Prototype Games
We are currently in the process of developing prototype games to study the following preliminary issues:
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Timing Models & Distributed Synchronization |
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Application User Interface (API) & Programming Model |
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Application Layer Framework Network Library |
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Maintenance of State Consistency/Repair Under Network Churn |
We have implemented prototypes for the Hydra framework in both C++ and Java and we are currently working with NAT-related issues. For the Java version, we are currently evaluating and tuning it with two games, Tankie and Squad 101.
Tankie
Tankie is a simple “capture the flag” game where players control tanks with the goal of collecting a flag and bringing it back to a home base. In addition, there are some obstacles in the game world that can be destroyed and tanks can also destroy other tanks.
Squad 101
Squad 101, a procedurally-generated multiplayer real-time strategy (RTS) game, where each player controls a small squad of soldiers, in a virtual landscape, that fights other factions for territory and resources. The game was implemented in Java using the Irrlicht 3D Engine [10]. In Squad 101, the game world is divided into sectors. Each faction in the game may build structures in a sector and use it as a launching area for attacks on other enemy sectors. Under the Hydra architecture, each sector is implemented as a slice that may be hosted on different nodes.
Future Work
The following are some problems that we might attempt to address at the later stages of the project:
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Network/Performance Measurements |
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Programming Model for Automatic Division of Game Management |
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Load Balancing & Resource Management |
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Application-Level Multicast |
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Persistent Game State for RPGs |
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Cheering & Spectators for Online Games |
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Cheat Prevention in P2P Games |
We expect to find other new and interesting problems related to the development and deployment of peer-to-peer online games.