A game’s physics system being directly tied to FPS isn’t new. It’s a rarity in the world of live-service titles, though, and The First Descendant is the latest example where your FPS can help improve your damage output.

First spotted by PC Guide , The First Descendant's servers may be wired in a certain way that allows individual machines to report back to them faster than others based on how well the game is performing. A higher FPS means your bullets are registered on the server faster, increasing your overall fire rate and damage per second. YouTuber Rychews Games tested this theory on July 18, finding that weapon fire rates are directly tied to FPS, with proportional calculations showing vast differences between low and high FPS.

He calculated that at 40 FPS, your weapon will fire 25 percent fewer bullets on average than it would if the game were running at 120 FPS. The same difference applies to the effect of firerate modules on weapons, meaning that a module that gives a certain firerate boost to your weapon will be 25 percent weaker at 40 FPS than it would be at 120. The more FPS you have, the greater the difference becomes, leading to the idea that the game should be kept at minimum settings to improve your overall output.

Lowering graphics settings to improve performance and output isn’t new. Counter-Strike players have been doing it for over a decade, as high FPS also reduces input lag and gives you a stronger peeker’s advantage. However, it’s not all that common for high FPS to actually cause you more damage, and it’s likely that this wasn’t intentional by design. Whether Nexon will put a stop to this is unclear, though the company’s past approach of letting players leverage the game’s design for profit implies that they won’t.