video_1_DS.mp4 - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1qvn1KYT7GhQ-AonG_oseDIoSLd4wOA-k/view?usp=sharing
video_2_GK.mp4 - https://drive.google.com/file/d/159jndiGgAl1SrCZFpW1EJ0gqNZasjNGr/view?usp=sharing
statter_01.mp4 - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1WppIslpLx5PBLOsrtxwMfibVbzWq-ggC/view?usp=sharing

Hello Sloclap team!

I am playing on PC (Steam) using a DualSense controller. My current ping in the latest version is between 55–65 ms; during beta testing it was around 65–75 ms. I noticed unusual spikes—sometimes reaching up to 400 ms. I submitted a report through the game’s official server reporting system.

Briefly: While I believe the idea behind NetCode 2.0—and its approach—is correct and beneficial for gameplay, the existing mechanics base—which has been adapted to work with older server types—has significantly damaged the overall impression during beta testing. I’m not referring to issues like “Ipppy” or “Golden Boost,” as their absence makes sense given latency constraints. Instead, I’d like to highlight problems related to "Defense Stance" and resulting goalkeeper positioning issues, along with input-related bugs I observed.

Game performance—with debugging tools enabled—remains unclear. During interactions involving other players handling the ball (e.g., catching or shooting), I experienced occasional frame stuttering—not frequently, about 1/5 instances—but critically at key moments—for example, when attempting to block shots while positioned as a goalkeeper—or during precise passing situations requiring exact timing and positioning.

Problems Related to Defensive Stance (Field Player): video_1_DS.mp4

The fundamental issue lies in this stance's passive interaction with the game—a problem exacerbated by an excessively large hitbox. This bug persists even in the main version but becomes dramatically more noticeable under NetCode 2.0. Additionally, the defensive stance possesses extremely high magnetism parameters: if another player controls the ball, they can simply attractively pull it toward them — essentially forcing contact without meaningful control from either side of play.

As a suggested fix, I propose converting Defensive Stance into an active mechanic where pressing L2 serves only as a modifier rather than being inherently passive—as currently implemented—for instance triggering actions such as ‘L2 + O’ instead of default behavior.

Since you’re actively working on defense-related fixes—I hope these will be addressed before Season 6 begins—it would represent excellent progress according to my perspective.

GK Issues: video_2_GK.mp4

These issues stem from problems with the Defensive Stance mechanic. The animation bug was fixed in the main version—where an animation for catching or blocking appeared while a player performed a dive, which is logically expected during passive stance and server rollback situations. However, upon introducing Netcode 2.0, this behavior became exploitable, encouraging players to perform incorrect actions intentionally. I may be mistaken, but perhaps reverting this fix back to Season 0’s parameters—or applying more recent solutions—would cause servers to display only the actual player input rather than defensive stance animations followed by true inputs. I understand there are cases where such behaviors appear “fairly” because the player simply pressed too late—and Defensive Stance helped them avoid making mistakes. This again points to the issue of passive stances as previously described.

Input Problems:

Unfortunately, I cannot provide video recordings demonstrating these issues on screen—I apologize.

I suspect this problem occurs when using gamepads due to their inherent input latency. Based on my experience, if multiple buttons (>2–3 keys) are rapidly triggered simultaneously, the server might ignore those inputs entirely. Alternatively, it could execute an unintended action—if the command exists—but also completely disregard the input (maybe it can sometimes show up as errors logged within server log files).

My assumption: the server doesn’t accurately interpret stick values or button states (e.g., L2/R2) sensitive to pressure levels.

Additionally, there's another very strange input buffer effect—which persists even in the base version, though worsens significantly in beta builds owing to overall network lag. I believe we should implement stricter input buffers akin to fighting games—with mechanisms like "Drop" triggering whenever invalid/late inputs occur; meaning no animations play at all under such conditions—or similar to your solution regarding the "Volleys" system introduced in Season 5. Currently, many actions in-game rely excessively on overly lenient buffering systems.

Example: A player receives the ball (“Lob Pushball”) roughly concurrently with another player who triggers a shot input—the first player executes their lob immediately. If, then, the second player becomes eligible to use "Volleys" at precisely that moment, they trigger its visual animation despite both having nearly simultaneous inputs. In my opinion, this isn't related to beta-side input delay—it stems directly from excessive input-buffering policies—not connected to any prior mentioned issue above.

I would like to recommend that you do not include Netcode 2.0 in the main game version unless you are able to fix all existing issues before Season 6, and instead release it in a more stable form—perhaps mid-season or during Season 7—or even within Rematch 2.0 (I am willing to wait). It should come with new mechanics and ideas specifically tailored for the Netcode 2.0 server. Visual animation bugs and unintentional absence of meta-mechanics or his adptation may negatively impact players’ impressions of the game overall. The game must visually appear—and function—as it does currently, but with a new type of servers and minimal input latency; unfortunately, this is not yet true in beta testing. This decision rests entirely on your team’s judgment—I will accept whatever solution you choose.

I apologize for being unable to give greater attention to the beta test, and my opinion might be premature or incomplete—it may not fully reflect the broader problems present in the game. Nevertheless, I hope my feedback helps resolve current concerns and highlights any previously mentioned ones—if they remain relevant.

Thank you, developers—for striving to make the game better, using every tool available to you! Wishing Sloclap great success—you have my full faith!

P.S.
I used an online translator to write this text, so some phrases may sound awkward or unclear. Please forgive me in advance for any inaccuracies.