Section 8 Supporting Dedicated Servers on 360

[Keane Ng]

Section 8 Supporting Dedicated Servers on 360

TimeGate and SouthPeak's upcoming guns-and-jetpacks shooter will have an edge over most 360 multiplayer games when it launches with support for dedicated servers hosted on your own PC.

The console versions of online games like Team Fortress 2 are often the targets of critique when it comes to their player counts, which typically are dwarfed by their PC brethren. TimeGate Studios' Section 8, a promising shooter I said [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/91986-Preview-Section-8-Hands-On] recalled Tribes in the best way possible, won't be as easily marked as inferior when it launches later this year with support for dedicated servers that will drastically upgrade its player limits online.

When the game launches on 360, it'll come with "X Server" technology that will allow players to use their PCs as dedicated servers for online matches. That'll ratchet up the player limit for a match from a somewhat measly 16 to a hefty 32. The PC version will support up to 40 players at once with dedicated servers and 32 without.

"FPS fans looking for the perfect multiplayer game expect fast, reliable servers when they're playing online. We go one step further by offering an increased player count and boosting the game play experience to a new level," said Richard Iggo of SouthPeak. "We're confident that Section 8's incredible team-based combat and our adoption of cutting-edge server technology provide an experience unlike anything else out there."

You're going to want to play Section 8 on a dedicated server when it comes out, judging from my time with the game. The maps are rather huge, and if you're in the middle of nowhere with nobody around you, the action can get a little sparse. The only question, then, is how many people are willing to go through the process of turning their PC into a server and maintaining it. Hopefully some people will be happy to volunteer, for the sake of everyone else.


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[hansari]

Wow...tip of the hat to them. My friend told me about this game a few weeks ago and the news just keeps getting better and better.

Who else thinks this game will snag a good amount of online-shooter gamers?

* http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K9Ikgg16A9Y&feature=related

 

[hansari]

Wait is this coming out for the ps3? If not, I'll have to wait some time to get it.

Only PC and 360

 

[FinalHeart95]

This game looks okay. However, it reminds me of Halo for some reason.

 

[fix-the-spade]

The only question, then, is how many people are willing to go through the process of turning their PC into a server and maintaining it. Hopefully some people will be happy to volunteer, for the sake of everyone else.

Surely it's obvious, players are just going to buy server space of somebody else in the same way they do PC games.

There'll be plenty of clans that'll jump at the chance for a dedicated space similar to their pc servers. As long as the game's a hit the server providers will jump through whatever hoop they need to to make it work.

Very clever to pass the cost of server space back onto the players though, very clever indeed.

 

[Matu Flp Krwfe]

Who else thinks this game will snag a good amount of online-shooter gamers?

I wouldn't bet on incredulous droves of online shooter fans to flock to Section 8 because the games that best typify the shooter genera are, themselves, typified by stagnation and monotony. So, a game that offers a fresh, exciting gameplay like Section 8 may very well fail to take a large hold of the shooter demographic because it is not those qualities that draw in the ravenous, single minded, shooter fanboys.

Hopefully I'm absolutely wrong about this, but for now it would probably be best to limit our hopefulness and not bet on the zealots of Halo, GOW, and COD to give up their endless ego-boosting deathmatches for something a bit more sensible.

 

[roekenny]

I'm surprised took this long for devs to think of this as a win win for all involved. Just need to be able to make custom maps for in on PC then upload it to server so people can download it when join and just taken a very large advantage multiplayer on PC's has over consoles.

 

[KDR_11k]

So you get to run a dedicated server but to play on it you still have to pay Microsoft money every year if you buy the vastly more expensive console version with its vastly inferior controls?

 

[hansari]

I wouldn't bet on incredulous droves of online shooter fans to flock to Section 8 because the games that best typify the shooter genera are, themselves, typified by stagnation and monotony....Hopefully I'm absolutely wrong about this, but for now it would probably be best to limit our hopefulness and not bet on the zealots of Halo, GOW, and COD to give up their endless ego-boosting deathmatches for something a bit more sensible.

If you have seen trailers of the game, you would see it involves significantly more teamwork than other FPS's. There is no way to spawn-camp. You customize your arsenal as you choose to figure out what works for you best. Its all fast-paced even. Given the fact that you can run and jump gigantic leaps, you have to adapt constantly. Its not just a simple "run and get their flag"...

So yeah. This game probably won't be fun for those who just want a typical FPS with a sci-fi skin. But for gamers who like investing in games for competition, this is a gift from the heavens.

The success of this game won't be based on typical gamers. It will be based on getting the really competitive and clan-based gamers...

 

[Dioxide20]

This game seems pretty cool. It seems to me to be like a futuristic Battlefield game. I really hope that this X server thing catches on for the rest of the Xbox 360 games. I have always wanted to be able to play in large scale battles on my Xbox.

 

[Paragon Fury]

So you get to run a dedicated server but to play on it you still have to pay Microsoft money every year if you buy the vastly more expensive console version with its vastly inferior controls?

Uhh...what?

The game itself costs $10 more for consoles. Thats not a huge difference. As far as inferior controls, get over yourselves. PC controls aren't "better" - they're just complicated for the sake of being complicated. You give me almost any shooter on the PC, and I can fit nicely and easily onto the 360 controller. I've done it several times already. As for the mouse, several games, (including Shadowrun, for starters) have shown that the mouse has little to no advantages over joysticks.

 

[Cryo84R]

So you get to run a dedicated server but to play on it you still have to pay Microsoft money every year if you buy the vastly more expensive console version with its vastly inferior controls?

10$ is vastly more expensive?

I guess 60$ is too much to pay if your a PC game pirate.

Pirates are killing your platform.

 

[Doc Theta Sigma]

Meh, still won't make me buy the game. Looked at gameplay video and it looks incredibly boring. Nothing really stood out to me.

 

[ProfessorLayton]

Crap I got Section 8 mixed up with District 9...

You know I haven't really heard much about this game but the things I have heard are very good. People are always complaining about not having dedicated servers on the 360 and this could actually really help sales. More power to them.

 

[KDR_11k]

10$ is vastly more expensive?

20€ is (compared to a 50€ base price), that can buy two great games from last year (on the PC, on the console it won't because games only drop below 30€ if they suck). 70€ is just plain insane as a game price.

As far as inferior controls, get over yourselves. PC controls aren't "better" - they're just complicated for the sake of being complicated.

At least the aiming isn't like trying to steer a loaded supermarket trolley. Analog aiming doesn't go along with games that require headshots which is practically all of them now. Yes, it can be compensated for if you have enough time but with the mouse you don't need that.