Net play

[bo]

I just posed this on the beta forum, there is no trick question here please.

Is there any game in all of the Matrix fourms or in Battlefronts forums for that matter that uses net play. I guess I mean is there any computer war game made that uses net play. If so could you please tell me which one I would like to look at it and see how it is working. Combat mission from Battlefront uses something that looks like it but I believe it is strictly PBEM.

So far I checked some 20 WW2 games and all had AI and some had PBEM, I saw nothing of TCP/IP, which I believe is another wording for net play. Just curious.

Oops just found 2, Battlefronts Strategic command and Combat Mission Normandy.



Thank you

Bo

[Joseignacio]

Battlefront Strategic Command and Combat Mission Normandy.

Don't mention it, my pleasure.



XDDDD

[Erik Rutins]

Hi Bo,

"NetPlay" is TCP/IP multiplayer. We created a server on our side to handle this for our games. It includes routing support, so customers don't have to get into the arcane configuration of firewalls and routers as well as support for a multiplayer chat lobby and a dedicated in-game forum. Conflict of Heroes was the first to use this system, World in Flames was the second, Lock 'n Load: Heroes of Stalingrad is the third game to use this server and system.

Regards,

- Erik

[bo]

ORIGINAL: Joseignacio

Battlefront Strategic Command and Combat Mission Normandy.

Don't mention it, my pleasure.



XDDDD

Gee thanks Jose I already found it if you werent so laid out drinking "orujo" you would have seen it [:D]

Where have you been these last couple weeks? Playing Panzer corp? Glad to see you back.

Bo

[bo]

ORIGINAL: Erik Rutins

Hi Bo,

"NetPlay" is TCP/IP multiplayer. We created a server on our side to handle this for our games. It includes routing support, so customers don't have to get into the arcane configuration of firewalls and routers as well as support for a multiplayer chat lobby and a dedicated in-game forum. Conflict of Heroes was the first to use this system, World in Flames was the second, Lock 'n Load: Heroes of Stalingrad is the third game to use this server and system.

Regards,

- Erik

Thank you Erik

Just wanted to see how Matrix TCP/IP interacts with games.

Bo

[WarHunter]

ORIGINAL: Erik Rutins
Hi Bo,
"NetPlay" is TCP/IP multiplayer. We created a server on our side to handle this for our games. It includes routing support, so customers don't have to get into the arcane configuration of firewalls and routers as well as support for a multiplayer chat lobby and a dedicated in-game forum. Conflict of Heroes was the first to use this system, World in Flames was the second, Lock 'n Load: Heroes of Stalingrad is the third game to use this server and system.
Regards,
- Erik

Erik,

Glad to see you post here. Talking direct to the man is always a pleasure.

I have not currently purchased Conflict of Heroes or Lock 'n Load: Heroes of Stalingrad. I'm guessing if i want to get some real time experience in using this server. I should invest some time and money into 1 of those games. I do however have some little experience in playing TCP/IP in other games. One from long ago by matrix.

Still play Steel Panthers direct connect with a friend using TCP/IP address. We direct connect all the time. That game is years old and we have no problem even last week our latest get together. We never have to wait for a server to be online for us to play.

Civilization 4 is another game friends and i get together and play also. We have our master computer and up to 4 connected when we have the time. Play a couple hours and plan for the next encounter. We used gamespy when it worked and was up. Our backup has always been direct connect.

We have learned to use Tunngle and Hamachi for some games. You learn what you need. To make it work. Letting a server do it all is not a bad idea. Letting players have an alternate choice is also a good idea. 1 size never fits all.

Will there be an option to direct connect TCP/IP with 1 or more computers? If the Slitherine server is down will it be possible to use a Tunngle like service as an alternate means to connect? Is there a backup alternate means to connect and play a game?

As you can see i have questions. But boils down to this.

Will we have the flexibility to use the Server or Direct connect as we desire? No matter the pain it may give us setting up arcane configuration of firewalls and routers.

Thanks

[Centuur]

I think I want to have an answer on this too. What happens if Matrix isn't there anymore (for whatever reason)? Are we than out of netplay options, because the server isn't there anymore? That is an important question which need to be answered, I think.

[Dabrion]

Will there be a LAN mode? Or will the game depend on the Slitherine infrastructure?

[Joseignacio]

ORIGINAL: bo

ORIGINAL: Joseignacio

Battlefront Strategic Command and Combat Mission Normandy.

Don't mention it, my pleasure.



XDDDD

Gee thanks Jose I already found it if you werent so laid out drinking "orujo" you would have seen it [:D]

Where have you been these last couple weeks? Playing Panzer corp? Glad to see you back.

Bo

XDDD, playing Alea Jacta Est, Birth of Rome and some UFO: Enemy Unknown series game mostly. Waiting for Netplay, while I practice a little with solo game or hotseat (against myself) but as I anticipated, I find it boring.

Sorry, don't want to hijack the thread, which seems to be getting even more interesting. Very interesting the posts above, IMO especially Centuur's.

[bo]

ORIGINAL: Joseignacio

ORIGINAL: bo

ORIGINAL: Joseignacio

Battlefront Strategic Command and Combat Mission Normandy.

Don't mention it, my pleasure.



XDDDD

Gee thanks Jose I already found it if you werent so laid out drinking "orujo" you would have seen it [:D]

Where have you been these last couple weeks? Playing Panzer corp? Glad to see you back.

Bo

XDDD, playing Alea Jacta Est, Birth of Rome and some UFO: Enemy Unknown series game mostly. Waiting for Netplay, while I practice a little with solo game or hotseat (against myself) but as I anticipated, I find it boring.

Sorry, don't want to hijack the thread, which seems to be getting even more interesting. Very interesting the posts above, IMO especially Centuur's.

He always make sense, my posts are made to be hijacked [:(] solo is boring, I would appreciate in the future that you would only converse with me on the Foro de discusion en Espanol if that would be alright with you[:D]

Bo

[Twisted1]

OK. Was thinking of getting my friend to purchase the game but only if Netplay was working. Has anyone had a game on netplay?

I tried to get on one and keep getting an error. Does Netplay work?

Thanks!

[Dabrion]

Nope.

[Erik Rutins]

Hi WarHunter,

ORIGINAL: WarHunter
Still play Steel Panthers direct connect with a friend using TCP/IP address. We direct connect all the time. That game is years old and we have no problem even last week our latest get together. We never have to wait for a server to be online for us to play.

Yes, if you have things configured correctly and the game has a good implementation, LAN play or a direct connection can work well. As a side note, the guy who wrote much of the network code for SP (Tom Proudfoot) is also the programmer for Lock 'n Load, FYI.

Civilization 4 is another game friends and i get together and play also. We have our master computer and up to 4 connected when we have the time. Play a couple hours and plan for the next encounter. We used gamespy when it worked and was up. Our backup has always been direct connect.

This one is not quite comparable - when you get to Civ 4 level budgets, a lot more is possible. With that said GameSpy performed many of the same functions that our server does. For most games these days, it's mandatory to have a routing server and some kind of only lobby/match making system. As it is, for many games 20% of fewer players use multiplayer and if you're doing TCP/IP multiplayer without any kind of server assistance, it's more like less than 1%.

We have learned to use Tunngle and Hamachi for some games. You learn what you need. To make it work. Letting a server do it all is not a bad idea. Letting players have an alternate choice is also a good idea. 1 size never fits all.

Agreed, but covering every possible option is not always realistic on the development side.

Will there be an option to direct connect TCP/IP with 1 or more computers? If the Slitherine server is down will it be possible to use a Tunngle like service as an alternate means to connect? Is there a backup alternate means to connect and play a game?

Part of why we created the server was to make NetPlay possible for World in Flames. I would not rule out the possibility of a LAN/direct connection option in the future, but as the NetPlay server itself is not the issue and rather allows the game to get around many other possible network issues, it is a low priority at this time to provide an option to replace it.

If we vanished off the face of the earth, there would clearly be a problem with the current way of playing. Fortunately, it looks like we will be around for the foreseeable future and we would not leave fans unable to play, so my expectation is that in the long run we will either implement a non-server option or give the WIF community the option to run the server if for some reason we are no longer able to do so.

To be clear on the choice to use server-based multiplayer, going the other route would have been harder, would have taken longer and we'd have much more troubleshooting and problems for less technically savvy customers than yourself. We did not have the development time to implement both, so we went with the option that was the most likely to give us the best multiplayer solution.

Regards,

- Erik

[WarHunter]

ORIGINAL: Erik Rutins
If we vanished off the face of the earth, there would clearly be a problem with the current way of playing. Fortunately, it looks like we will be around for the foreseeable future and we would not leave fans unable to play, so my expectation is that in the long run we will either implement a non-server option or give the WIF community the option to run the server if for some reason we are no longer able to do so.

To be clear on the choice to use server-based multiplayer, going the other route would have been harder, would have taken longer and we'd have much more troubleshooting and problems for less technically savvy customers than yourself. We did not have the development time to implement both, so we went with the option that was the most likely to give us the best multiplayer solution.

Regards,

- Erik

I see you did not dash my hopes for a direct connect option, but left the door ajar to a maybe. Better than a stick in the eye.

Expect me to champion the cause of a non-server option for the next 45 years. By then i will be 100 and probably have some sort of neural implants to play MWiF.

btw, How much is that server gonna cost to buy it?

[Centuur]

ORIGINAL: WarHunter

ORIGINAL: Erik Rutins
If we vanished off the face of the earth, there would clearly be a problem with the current way of playing. Fortunately, it looks like we will be around for the foreseeable future and we would not leave fans unable to play, so my expectation is that in the long run we will either implement a non-server option or give the WIF community the option to run the server if for some reason we are no longer able to do so.

To be clear on the choice to use server-based multiplayer, going the other route would have been harder, would have taken longer and we'd have much more troubleshooting and problems for less technically savvy customers than yourself. We did not have the development time to implement both, so we went with the option that was the most likely to give us the best multiplayer solution.

Regards,

- Erik

I see you did not dash my hopes for a direct connect option, but left the door ajar to a maybe. Better than a stick in the eye.

Expect me to champion the cause of a non-server option for the next 45 years. By then i will be 100 and probably have some sort of neural implants to play MWiF.

btw, How much is that server gonna cost to buy it?

If you can get an answer for that, I would be surprised... [;)]

[Finarfïn]

For the neural implant ?

[WarHunter]

ORIGINAL: Finarfïn

For the neural implant ?

Until the neural implants are available for public use. Thinking of setting up a twitter account to "Tweet" my experience with NetPlay.

Does anyone have a twitter account and share thoughts on using it to "Tweet", a MWiF game for the future?

[bo]

ORIGINAL: Finarfïn

For the neural implant ?

Damn Finarfin, I had to google neural implant [:D]

Bo

[Joseignacio]

ORIGINAL: bo



He always make sense, my posts are made to be hijacked [:(] solo is boring, I would appreciate in the future that you would only converse with me on the Foro de discusion en Espanol if that would be alright with you[:D]

Bo

Ha! I wrote hijack the thread, including your first post. [:)] It will be nice to converse with you in Spanish if you can to, but Where is that Forum? and Only us? Too romantic...

[petracelli]

Any news on net play? Notice matrix will be at salute and whilst keen to see the manuals will not be parting with any hard earned green stuff until net play is in.