Multiplayer

From Kerbal Space Program Wiki
Revision as of 18:57, 14 June 2013 by Inigmatus (talk | contribs)
Jump to: navigation, search

Currently an officially supported multiplayer mode is not available. Developers have indicated a willingness to revisit multiplayer ideas at a later time only after the game is released from development. The chief factor limiting initial multiplayer development is in handling time warp across player experiences without running into chronological, physical, and logistical issues.

This page is a catalog of all ideas for multiplayer which people have come up with on the forums, some of which have been implemented successfully. It appears after much discussion that solutions center around 5 general categories of solutions:


Master Controlled Warp

Master Warp: Only certain players or all players have the power to advance time at the lowest available common warp factor. This idea requires communication between players prior to warping. This is great for small network games where the multiplayer focus is usually on close quarters or EVA/IVA operations. Either designated warp admins have the power alone to advance the time warp, or all players do. The amount of maximum warp is limited to the lowest warp factor available to all players (so if a player is landing, the max factor is lower than if all player ships/evas were in interplanetary space or in an observer mode). Communication between all players would be essential to avoid collision or physics catastrophes. "Battening down the hatches" would be a regular occurrence in such games, but EVAs would certainly be a lot more fun! This seems the most logically doable of all ideas.

  • Agreed Warp:

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/showthread.php/23917-Solutions-to-warping-problems-*IF*-multiplayer-gets-added?highlight=multiplayer

  • The Multiplayer Project:

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/showthread.php/8736-The-Multiplayer-Project?highlight=multiplayer+project

Relative Synch

Time warp only is allowed relative to the player initiating it, and whenever a player's ship or EVA is within a certain distance, max time warp availability slows down for both players using it, in increments until time is x1 in close quarters; or whenever a player logs off, the server advances the shared game state to the most advanced time stamp relative to the most chronologically advanced player. Least realistic of all options since it introduces warping of planets and/or other objects that require sometimes illogical reconciliation, paradox-inducing abnormalities, or unforeseen physics consequences.

  • logistics:

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/showthread.php/9463-Some-ideas-for-solving-the-logistics-issues-for-multiplayer?highlight=multiplayer

  • L.O.G Multiplayer System:

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/showthread.php/34309-Idea-The-L-O-G-Multiplayer-System?highlight=multiplayer

  • Not Your Average Multiplayer Discussion:

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/showthread.php/28079-Not-your-average-multiplayer-discussion?highlight=multiplayer

  • another time synch:

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/showthread.php/33575-Multiplayer-I-know-but-bear-with-me?highlight=multiplayer

Turn Based

Pass the savegame file to the next person in line, or a shared savegame file that is asychronously updated by various players. Successfully doable with current game mechanics.

  • Kessler - asynchronous shared save file

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/showthread.php/8610- asynchronous, shared-world multiplayer (+ save editor)

  • RPG Multiplayer

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/showthread.php/34725-RPG-Multiplayer-Ideas?highlight=multiplayer

  • Symbolic Link

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/showthread.php/30768-KSP-Multiplayer-How-To?highlight=multiplayer

Information Sharing

Not multiplayer but a shared social gaming experience. Think of friends playing individual games of solitare while all at the same table, able to share strategies, view each other's work, or even pass cards (ships) to each other.

  • Telemachus Mod - Mission Control style game control where a single player flies the craft, but data is shared with mission control participants who can call out values and course corrections.

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/showthread.php/32870-Mission-Control-Multiplayer-kind-of?highlight=multiplayer http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/showthread.php/24594-0-20-Telemachus-%E2%80%93-Telemetry-and-Flight-Control-in-the-Web-Browser

  • Kerbal LiveFeed - view live game information from other players playing KSP, and share craft files.

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/showthread.php/24926-0-20-Kerbal-LiveFeed-Passive-Multiplayer-Plugin-Client-Server-v0-6-6?highlight=multiplayer

  • Kermageddon- view other player ship orbits in your game.

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/showthread.php/19785-0-16-WIN-mac-Kermageddon-Multiplayer-0-1-Community-Feedback-Alpha?highlight=multiplayer

No Time Warp

Just as it says. No Time Warp. A variant of the MCW option above, but not necessarily inclusive. Games are loaded and saved without any time warp option available to players, using a client/server model. Games are re-saved in a KSP compatible savegame file format which can then be played in KSP (and game file owners can then warp).

  • EVA Multiplayer

http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/showthread.php/34703-EVA-Multiplayer?highlight=multiplayer