Working with Multiplayer?
by Stephen · in Torque Game Builder · 07/12/2011 (4:35 pm) · 6 replies
I purchased Torque 2D in hope of it supporting some type of real time multiplayer and I was wrong. So I figured that I would browse the forums, resources, TDN to see if there was anything about multiplayer. I found little to nothing about it. I'm talking about the real time networking that was shown in the video on the blog that was posted 2 years ago. I understand that Garage Games has went through some major changes in the past 2 years and a lot of things was cancelled or placed on hold but I can't believe that I am the only one that has asked this question. I see that there are good amount of tutorials on TDN but I was really hoping to see someone post something with more details and howtos on real time networking.
So my question is who else is interested in getting a better multiplayer system in Torque 2D? If you was to go to another engine they would have more tutorials and examples for anyone. A good example would be Game Maker. They have some many tutorials and examples for everyone to see and play with.
I don't know, I'm just depressed to see that Torque 2D doesn't have a better system. I was hoping to see a lot more with Torque 2D. It seems that I have wasted money.
So my question is who else is interested in getting a better multiplayer system in Torque 2D? If you was to go to another engine they would have more tutorials and examples for anyone. A good example would be Game Maker. They have some many tutorials and examples for everyone to see and play with.
I don't know, I'm just depressed to see that Torque 2D doesn't have a better system. I was hoping to see a lot more with Torque 2D. It seems that I have wasted money.
#2
The video blog shows an prototyped version of Torque 2D. It is still up in the air whether it will be released.
07/13/2011 (8:46 am)
I have updated the page since T2D uses event-based networking, not a real-time synchronized solution. You basically track events and send them when needed. They are not synchronized on all clients simultaneously like Torque 3D does.The video blog shows an prototyped version of Torque 2D. It is still up in the air whether it will be released.
#3
@David, I figure you can't really say but I'll go ahead and ask. Is there a major reason why it was never released? Not enough time or something?
07/13/2011 (12:52 pm)
I understand I haven't really wasted money since I have access to the source code. With a programmer, adding real time network is possible. I was hoping for a little more tutorials or examples for Torque 2D. I'm not programmer so trying to add real time networking would be tricky for me. When I first purchased Torque 2D I was hoping for tutorials and examples to help me create my first 2D co op game with T2D. I'm just a big fan of multiplayer and that's one of the biggest reason why I choose Torque 3D. I watched that video I was like sweet I could get real time networking but after found out that there was no real time I was very disappointed.@David, I figure you can't really say but I'll go ahead and ask. Is there a major reason why it was never released? Not enough time or something?
#4
The feature is incomplete and would require some significant time and money put into it to push it to a productized level. Whether it would pay for itself over the next couple of years is a consideration that we have to make. If it were added, it would most likely not be a free upgrade and the cost in man-hours may drive the cost above our comfort line--which would mean a longer ROI span to break even if we kept the cost closer to where we think it should be.
07/14/2011 (7:01 am)
I cannot discuss a lot of the internal decisions, reasons, etc, but I can talk a little bit about the money side of middleware development. It is more of a general look at some budget decisions. There's, of course, a lot more to it than this. :)The feature is incomplete and would require some significant time and money put into it to push it to a productized level. Whether it would pay for itself over the next couple of years is a consideration that we have to make. If it were added, it would most likely not be a free upgrade and the cost in man-hours may drive the cost above our comfort line--which would mean a longer ROI span to break even if we kept the cost closer to where we think it should be.
#5
08/08/2012 (11:08 pm)
any update on t2d's real time networking ? 
#6
08/09/2012 (6:21 am)
I'm also curious about it. 
Torque 3D Owner Raphael Gervaise
while I don't have a proper answer (as I haven't been looking at the network layer myself yet), there are various threads that discuss the features and evolution of the multiplayer API:
Google search
From what I understand, the network possibilities were reduced from TGE to TGB in order to prioritise ease of use.
Someone mentionned RakNet as a possible alternative / addition ; I just checked and their "hobbyist" license covers projects with <$100k budget. Since TGB comes with the full source code, and assuming you have a programmer working with you on the project, maybe it'd be worth investigating that path :-?
As for the "wasted money", my analysis is a bit different ; yes, I did find a few problems in TGB too, but nothing major and with the full source code a few extra fixes or features are easy and quick to integrate.
But I understand that from a pure "editor + script" approach, you might sometimes have to work around a few minor issues.
For the new price ($99), and considering the license and source code, I don't think there's anything better available.