Open Game Protocol?

SDL Development
1

OK, was thinking (usually a big mistake) about DirectPlay and how it seems
to be causing a multitude of inconveniences for a variety of game developers
and porting people, besides the fact that it’s a crock
o’something-unmentionable… Geh. So:

Anybody know if there’s some sort of Open Game Protocol about? Basically
something like DirectPlay except that you’d have an open protocol, nicer,
better, and with decent cross platform duplicates? If not, would anybody be
interested in helping to write one (and then start pushing it on game
companies? :-)) The Loki Folki might be interested in this too.

You’d think that with better crossplatform standards coming around somebody
would have addressed this… it’d sure as hell make my life easier if such a
thing existed, but as it doesn’t…

Cheers,

Nicholas–
Nicholas Vining “While you’re out there struggling
vining at pacificcoast.net with your computer, I’m naked,
icq: 20872003 clueless, and feeling good!”
- Ratbert

2

Anybody know if there’s some sort of Open Game Protocol about? Basically
something like DirectPlay except that you’d have an open protocol, nicer,
better, and with decent cross platform duplicates? If not, would anybody be
interested in helping to write one (and then start pushing it on game
companies? :-)) The Loki Folki might be interested in this too.

You’d think that with better crossplatform standards coming around somebody
would have addressed this… it’d sure as hell make my life easier if such a
thing existed, but as it doesn’t…

It’s not Open, but I ran into something similar while reading the paper
last week. A little websearching, and I dug up this article about NetZ:

http://www.montrealgazette.com/technology/pages/000223/3644071.html

Briefly, it’s an SDK that’s supposed to drop into a game development cycle
and allow low-latency gaming connections for Massively Multiplayer games.
I have no idea whether it actually works or not.

$50k US might seem a bit steep, but if an Open Source project wanted to do
something similar, taking a look at this package might be a good place to
start. There are some datasheets on their web page, but I didn’t look at
them.–
Graeme Lennon -=- @Graeme_Lennon -=- Montreal, Canada
… deadening the flow of relentless biography …

3

Anybody know if there’s some sort of Open Game Protocol about? Basically
something like DirectPlay except that you’d have an open protocol, nicer,
better, and with decent cross platform duplicates? If not, would anybody
be

interested in helping to write one (and then start pushing it on game
companies? :-)) The Loki Folki might be interested in this too.

You’d think that with better crossplatform standards coming around
somebody

would have addressed this… it’d sure as hell make my life easier if
such a

thing existed, but as it doesn’t…

It’s not Open, but I ran into something similar while reading the paper
last week. A little websearching, and I dug up this article about NetZ:

http://www.montrealgazette.com/technology/pages/000223/3644071.html

Briefly, it’s an SDK that’s supposed to drop into a game development cycle
and allow low-latency gaming connections for Massively Multiplayer games.
I have no idea whether it actually works or not.

50K? Hell no.

In order for something like this to work, you’d need to develop an OGP which
could directly compete with DirectPlay… i.e. make it FREE… the only
way that developers would use it. If we could get rid of this proprietary
format which we’ll change every 30 days to foil WINE crap, then Loki’s folks
would be able to port more games, I’d be happy because I wouldn’t have to
deal with cross platform issues, and the like. Besides which, correct me if
I’m wrong but DirectPlay isn’t designed for MMORPGs. They DO seem to require
a special kettle of fish. (at least AFAIK, I’m currently writing one so I
hope I’m right!)

Graeme Lennon -=- graeme at balefire.net -=- Montreal, Canada
… deadening the flow of relentless biography …

Nicholas

Nicholas Vining “While you’re out there struggling
vining at pacificcoast.net with your computer, I’m naked,
icq: 20872003 clueless, and feeling good!”
- Ratbert

----- Original Message -----
From: graeme@balefire.net (Graeme Lennon)
To: sdl at lokigames.com
Date: Saturday, March 04, 2000 4:51 PM
Subject: Re: [SDL] Open Game Protocol?

4

Anybody know if there’s some sort of Open Game Protocol about? Basically
something like DirectPlay except that you’d have an open protocol, nicer,
better, and with decent cross platform duplicates? If not, would anybody
be interested in helping to write one (and then start pushing it on game
companies? :-))

OpenPlay is at:

http://www.publicsource.apple.com/projects/openplay
http://www.lists.apple.com/openplay-development.html

It was used for Myth, runs Mac+Win, and a Linux port is “in progress”.

Matt

/* Matt Slot, Bitwise Operator * One box, two box, yellow box, blue box. *

5

Nicholas Vining wrote:

OK, was thinking (usually a big mistake) about DirectPlay and how it seems
to be causing a multitude of inconveniences for a variety of game developers
and porting people, besides the fact that it’s a crock
o’something-unmentionable… Geh. So:

Anybody know if there’s some sort of Open Game Protocol about? Basically
something like DirectPlay except that you’d have an open protocol, nicer,
better, and with decent cross platform duplicates? If not, would anybody be
interested in helping to write one (and then start pushing it on game
companies? :-)) The Loki Folki might be interested in this too.

You’d think that with better crossplatform standards coming around somebody
would have addressed this… it’d sure as hell make my life easier if such a
thing existed, but as it doesn’t…
hmm… i don’t know if there’s already such a protocol, but some years
ago
i had already started (but never finished) to write one.

i’d really interested in working on such a thing.

bye,
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