[vworld-tech] Combining networking modes?

[Crosbie Fitch]

> From: Martin Piper
> In relation to your main question, it is an interesting 
> problem. If each
> battleship was fully populated with players then that is 
> 80,000 players in
> the same world. To supply FPS experiences to that many 
> players, who could
> interact with each other, would require the use of quite a 
> few server nodes.

Let's say that we have the following scenario for a game we could call GalacsiKwest - a space based RTS game like HomeWorld which supports 5,000 independently piloted space craft, each of which supports a crew of up to 16 players.

The Unreal engine is used for modelling the interior of one of 50 different space craft (a map for each).

In order to play 'GalaxyQuest' players either have to find a captain, or put themselves forward as such.

The captain is the one who uses their PC as the server for the Unreal engine and must therefore have a decent PC and a good broadband connection. The captain's machine is also the one that communicates with the central server regarding the movements and actions of the space ship, and receives updates concerning the positions of other ships and thus how to render the views on the 'main screen', navigation control panels, porthole views, etc.

ISPs or anyone else (with particularly good kit) can also be a fleet admiral, i.e. hosting umpteen ships.

We have a lobby system that enables wannabe players to see what ships are nearby (low pings) and have crew vacancies. They can even search for a particular captain.


So, this becomes a two tier system. FPS for shipboard modelling which is pretty inconsequential in the grand scheme of things (crew can rush about the bridge filling in whenever some player's mum pulls their plug), and MMOG for modelling ship-to-ship interactions.