Brink halves player count to fight lag

Temporary fix ahead of update; Splash Damage also offers free DLC as a gift

Brink developer Splash Damage has temporarily halved the player count in its recently-released shooter in an effort to address complaints of lag amongst players.

This server-side configuration tweak adjusts the default settings of Campaign and Free Play games so that games are a maximum of eight human players. If you're playing in Versus mode, this means the other half of each team - games of Brink are always eight versus eight - will be filled out with computer-controlled bots.

Regular eight versus eight play is still available through a new Big Teams mode in Free Play, or with private match settings.

The change is being implemented today for 360, and will be made available for PS3 when PlayStation Network returns. Splash Damage and Bethesda hope it will result in "less lag and more fun," by allowing players to more easily connect to quality hosts.

Elsewhere, the PC version of Brink has been given an incremental update to address AI, GPU, and server issues. The patch notes are available on Steam, and many of these fixes will find their way into the upcoming 360 and PS3 patches.

Splash Damage is also offering upcoming DLC for free, which is promised to contain new maps and modes for the game. The DLC is expected to be released in June - perhaps PlayStation Network will have returned by then?

Brink has had a difficult launch, with many players complaining about lag issues alongside wildly fluctuating review scores. VideoGamer.com's Brink review scored the game a respectable 8/10.