Author name: jdrgadmin

TPU (Tanks n Planes Unlimited)

An open letter to TPU players

Based on what I’ve seen in server chat, and some comments from other observers, there’s a lot of misunderstanding about TPU: its rules, its admins, and how it operates. This post is an attempt to provide clarification to TPU players.

The main thing I want to point out is that you can talk to me. Use the JDRGaming Discord server; that’s what it’s there for. If you have trouble with another player, or something you’ve observed about the server, contact me. Spouting off in server chat about another player (or the server admins) is not helpful. There’s a fair chance that whatever pissed you off had nothing to do with the other player or the server admins. Instead, contact me, and let me know what your beef is. I have access to information and tools that you don’t. I can provide definitive answers to your questions about how the server operates. I can confirm when server crashes and other server outages occurred.

TPU overview

TPU is a co-op only server; no PvP gameplay is allowed. Anyone who persistently plays against other human players will be kicked and eventually banned.

All human players are expected to be on either the Allied team or the Axis team. The ‘human team’ will then consist of a mixture of human and bot players, while the ‘bot team’ will be all bots.

The maximum number of players on TPU is 32. Bots fill in the teams to the maximum, so at any given time there will be as many as 32 bots in total. When a human player joins, one of the bots is removed.

To make things more challenging for human players, the bot ratio is set up so that there are about three times as many soldiers on the bot team as there are on the human team. If there are no humans playing, there will be 24 bots on the bot team and 8 bots on the human team.

The bots are at maximum difficulty, again to make things more challenging for human players. In practise, that means the bots have excellent aim with all weapons, so the use of cover is strongly recommended. Keep in mind that bots are still terrible drivers; they still get stuck on scenery; they happily kill each other; and their strategy is somewhat simple-minded. So it seems only fair to give them good aim.

The human team changes between Allies and Axis every six hours. This allows human players to play both sides of every map, depending on the time of day. Map voting is enabled.

The BF1942 server configuration used by TPU has been patched so that rounds do not restart when a second human player joins a round.

Myths and incorrect assumptions

I’ve read some truly bizarre things when monitoring the in-game chat. Let me just clear a few things up.

Kicking players for being on the wrong team

There is currently no automated kicking for being on the wrong team. I’ve been testing some ideas along those lines, but nothing is in place (yet). If you get kicked, it might have been the server auto-kicking you because of your team-killing, or for having a negative score. But only a human admin (often not actually in the game but monitoring from the console) will kick you for being on the wrong team. For now.

Multiple people connecting from one IP address

There’s no reason to assume that multiple players joining from one IP address is evidence of malicious intent. When there’s more than one computer in a household, they will all appear on the same IP address. I know for sure there is at least one household that has three TPU players who sometimes all play at the same time.

Connecting from multiple different IP addresses

Changing your IP address is one way to get around a server ban, at least temporarily. But there are also legitimate reasons why the IP address you use to connect to TPU might change. Your Internet Service Provider (ISP) may arbitrarily assign a new IP address to your modem/router. You may be using a VPN, for which there are many legitimate use cases. You may be playing from several different locations. The point is that you shouldn’t assume that a player connecting from multiple different IP addresses is doing so to evade detection.

Using more than one player name

It’s very easy to change your player name in Battlefield 1942, and many players have several player names that they use regularly. Yes, doing this can help to get around server bans, and it’s confusing for other players, but you should not assume that there’s any malicious intent. I personally only ever play as [TPU]Boot13.

Keyhashes

The Battlefield 1942 ‘keyhash’ is basically your game’s CD key. It was originally intended to uniquely identify every legitimate copy of the game client.

When you join a multiplayer server (PvP or co-op), your BF1942 client’s keyhash is compared against other clients connected to that server. When a duplicate keyhash is detected, the client shows the ‘Invalid CD key’ message.

Unfortunately, it’s now very easy to generate a new, valid (yet completely illegitimate) CD key (keyhash). However, since there’s basically no legitimate reason for changing your keyhash, any player who uses multiple keyhashes should be viewed with suspicion. They may be trying to get around bans, or they may be trying to evade detection by server admins and other players.

On being kicked from the server

Admins don’t arbitrarily kick people for no reason. If you’ve been kicked, there was a reason. You may not agree with it, in which case you can contact me and explain your point of view, or you can always play elsewhere. Also, keep in mind that when the server crashes, it may look like you’ve been kicked, but that’s not actually what happened.

Kick voting

Kick voting is currently enabled on the server. The idea is that when a player is being disruptive, or playing on the wrong team, the other players (at least 60% of them) can vote to kick that player. That’s useful when there are no admins monitoring the server. Sadly, this feature has been abused in the past, and I even disabled it for a while.

Abuse by admins?

Admins don’t intentionally mess with players except in extreme cases (don’t ask). If you suspect that an admin is not treating you fairly, please contact me and I’ll look into it.

TPU rules

To reiterate: TPU is co-op only; no PvP gameplay is allowed.

Base camping

Base camping is allowed. On PvP servers, base camping is usually not permitted, because killing another human player just as they spawn is clearly unfair, and incredibly annoying. On TPU, we always play against bots, never humans. And we don’t need to be concerned about being nice or fair to bots.

Full disclosure: until recently, the official TPU rules included one against camping. But it wasn’t really a hard rule, and the wording been changed to make it clear that camping is actually okay.

Of course, padding your stats by killing huge numbers of bots as they spawn isn’t exactly a demonstration of your skill. There’s just no way to make it sound like an accomplishment. So you may expect some ridicule from other players when you do this.

Using medpacks

‘Medpack gaming’ is allowed. I hadn’t even heard of this until recently, when a regular TPU player was complaining about it in server chat. Apparently some players get upset when other players use medpacks. I suppose I can see how some players might not like it when another player is able to heal themselves, but that only makes sense on a PvP server, which TPU is not.

Being AFK (Away From Keyboard)

Normally this is not a problem, and everyone has to take a dump once in a while. But staying AFK for an extended period causes problems for other players. In particular, it messes up map voting. So, please don’t stay AFK for more than a few minutes at a time. If you’re going to be away longer, please disconnect and re-join later.

For a complete list of the TPU rules, see the TPU rules page on the JDRGaming site.

Server crashes

The Battlefield 1942 server that runs TPU crashes frequently. It’s configured to restart automatically, but there’s often no warning about crashes, and no way for an ordinary human player to know that the server crashed. Unfortunately, some people assume instead that they’ve been kicked.

There are a number of reasons why the BF1942 server crashes. The server contains numerous bugs, and since development and support for the game stopped long ago, there will never be official fixes for those bugs. The good news is that there are some dedicated (and skilled) people out there who are able to provide unofficial patches. The BF1942 server software run by TPU has a number of unofficial patches installed, including several that prevent known hacks.

Additionally, it seems clear that many of the bugs that cause BF1942 server crashes are related to the use of bots. This explains why PvP-only servers (with no bots) are often more stable than co-op servers like TPU.

Sometimes the server crashes because a player gets pissy and uses a known (and sadly unpatched) exploit. There are also ways to crash the server using DDoS attacks, many of which have been used against TPU. I’m always looking at ways of mitigating such attacks, and reducing the amount of server down time that typically results.

Logging and monitoring

Server logs, in-game chat, and stats are kept forever, and are reviewed sporadically.

All player actions are recorded and can be reviewed or played back using server admin tools, but this is only typically done when investigating specific player issues.

Admins and admin behaviour

I’m Jeff, the server owner and main admin. I always play as [TPU]Boot13. Long-time admin Sisko is helping out again as well these days.

Admins are often watching (chat, teams, etc.) without playing. Admins sometimes join for spectating purposes only.

Normally admins warn before kicking for breaking rules, but lately I’ve been kicking without any warning for playing on the wrong team, because it happens so often, and people seem to ignore admin requests. Also, the main rule is shown to joining players at least three times while joining, telling them to play one side or the other, then repeated constantly via in-game announcements. There’s really no excuse for playing on the wrong team, and I’ve heard some doozies.

I leave the Battlefield 1942 Remote Server Manager open at all times on my desktop. It’s not like I stare at it constantly, but I do glance at it regularly when I’m at my desk. Mainly I look for people playing on the wrong team, and kick them if they persist. But I also monitor in-game chat, watch for issues between players, and take lots of notes.

There’s a list of current and past admins on this site.

Automated admin actions

The server will automatically kick any player with a consistently high ping value. Players with excessively high ping drag the server down, causing lag for other players. If you’re on the far side of the planet with a shitty Internet connection, I’m sorry.

The server will automatically kick any player who team kills. Accidental team killing happens, so you get a few free ones, but more than a few and you’re gone.

Similarly, the server will auto-kick any player who has a bad enough score. Basically, if your score is below zero and dropping, you’ll be kicked.

Contacting the admin

Via Discord

By far the best way to contact me about TPU is via Discord. I have Discord running all the time on my main computer, where I spend a lot of time. If I’m at my desk, there’s a good chance I’ll respond immediately to a message posted in one of the JDRGaming Discord channels. Here’s an invite to the JDRGaming #tpu_server channel. And here’s an invite for the JDRGaming #general channel.

Via email

You can also reach me at my main JDRGaming email address: jrivett@jdrgaming.com

Using the JDRGaming web site

Another option is to create an account on this site (jdrgaming.com). Once your registration has been approved, you can log in to comment on blog posts, as well as post topics and replies on the forum.

Become an admin

Even better, you can apply to become a server admin! It can be a difficult job, but there are perks. You’ll be able to kick and ban problem players, and you’ll have access to more information. You’ll also have more direct access to the server owner (me). Make your voice heard! Contribute! Get involved! Fill out the JDRGaming Server Admins application to get started.

Other methods

There are other ways to communicate with me and the other admins. Check out the rest of this site for clues (jdrgaming.com).

Play style

Not everyone joins TPU for the same reasons; not everyone plays the same way; there is no ‘right’ way to play. Yes, the general idea is to win a round, but there are many ways to contribute besides taking flags, and some people just want to dogfight, explore, etc.

So yelling at players to ‘get a flag’ is just pointless. If you really need to win every round, why not play a nice single player game?

Removing problem players

Banning in BF1942 is based on player name, IP address, and keyhash. Player names can be changed easily, and many players have hundreds of names on record. Keyhashes can be changed using available generators; IP addresses can be changed using VPNs. So there’s really no way to truly stop someone from joining using just the BF1942 server tools.

Luckily, as the server owner, there are many other tools available to me. I can block all traffic from an IP address or a range of addresses. I can block all traffic from an Internet provider. I can block all traffic from all the IP ranges of a VPN provider. I can block all traffic from a country. And I can remove a player name from the TPU stats. I have done most of these things already in some extreme cases, most notably to get rid of a specific player for his toxic, foul-mouthed, narcissistic, petty, bad-tempered, unsportsmanlike, unhelpful, demanding, uncooperative, intolerant, self-important, hostile, and generally nasty behaviour.

In-game chat issues

The in-game chat in BF1942 can be hard to read, especially on smaller screens, older screens, and some older laptops. If a player doesn’t respond to your messages, they may not actually be able to read them easily. Try all caps (seriously).

Language issues

People join TPU from all over the world. Some of those people are not able to read English. Using in-game chat to yell at people in a language they can’t understand is pointless and mean.

If you really want to communicate with someone in chat, it’s not that difficult to determine where they’re playing from using their IP address. Hurricane Electric’s BGP Toolkit works for me. Search Google for languages in that country, then use Google Translate to translate your message for in-game chat. Unfortunately, BF1942 chat doesn’t handle cyrillic characters, so you might want to try using Google Translate’s phonetic (transliterated) translations for Russian.

Generally speaking, we want to keep in-game chat English. If you can communicate in English, please use it, even if you’re not very good at it. On the other hand, if the only other people on TPU are your buddies and you all speak the same language, have at it. Just remember that when I see long conversations in a language other than English, I sometimes translate them because I’m just so curious.

TPU stats

The TPU player and map stats are at tpu.jdrgaming.com. Your player’s stats will start appearing once you’ve played a few rounds. If you use multiple player names, each name’s stats are tracked separately.

Once upon a time, we used select(bf) for stats. Sadly, that software is now very out of date, and requires such an old version of PHP that running it is a security risk. Select(bf) presents an active PHP web site.

These days we use BFStats, which doesn’t have all the features of select(bf), but does have the basics. BFStats is also old code, but it only generates static web pages, unlike select(bf).

The TPU stats are reset yearly, just after the new year begins.

Tips and tricks

There are some useful tips on the TPU FAQ page on this site.

TPU’s origins

TPU is co-op only because some people (notably myself) aren’t interested in playing against humans. The extra tanks and planes (server-side map mods) are because otherwise there just aren’t enough, which means there’s a lot of walking, and people fight over them. The lopsided ratio is to make it more challenging for humans, as is the maxed-out bot AI. Their aim is godlike but they still can’t drive for shit. Switching from Axis to Allied every six hours is so humans can play every map on both sides over 24 hours.

TPU is a dedicated co-op Battlefield 1942 game server. It is open for anyone to join. All you need to play is a Battlefield 1942 game client. To play all the maps in the regular rotation, you will need both of the official add-ons: The Road To Rome and Secret Weapons (check the Files section of this web site). Although most of the maps have been modified to some extent, we have tried to make sure that no special downloads are required for joining the server. Modifications have mostly been limited to increasing the number of tank and plane spawns and swapping certain units for others (one type of plane or tank for another). More recent mods involve adding gun emplacements, moving ships around and adding subs.

TPU (Tanks n Planes Unlimited)

Unreal Tournament 99 server change

For twenty years, I’ve complained that the original Unreal Tournament server has a bug that prevents a lone player from starting a round. The server sits in a holding pattern until a second player joins, at which point the round starts.

This was a problem, partly because it made testing my own server difficult, but mostly because it meant that the first player to join a server had to wait around for at least one more player to join before they could actually start playing.

Well, a kind Github user named scottadkin just replied to my request on the OldUnreal/UnrealTournamentPatches repository, pointing out a server setting that controls this behaviour: Tournament Mode.

I immediately checked, and sure enough, the JDRGaming UT99 server had this setting enabled. I disabled it, saved the change, and restarted the server. Then I ran my game client, joined my server, and hey presto, was able to start playing immediately, despite being the only joined player (the player rosters are filled out by bots on my server).

Boy do I feel dumb now. But also very happy!

JDRGaming Battlefield 2 server

New BF2 server only fully works with FH2 and Project Reality

As you’re by now hopefully aware, Gamespy recently kicked the bucket. Gamespy’s master server and login/account servers for Battlefield 2 no longer exist. Anyone running Battlefield 2 will notice long delays as the game tries to contact these now-defunct servers, and attempts to log in will fail. You can still play the game, but only offline.

The good news is that the developers of the BF2 mods Forgotten Hope 2 and Project Reality created patched versions of the BF2 server and client. These programs have been modified to communicate with new, alternative master and account servers. The JDRGaming BF2 server was updated to use the modified server program on July 1. If you use the modified BF2 client program included with Forgotten Hope 2 2.47 (or higher), you won’t see the delays, and you will be able to log in. You will also see servers listed on the Internet tab in the in-game server browser.

However: I just finished testing the new BF2 server – the modified server provided by the developers of Forgotten Hope 2 and Project Reality to get around Gamespy’s demise – and found that the in-game server browser only shows FH2 and Project Reality servers. Vanilla BF2 servers are not listed, and neither are other mods such as Hard Justice and AIX2.

Because of this, the JDRGaming BF2 server will no longer run Hard Justice or AIX2, unless someone figures out how to get servers running those mods listed in the in-game server browser. Players would still be able to join directly using the server’s IP address, but that’s not a long-term solution.

I do plan to look at Project Reality, and if I like what I see, I may start running it on the JDRGaming BF2 server occasionally.

The Forgotten Hope 2 server list shows FH2 servers that use the new PR/FH2 master browser.

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Second XBox 360 bites the dust

Sigh. I bought my second XBox 360 after my first died of the horrible ‘Red Ring of Death.’ I had successfully modified that 360 a few months earlier, installing padding (under the lid of the DVD drive) that prevented the drive from scratching my game discs. Unfortunately, opening the 360 had also eliminated the possibility of returning it for repair/replace as part of the extended 3 year coverage specific to RRoD issues. Oh well. That 360 is now a pile of parts in a box. I tried one of the X-clamp fixes on it with no success and plan to keep trying at some point, but meanwhile I bit the bullet and bought another 360.

The second 360 has – up to now – performed flawlessly. It is much quieter than the first one and seems to run cooler. It doesn’t scratch discs, either: I’ve tested it with game demo discs, rotating the console and moving it around with the game playing, and no scratches have resulted. Apparently this was pure luck, since people are reporting that even the latest 360s are sometimes still made with DVD drives that can scratch discs.

Yesterday on trying to start the 360, the lower right segment of the ring of lights around the power button started flashing red, and text appeared on the screen: E74. I’d never heard of this error. Research on the support site reveals that E74 is somehow related to the RRoD issue and that any console so afflicted can be returned to Microsoft for repair/exchange. My second 360 is out of its main warranty period, but well within the three year period for RRoD issues. So I spent a frustrating hour going in circles on the support site trying to get to the place where it would tell me how to do this. Eventually I got there and will send it back.

There’s just one problem: I very much doubt that Microsoft will send back the same 360, repaired. Apparently it is much more common for them to simply confirm the problem and send back a refurbished unit. Normally this would make sense, since it’s much faster to simply pop a refurbished 360 in a box than to fix one and send it back. But if they send back a console that scratches discs, I will not be amused. What to do?

Here’s my plan:

* Record everything on video.
* Attach a message to the lid of the 360, expressing my concerns and letting Microsoft know that I expect to receive either the same console back, repaired, or a different console which is no worse than the one I sent (doesn’t run dangerously hot, isn’t ridiculously loud and – most importantly – doesn’t scratch discs). I will suggest that if they insist on returning a different unit, they simply make sure to choose one that is of recent vintage that includes a DVD drive of the same make and model as the one I returned.
* I will also point to my XBox 360 scratching disc notes on this site if they want to understand my point of view.

Unfortunately, I can’t make a video of my now-nonfunctional second 360 not scratching my test disc since it doesn’t even boot up. I should have done that before. Oh well.

Anyway, I’ll post more here as things develop.

Update 2009Sep16: Here’s the message I’ll tape to the top of the 360 I send back:
Microsoft: please read! This 360 was working perfectly prior to the E74. It ran cool and quiet, and it never once scratched a disc, very much unlike my previous 360, which is now a pile of parts in a box somewhere in my shed. Despite your official statements on the subject, I know that the likelihood of a 360 scratching discs is entirely dependent on the make and model of the DVD drive it contains. Good drives prevent the disc from coming into contact with hard internal surfaces; bad drives do not. The drive in this 360 does not scratch discs and I would like the 360 you return to me to have the same characteristic. Please either return the same physical console (repaired), or return a console of the same vintage (with the same improvements in cooling and reliability) and the same make/model of DVD drive or a similar one that also prevents disc scratching. For further information, please refer to my XBox 360 disc scratching resource on the web at http://jdrgaming.com/.

Update 2009Oct04: Boxed it up and sent it back. Microsoft acknowledged receipt of the 360 on September 30. October 1 they sent more email telling me the “repair is complete” and that they had shipped it back. Given the extremely short duration between receiving and “repairing” the unit, I think it’s safe to assume I will be receiving a replacement, NOT my original unit. If it’s a disc-scratcher, I am going to be annoyed.

Update 2009Oct09: Yep, they sent me a replacement. Along with a bunch of documentation about how they had to de-register the serial number for the replaced 360 and instructions on how to register the new one. You can be sure that before I put any of my games into the new one, I’ll test it with a demo disc to see if it scratches. Also of course I’m curious to see how loud the replacement is and whether it runs as cool as the one it’s replacing. More to follow…

Update 2009Oct10: Fired up the replacement unit. I noticed that the power connector is slightly different between the old 360 and the new one, such that they are not interchangeable. That is weird. Anyway, the replacement unit, to my intense relief and mild surprise, runs quiet and cool, and does not scratch discs. I fired up a demo disc, and with the disc madly spinning away in the drive, picked up the 360 and lurched it around from side to side. It made some buzzing noises, and as I gradually increased the violence of its movements, eventually it made a grinding sound. My first thought was “oh no, here we go again” but my inspection of the disc showed no scratches whatsoever. Clearly the disc was lifting out of the tray but whatever it hit did not cause any scratches. Yay!

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What’s co-op gaming?

A co-op game is one that allows two or more human players to play on the same side, cooperatively, versus the computer. I’ve seen alternate definitions, such as “working together with friends to solve the single player game,” but to my mind that’s pointless hair-splitting. When I’m looking for a co-op game, anything that will allow me to play on the same side as other humans versus the computer will fit the bill. So the definition I started with is the one that makes the most sense to me. The key word in “co-op gaming” is “co-op.” Why dismiss a game that offers cooperative play just because it doesn’t offer a co-op campaign? Especially when the sub-category “co-op campaign” works so well. Finally, using that other definition would mean excluding some of the best games I’ve ever played cooperatively, including EA Sports NHL and Battlefield 1942/Vietnam.

What’s the point of co-op gaming? Surprisingly, there are gamers out there who have friends. I know, because I’m one of them. I find it much more rewarding to work with my friends to compete with bots than to compete against my friends. If I want to compete against humans, I can go on-line and find some juvenile nitwit to destroy. In particular, those of us with multiple PCs on a LAN are more likely to be in the same room as other human players, in which case working together can be a lot of fun.

Sounds reasonable, right? Prepare to be disappointed. I’ve been gaming on PCs for over ten years and can’t think of more than a dozen or so games in which true co-op vs. bots gaming is possible. Game developers clearly don’t think this type of gaming is in demand. Frankly, they’re probably right. My own on-line gaming experiences tend to support that point of view. Most gamers out there seem to prefer killing each other to helping each other. A sad commentary on our society? Perhaps.

One reason gamers may not be interested in co-op gaming is that, at least in some game genres, the computer-controlled players are pretty dumb. They tend to be predictable. They get stuck in loops and against scenery. You can find locations from which to kill them off systematically, and they never figure it out and come after you. Human opponents can be a whole lot smarter than that. On the other hand, there’s been a lot of progress in making bots smarter – particularly in first-person shooters. They now take cover, dodge, flank and work in teams.

With some exceptions, cooperative play in a game requires the following:
1. Multiplayer support. This can be done on one computer via split screen (the screen is divided into two or more frames) or shared screen (all players see the same view), or with multiple computers on a LAN or the Internet, or some combination.
2. Cooperative multiplayer mode. There must be at least one multiplayer mode in which human players can play on the same side or team, cooperatively.
3. Computer-controlled players (aka “bots”). This can be humans versus bots and/or humans allied with bots versus other bots.

The availability of co-op vs. bot gaming depends to some degree on genre. Some game types feature this type of play as a matter of course, while in others it’s extremely rare. Here’s what you can expect for some of the more common genres:

First-person shooters (FPS)
A typical FPS supports one or more multiplayer modes. Almost all FPS games have a single-player “campaign” – a series of missions, typically scripted, to be played by one human player versus a bunch of bad guys. Although their actions are scripted to some degree, the bots in these games are also able to react to the actions of the human player. Shoot at a bot who hasn’t yet seen you, and they will typically start shooting back. In almost all cases, however, there’s no way to get more than one human playing the single-player campaign, and the multiplayer modes that are offered are restricted to “deathmatches” – where humans are pitted against each other with no particular storyline involved. Sometimes, you can team up with other humans, but in most cases you can only fight other humans, with no bots. I’ve seen plenty of titles where you can set up a multiplayer co-op game, with all humans on the same team, but when the game starts, there are no bots – hence no players on the other team – and the human team immediately wins. How dumb is that?

Role-Playing Games (RPG)
Traditional RPGs are single-player experiences. Occasionally an RPG is released in which the campaign (which is basically all you get with an RPG) can be played by more than one human player, cooperatively. Online RPGs are the exception. There are also a few 3rd-party add-ons or patches that allow certain RPGs to be played cooperatively.

Racing Games
A typical racing game allows a single player to compete against bots, but in multiplayer mode the bots are missing, even where split-screen is supported. There are a few exceptions, but they are rare. Sadly, some of my favourite racing games are missing multiplayer bots, including Carmageddon and Insane.

Sports Games
Sports games have perhaps the best record when it comes to cooperative play. This makes sense, when you consider that you can’t have a proper game in any sport without sufficient players. Without bots, multiplayer modes in a (team) sports game are basically useless. I suppose there are probably sports games out there that prevent two humans from playing on the same side, but I can’t recall any.

Real Time Strategy
As with some FPS games, I’ve seen RTS titles where you can set up a multiplayer co-op game, with all humans on the same team, but when the game starts, there are no bots – hence no players on the other team – and the human team immediately wins. Most often, though, RTS games simply don’t let human players team up at all. This is unfortunate, because an RTS can be a lot of fun with human allies.

A theory about the game development process

I’ve spent a lot of time wondering why co-op gaming isn’t more prevalent. Why is it more common in some genres (e.g. sports) than others? Most importantly, if a game supports multiplayer modes and has a single-player campaign where a human player takes on bots, why the heck isn’t there a co-op multiplayer mode? It seems to me that most of the code required is already there, so what’s the deal? Based on my own experiences as both a software developer and as a computer gamer, it appears that the problem is lack of planning. If a game’s developers plan from the start to include a co-op mode, it’s fairly straightforward. But trying to retrofit co-op gaming into a complete or nearly complete game presents certain difficulties, such as:
a) Which computer will control the bots?
b) Where will progress be saved?
c) If the action of bots (including spawning) is scripted, how will having more than one human affect that scripting?
d) How will level transitions work with multiple human players?

I think that some developers look at these problems and decide that they’re not worth dealing with because the audience for co-op gaming is so limited. Too bad.

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