, packets stay on the backbone: fewer public-internet hops, so fewer places where packets queue, jitter or drop.
  • Relays are in 31 regions and start when you Boost in that region (about 2–3 minutes).
  • Not a VPN: our own protocol, built for game packets only. On the UDP path, zero retransmits and zero queueing — every packet leaves the moment it arrives.

Limits

  • Your PC to the entry point, and the relay to the game server, still cross the public internet. BreakLag cuts hops; it doesn't remove them all.
  • When your direct route is already good, the Premium Route can be slower; PingScout then keeps you on the direct route.
  • Where a network blocks UDP, BreakLag falls back to TCP/TLS, which does retransmit and queue.