Hey guys, I am new, just signed up
I have been following along with quite a few threads and decided it is time for me to post.
ok so to start off, I do want to make a mmorpg(doesnt everyone?) lol
and yes i do know that there is a ton of stuff involved, and the competition out there is crazy.
with WOW, guildwars, DDO, and lots of others.
I have been programming computers and games since i was 13 (i am 38 now)
I do realize that to get more than 10 - 20 players in a game working together you need some good bandwidth but that would be a good test environment to start off.
ok so to my question. (one thing i love about this forum is that no matter how far fetched someones goals, i haven’t seen anyone flamed lol)
so i’ll toss around a few ideas and realize i am hunting here for some input.
I plan to use postgresql database backend.
the server will auth people’s accounts (user connects to server and server queries the database for thier info.
the flow would be somehting like:
login screen
log into server
Get account info from database, characters etc
If there are characters goto character select screen
If there are no characters goto Character creation screen
When done making a character, goto character screen
enter world:
get character data from database, (zone they are in and position etc);
load area:
read mapfile, static objects <<Database
Cache actors from database (load the base models) <<Database
load zone models <<Database
Fade in scene
GAME LOOP:
Request actors and positional/state data from server (Radius around character)
render GUI
check keyboard input
check mouse input
check GUI events
check game state (environment state) >>Server
check for server messages
I really just want to make a game where you can get quests, kill stuff, do pvp, and have your friends join you and do the same, help you , etc etc.
so i get, and have ideas, on allot of this stuff.
but i was curious as to what type of network model would be best for this type of game.
one of my ideas from my notes was:
server side
Keep zone state, mobs etc, everything about the zone to update clients as
they log in.
Zone objects and static npc’s are built at zone in time.
Client has a radius they can see, requests to move in a direction, and server
updates client position as well as npc/mob locations.
this model would probably require the server to be running the game, and zone(s) to give the clients updates i think.
Also i read the thread on DistributedNode(s)
and i am studying the code David has for the 2 example server/client setup. I love the DistributedSmoothNode (server2) example, that is basically what i am looking for but i have yet to decipher and fully understand what is going on in the code. I will have to look further into it.
so i guess my main question is:
should I use DistributedSmoothNode type network topology for a game that expects to have many players interacting together and multiple zones in play?
Again thanks for listening to my ramblings and welcoming me into your community!
Cody