[ShootMania] Number of Players

[Trackmaniack]

Yeeah...I can't WAIT to get on the battlefield with 249 other people... I LOVE NADEO!!!!!

[Slig]

Yeeah...I can't WAIT to get on the battlefield with 249 other people... I LOVE NADEO!!!!!

Don't expect it.

Small network lags on TM are not really a problem, but on a fps you really need the others players moves in real time without lags. Even sending to each in true real time only the close/visibles players infos, being playable with 250 players on internet is probably not possible at all. Well... it is probably be possible... in lan !

[www.e-gekko.net]

Slig don't you think the p2p beetween players in the same square of the map can work? Reducing the amount of callings on the main server? Hmmm, i guess if Nadeo will do a good work on this!!

You are right, because here we have more variables:
- Characters moving X,Y,Z in the grid
- Bullet shooting line in the grid
- the gap between the bullet and the target
- some minor collisions
- some phisycs

hmmm, maybe the double of the data of TM, but i think 125 players can be good too.
What you think Slig?

[Slig]

Slig don't you think the p2p beetween players in the same square of the map can work? Reducing the amount of callings on the main server?

All infos that you have listed have to be handled by the server. The server has to know all moves and resolve conflicts/collisions/shots, and give to each client only the infos that he is supposed to know and not more. Else it is an open door to many unexpected cheats.
Ideally it would be good to have the server send positions infos of only objets (characters, bulets) visibles, but sadly it's probably way too complex (else other games would do it, and wall-hacks would not exist). At least, to optimize a little, sending only the objects info in the approximate right direction and see-able distance should help.

The problem for FPS is that the network delays have to be reduced as much as possible, which means very small network frames (long frames increase the per frame transmission delay), sent as quickly as possible (the infos have to be as much accurate as possible, receving opponents position 0.5s is useless). It is hardly compatible with lot of players, and also with low or medium bandwidth servers.
Also a FPS have some other complexity related to real time that does not exist on TM : it needs on clients some movements prediction, else you would always shoot behing opponents (except in LANs). And ideally the prediction of each should be tuned depending on each client (live) ping...

I guess that only real tests will permit to see the real number of players limit.

[www.e-gekko.net]

Yes...thx for the answer.

[LBF]

Maybe 251 players is good to beat the worldwide record of TM.