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Multiplayer Shooters For Modems And Slow PCs?
rekrutacja writes "Soldat is a multiplayer action game which takes the best from games like Liero, Worms, Quake and Counter-Strike, and gives you fast action gameplay with lots of gibs and gore. It only requires a modem and a PC with a 333mhz processor, since it was written to meet the reality of the Polish Internet, still dependent on modem connections and cheap computers." For those countries and locations where you can't get broadband, and PCs just aren't that swift, what other action-based shooters are still reasonably playable?
I have often wondered what would happen if someone put a FPS out that had amazing error correction, cheat protection to the hilt, great game play, and crappy graphics. Sometimes I really think that the above would do much better, then I see something like DoomIII and I go into a trance and mutter "ewwwww, ahhhh" for about 30 minutes and can't remember what I was talking about....
Neck_of_the_Woods
#/usr/local/surf/glassy/overhead
I tried soldat out about two weeks with a bunch of friends that have cable or DSL. The game lagged quite a bit even with three people playing simultaneously. More than six people was annoyingly lagged and nearly unplayable (like Ragnarok Online in open beta). And yes, we did rotate game hosting duties, so no it didn't lag because the person hosting the game was slow.
Yeah, you might be able to play Soldat on a slower computer, but you can't do medium to large multiplay on a 56k with it...
I always remember playing Tribes 1 on a low spec K6-2/300 with a Voodoo2, now that was a game!
:)
:P
Fast action, excellent teamplay modes, also the bonus was it run nice on dialups (even with my 33.6!) and it seemed alot less ping orientated which i liked alot
Fine it may be a bit OT, but old games still pack the punch imho, i still play on T1 with a few mates...always a good laugh to get that mid-air snipe
"What do you mean you have no ice? Do you expect me to drink this coffee hot?" - Random Customer, Clerks
I spend countless hours with Quake-CTF, Quake-TF/MegaTF...these played great over 56k (ping may have only been down to 100-300 but gameplay was not noticably laggy).
I look forward to trying Soldat (on cable now, of course).
I played the original Quake multiplayer on a 14.4k with a Pentium I 160...I was using an external USR modem, and I got some pretty good pings, wherever there were less than 5 players and no one was grenade spamming.
No offense to the fans of the game, but the screen shots looked pretty ugly.
I recommend Unreal Tournement (the 2000 version, not 2003) for those with low-tech computers.
"I only speak the truth"
Karma: null(Mostly affected by an unassigned variable)
doom and the various 3rd party doom engines now available should run splendidly(doomsday engine provides hw acceleration too, and 3dmodels if you wish).
and then, of course, quake. heck, quake2 even.. combined with the various mods for them that come in boatloads should provide enough gameplay for the next millenium... switch to tribes1/2/ut if you get bored with it. mw2:mercs, it-76...
if a game only has ipx gameplay you can use programs such as kali(http://kali.net) to wrap it to work over internet easily.
world was created 5 seconds before this post as it is.
Why go 2D for 56K gameplay? Tons of 3D FPS are playable on a good hardware dialup modem. As for the slow computer requirement? Well, why do so many people like Half-Life and it's mods? Because the game runs on just about anything.
I remember playing UT on a P200 with 64Mb RAM,a Voodoo 2 card and a 56k (42k really) connection and it was a really good experience running at 640x480. Since the main problem with online gaming is high pings and not low bandwidth, as long as you stick with local servers or manage to get a truly global ISP (i.e. Via.Networks and UUNET in Europe, everything else does not have its own backbown afaik), you are guaranteed to play a good online game. Why you would need a 333MHz PC to play a game that is this basic is beyond me.
Mother is the best bet and don't let Satan draw you too fast.
Duke Nukem 3D! Ahh the joys of playing this game on a 486 back in the day. Tons of fun, and trite system requirements.
Maybe SOMEDAY we'll have that fabled follow-up game. Maybe.
I used to play Quake III: Arena on a 433 MHz Celeron with a whopping 96MB of RAM and an 8MB ATi Radeon Rage Pro Turbo video card. Ironically I still got 30 FPS at 800x600 and even with my 56k pinged at ~250-300ms which, suffice to say, is not too bad for a 56k. I now play CS and UT2k3 online, still on a 56k, but my pings are now ~150-250ms. Granted I have a much faster machine now, but even though the pings are much higher than my counterparts on broadband connections, I can still play without much complaints. Then again, I have quite an odd 56k, with compressiono off I average 10-15KB/s.
-illumina+us "I put on my robe and wizard hat..."
It is a mod for UT though, so your computer has to be able to run that. UT is fairly scaleable though, so if you have a reasonably decent machine you should be able to play.
The main gameplay type in Thievery is Thieves vs. Guards, where the human players are split up equally among thieves and guards. The thieves then have to complete a few objectives (i.e. steal enough loot) and then get to the exit, all near impossible unless they remain undetected. The guards (with the aid of a number of AI and many weapons and tools) seek to prevent the thieves from doing all this. The gameplay is pretty much straight from the Thief games, with many of the items and weapons taken pretty much as-is. The major component of the thievery is the same as the single player games, the light gem. The gem tells you how visible you are, i.e. to the guards you range from completely invisible, to transparent, to completely visible depending on how dark the shadows you are in are. Note that the guards don't have this and are always visible, unless they use an invisibility potion.
To help keep it a sneaker and not a new variation of DM, each team has a limited number of common lives, and each spawn uses up a life. This means if a team has 5 lives, they can have 1 player with 5 lives, or 5 players with no team lives. Thieves, while able to take out a lone guard if they have surprise, don't have much health or damaging weaponry and will likely die quickly if they attract the attention of a guard.
The people behind the actual Thief games are aware of the mod and have said that if they were going to do multiplayer, it probably would have turned out quite a bit like this mod. I believe they said something like that they made the decision to only do single player and that while they aren't allowed to officially encourage the mod, they won't take any action against it as long as they respect the "Thief" and any other trademarks that might force them to take action. The net effect of this is that the mod shouldn't be "foxxed", so don't worry about playing. The mod's been around for awhile, and will be around for awhile yet.
Get Cube! All the aiming is client side, so whatever your ping is, it doesnt matter. :)
;)
No cheaters yet either.
Get it here: http://wouter.fov120.com/cube/
Descent is an old game now, but it ran wonderfully over a modem. (At least on 2 player) It would barely lag if at all.
Since it's a Doom era game, it'll run on probably any computer anyone's running today.
*shrug*
I have been playing Soldat for the last few months simply because it is a very entertaining game. The graphics and animation are well done and there is constant action much like playing Quake but with the functional view of Worms.
Just because a game isn't have cutting edge graphics doens't mean it isn't a good game. Only an idiot would judge a game primarily on visuals.
-RPG
HL (and most HL mods) should run fine on low-end machines with dialup connections.
When playing Quakeworld, I always played at 320x200, even after getting a Voodoo and having glqw opened up to me. Why? Because framerate was much more important than eye candy.
"In the end they will lay their freedom at our feet and say to us, 'Make us your slaves, but feed us.'" -Dostoevsky
It's not really a shooter per se, but Netrek is quite playable on older machines and slower connections. Plus it's a damn good game. Maybe the best team game ever written.
http://www.netrek.org
http://www.google.com/search?q=netrek
Try 4D Shooter. (also here) A test version has been released. I'll just copy and paste the info:
;) (486 66MHz fps estimate = ~24fps)
4D Shooter is a 3D virtual reality game created in 2003, to look, sound, and feel like a retro 1991-esque 3D game, however, no one caught the idea of first-person-shooter then, and not much titles used the mouse creatively, so if Distinctive Software Incorporated (DSI) would take the FPS idea, this is what you'd get! (This project does not involve the actual DSI and 4D Rulers company, nor is related.)
How many polys are we talking about? A range from 2 to 78, playable on almost any computer.
This game is not yet released, no release date has been announced. The system requirements will hopefully, be a 486dx2 33MHz w/ Math-coprocessor. a 16MHz would be supported if the screen size was set to a minimum. We recommend a 486 66MHz for playing this game. It runs about 89FPS on my Pentium 166MHz in almost every place (320x200x8bit) with 5 bots, so I guess your excuses of not running it will be over.
This game is based on id's Quake technology, and the game will be released free, the engine will be under the GNU GPL, while all else is public domain, making this a 100% legal product.
The sites have a bunch of screenshots, and the download fits on a floppy.
I can play Q3/UT on a 333mhz celeron with voodoo3 and 256mb ram, and now I'm supposed to be happy about being able to play a shitty 2d game with 3 people? Btw, I tried the game with a couple of people with 2048/768 ADSL from the same provider (we usually get pings 30ms if one of us is the server) and the game lagged to a point where it was unplayable (stalling, 3s lag, moving and suddenly appearing on the other side of the map, being killed by rounds fired a few seconds ago, etc...)
56K my ass.
I found soldat a year ago or so, it was mentioned on a "free" game site as one of the best, and I definately agree.
:)
It's similar to worms in gameplay. You're a small 2d person standing around in a large 2d map. You have a selection of around 8 (don't remember the exact number) different types of weapons. Rocket launchers, machine guns, hand guns, etc. All have different properties and reasons you would use them. You then fight against the other people on the map to see who can live the longest/get the most kills. Adding to the fun is the jetpack on your back for short flights.
I think the graphics are great for a 2d game. The physics work well. A rocket hit directly to your body can throw your limp form flopping across the terrain, perhaps ending up hanging over the edge of a cliff. A direct shot in the head with a sniper rifle will knock off the character's head, letting the body to crumble to the ground.
Cartoonish, but enjoyable, similar to worms.. a lot of fun for no bucks
By now everyone should has heard 'bout Guspaz 'n tha dude's cocky rejoinders n' shit. In case yo' ass haven't heard or has even forgotten, allow me refresh yo' memory." To plunge right into that shiznit, I unquestionably dislike Guspaz." Likes or dislikes, however, are irrelevant observed facts, such as that now that I've been exposed Guspaz's drug-induced ravings, I gots admit that I don't completely understand 'em." Perhaps I need get out mo'." Or perhaps if I has a bias, that shiznit is only against featherbrained hippies who till da moonstruck siiiiide of da classism garden." So far, this letter has merely identified da ways in which that shiznit's 'bout time Guspaz stopped claiming tha dude's gloomy ramblings wuz influenced by outside sources 'n just admitted tha dude wuz wrong, know what I'm sayin'? Now, let me shift gears 'n start telling yo' ass 'bout how Guspaz wants get me thrown in da cage, know what I'm sayin'? Tha dude can't cite a specific statute that I've violated, but tha dude does believe that there gots be some statute n' shit. This tells me that Guspaz says tha dude's going convince muthas that they peers are already riding da Guspaz bandwagon 'n will think ill of 'em if they don't climb aboard, too, sooner than yo' ass think." Good old Guspaz, know what I'm sayin'? Tha dude just loves open tha dude's mouth 'n let izzall kinds of things come out without listening how biased they sound."
If yo' ass wuz try tell tha dude's shock troops that tha dude's maudlin, kissy-pooh, feel-gravy, touchy-feely expositions are actually quite brutish when yo' ass look at 'em a bit closer, they'd close they eyes 'n put they hands over they ears." They are, as da psychologists be like, in denial n' shit. They don't want hear that da next time Guspaz decides silence critical debate 'n squelch creative brainstorming, tha dude should think himself, cui bono? -- who benefits? What I just be like is a hella important point, but I'm afraid a lot of readers might miss that shiznit, so I'll be like a few mo' words on da subject, know what I'm sayin'? Guspaz uses da word "literally" when tha dude means "metaphorically"." That proves that I suspect that Guspaz should just exercise some common sense 'n some common decency." My views, of course, are not da issue here." The issue is that tha dude can't attack my ideas, so tha dude attacks me." It could be worse, I suppose, know what I'm sayin'? Guspaz could depressurize da frail vessel of human hopes n' shit. A recent series of hearings, lawsuits, 'n media reports demonstrates that I would really like comment on tha dude's attempt associate irreligionism wit factionalism, know what I'm sayin'? There is no association n' shit.
For izzall of da foregoing reasons, I can confidently claim that Guspaz has written volumes 'bout how da federal government should take mo' 'n mo' of izzle hard-earned paper 'n mo' 'n mo' of izzle hard-won rights n' shit. Don't believe a word of that shiznit, though, know what I'm sayin'? The truth is that tha dude coins polysyllabic neologisms make tha dude's double standards sound like they're actually important, know what I'm sayin'? In fact, tha dude's treatises are filled da brim wit words that has yet appear in any accepted dictionary n' shit. In spite of da fact that even Guspaz's least petulant grunts supplement they already-generous incomes by selling contraband on da black market, if yo' ass've never seen tha dude's ass empty garbage pails full of da vilest slanders 'n defamations on da clean garments of honorable muthas, yo' ass're either incredibly unobservant or are concealing da truth from yourself."
In these days of political correctness 'n da changing of how history is taught in schools fulfill a particular agenda, Guspaz likes undertakings that institutionalize conformism through systematic violence, distorted religion, 'n dubious science." Could there be a conflict of interest there? If yo' ass wuz ax me, I'd be like that in a tacit concession of defeat, tha dude is now openly calling fo' da abridgment of various freedom
A mod for Q3 that implements server side prediction. I play it with my 56k 500mhz 128mb machine all the time.
True Combat
I am stuck with 56k, but my favourite online game is multiplayer Delta Force: Land Warrior. Its not perfect but good enough that you can play. Not to mention that the game kicks ass.
I cant wait to get black hawk down - though I doubt 56k will be any good on that one.
Unfortunately, no one can be told what my sig is...
Novalogic's original 2 Delta Force games were awesome over dialup. We used to play DF2 a lot back when I had 56k because it was the only game that three people could play sharing a 56k connection.
That's right, sharing a single 56k connection. I was amazed that it was playable.
DF2 forced you to use Novalogic's servers .. no idea if they are still running them or not, but I've seen DF2 in bargain bins for $9.99 CDN...
I played a lot of Q3 over a 56K modem when it came out.
;)
It's quite playable with a few caveats:
1. find a server as few hops away as possible with as consistent lag/ping as you can find.
2. optimize FPS above all else
3. space levels will be hard due to LPB with the rail.
My favorite mod was DM instagib (just not Q3DM17) and using the gauntlet