MP in SP3

[Chris Partridge]

Hi All,

Here is what I believe is the best way to get the most out of MP in SP3. All this information has been pulled together from the boards and from the experiences of beta testers during development of SP3, as well as good SOP from squadrons such as the 185th.

So here are the Top Points.

1. SP3 MP is different to i2 MP. A more detailed explanation, read Bard's article which can be found at http://f4ut.frugalsworld.com/docume...dividual.shtml.

In short, SP3 now means that the host shoulders the burden of supporting the MP network...and that means the host is rather bandwidth hungry.

The host must be able to support 33.6kbps per client. So in a four-ship MP flight the host must have at least 3x33.6kbps = 101kbps (the host doesn't have to count himself!)


2. The player with the greatest bandwidth MUST host the game. All players before should test their connections at http://www.dslreports.com/stest?loc=1 and use the upload figure (the lower figure of your two speeds).


3. With your tested upload, use the -bandwidth command. To do this, simply right click on your shortcut, select properties and in the target line you should see something like this:

C:\MicroProse\Falcon4\FalconSP.exe

Simply add -bandwidth xxx to the end of it (note the space between exe and "-", but there's no space between "-" and bandwidth)

So, with my tested upload of 100, the target line looks like this:

C:\MicroProse\Falcon4\FalconSP.exe -bandwidth 100


4. Next, make sure all players are using the same configuration. Most importantly, all must have trees either on or off. Anyone with a different trees configuration to others in the game will cause problems.


5. Launch Falcon...the easiest way is to connect to the host's IP. Then the host puts up the game. Remember though, whatever IP you connect to, the host is always determined as the one who puts up the TE or campaign!


6. Once in the game, make sure clocks are in sync in the mission schedule screen. If they're a second or so out between players, don't worry about it.


7. Get the host to launch, and other players can then join up.


Dial Ups: SP3 WILL work fine with dial ups! But they are most unlikely to be able to host any more than one client. As a client, dial-up users should be ok.


Dogfight: Uses a lot less bandwidth so should work even better for those on bandwidth-challenged connections.


Please don't use TEs or campaigns from previous versions of Falcon, they're likely to causes problems. And if you chose to fly a campaign mission, make sure you are all using the same theatre.

Have fun!