Core Keeper FAQ — Ping, Servers, Network

Yes. Core Keeper has no anti-cheat system, making it fully compatible with all PingAim routing methods. PingAim uses a WFP (Windows Filtering Platform) kernel driver to route CoreKeeper.exe traffic through a second connection — your phone's 5G hotspot, a second Ethernet line, or any active network adapter on your PC. This operates at the Windows network layer without touching the game process. PingAim is most useful when playing with friends in other regions, where the path through a second connection (like 5G) may reach the PlayFab relay node with less latency and jitter than your primary connection.

Rubber-banding in Core Keeper has two distinct causes. First, your network latency: in peer-hosted sessions, the host's machine acts as the server. If you are a guest and your ping to the host is high (150ms+), you experience rubber-banding because world state updates arrive late. Even at 38–80ms, jitter can cause visible sliding. Second, the host machine's performance: if the host has a slow CPU or limited upload bandwidth, all guests rubber-band simultaneously regardless of their individual ping. You can tell the difference — if only you rubber-band, it is your connection. If everyone does, it is the host machine being overloaded.

No. Pugstorm and Fireshine Games do not operate official game servers. Default sessions are peer-hosted — one player's machine acts as the server for up to 8 players, with traffic relayed through Microsoft's PlayFab Party infrastructure. For groups wanting a persistent world without dedicating one player's machine, dedicated servers can be rented from third-party providers (BisectHosting, Indifferent Broccoli, GTXGaming) or self-hosted using the free Core Keeper Dedicated Server tool on Steam (App ID: 1963720).

Under 100ms gives smooth cooperative play for all players. Under 150ms is playable with occasional rubber-banding noticeable to non-host players during fast-paced moments. Above 200ms, rubber-banding becomes frequent and character movement feels disconnected. Unlike competitive shooters, Core Keeper has no PvP, so high ping hurts comfort rather than creating a mechanical disadvantage. The most impactful interactions affected by latency are mining (hits appear delayed), combat with bosses (attacks land late), and picking up item drops. Cross-country sessions between friends in the US and Europe commonly reach 150–250ms through PlayFab Party relay.

Core Keeper does not have a native in-game ping display. To check your latency: open Task Manager (Ctrl+Shift+Esc) → Performance → Open Resource Monitor → Network tab. Find CoreKeeper.exe in the list and note the remote IP address it is connected to. Then open Command Prompt and run: ping <IP address> -n 20. This shows your real round-trip latency to the PlayFab relay node or dedicated server your session uses. This is the only reliable way to verify your actual game ping in Core Keeper.

Connection drops in Core Keeper typically come from three sources. First, PlayFab Party backend instability — the cross-platform relay that handles multiplayer occasionally has outages after updates. Disabling crossplay in Settings restricts the session to Steam-only SDR relay and has been reported by the community to fix timeouts in these cases. Second, the host's internet connection dropping or losing bandwidth — since the host IS the server, their connection instability disconnects all guests immediately. Third, NAT or firewall issues — if the host is behind strict NAT, PlayFab Party may fail to establish a relay. Using a dedicated server in Direct Connect mode with proper port forwarding (UDP 27015, 27016) is the most reliable solution for persistent groups.