In response to the uproar surrounding Infinity Ward's decision to away with dedicated servers for the PC version of Modern Warfare 2, community man Robert Bowling has described in detail why the new IWNET system will be beneficial for everyone.
It's lengthy and detailed, so here's the full thing:
I recently broke news on a PC community member's podcast that Modern Warfare 2 would be introducing a completely new backend infrastructure called IWNET that would allow matchmaking for multiplayer games on PC. The news, by default, means no more browsing through a Server List for a server with the settings / ping you want among other things, and sent shockwaves through the hardcore PC community, leading to many more questions than answers as to 'HOW' this would work, and if it would really be better for the PC community as a whole.
Questions, assumptions, and speculation I intend to dispel.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is actually the biggest investment Infinity Ward has ever made into the PC version of our games. It's also the most feature-rich PC version we've ever made. IWNET takes the benefits of dedicated servers and allows them to be utilized and accessed by every player, out of the box, while removing the barrier to entry for players unaware of how to maintain a server on their own.
How does it do this?
Matchmaking & Smoother Gameplay: When you want to player a multiplayer game on PC, in the past. You'd have to scroll through a Server Browser which listed every available server which was hosted by individual server admins. Each had their own private rules, mods, or ways of playing the game. Most players would also use the server browser to find just the best quality game (based on PING). With IWNET matchmaking, it takes all that into account for you. All you have to do is select the playlist (pre-set gametypes with custom rules) that fits the style of play you are in the mood for. When you do, it will automatically find you a game with the best performance, ping, and preferences based on your location and individual connection as well as matching you with players of your same SKILL. So you're always guaranteed the best game performance for where you are and what connection you're playing on as well as an equal game with other players of your same skill level, not rank, but skill level. It doesn't mean you'll just be thrown into a random game! It will put you in the game that will give you the smoothest gameplay possible without you having to manually find a server with the best ping.
Playlists and Private Matches: As I described above, Playlists are pre-set game modes and gametypes for public games. If you just want to jump into a public game of Search and Destroy or Hardcore Search and Destroy and you don't care about fully customizing it, then you can utilize playlists to do that quickly for you. However, say you're in a clan and you want to play a Clan match with another team, or you want to practice for an upcoming tournament that has specific rules in a private game. Then you can start a Private Match (which is essentially like running your own private server) where you have complete control over the rules, who can join, boot players you don't want, and essentially control the entire game or tweak it to your liking. Once the rules are set, you can invite the other team in or just start it up with your clan to practice with the custom rules before the match. This now allows you to play custom games out of the box without the need to install mods, find a modded server with the rules you like, or worry about not being in control of the match.
Party System and Friendslist: Modern Warfare 2 on PC also makes it much easier if you want to party up with your friends, or again, with your clan for a match. You can utilize the friendslist to see when your friends are online, and invite them to your Party. A Party allows you to move from game to game as a group. It's great for clan matches, because you can party of with your clan and move from public game to public game together. Or if you're doing a scrim, party up and invite the other clan (who is in a party) and they'll all join at once. Set up a private match together and play. It makes setting up scrims or games with friends easier and hassle free.
Cheat / Hack Free Games: The biggest benefit of using IWnet by far is the fact that you don't have to worry about joining a server full of aim-bots, wallhacks, or cheaters. Or relying on the server admin of the server to constantly be monitoring, banning, and policing it. Modern Warfare 2 on PC allows us to control the quality of the game much more than ever before as well as utilizing the VAC (Valve-Anti-Cheat) system to keep games clean of hackers and cheaters.
All in all, IWNET adds a load of new features that the PC version of our games have never had before and allows us an infrastructure to continue to update and improve on the game post-launch.
i am still very worried about the way they seem to be handling Competitive play.
being able to change rules on the fly, being able to KNOW what your server is going to give you.
Clan play was a huge part of COD 4. We have our own server, everyone goes on it for training and tactics, then we get people to come on for a match. and only people we want... we give them our ServerIP and password.. this system is not fit for this.. Not in my eyes anyway
Isn't this the same guy who 4 weeks ago told the PC community nothing had changed with regards to the way PC gamers play online? HE has proven him self to be duplicitous and untrustworthy. The system has not been openly beta tested to see if it can take the strain. This is BS, an underhanded attempt by Activision and there new Minion IW to take the PC backwards so that it fits nicely into there little scam all you can world they put console gamers through.
looks like they are copying halo 3, sounds the same to me
Thats what it looks like to me. Halo 3's matchmaking is the envy of just about every other (console) developer out there as well, obviously not good enough for PC Gamers though (I kid, I kid).
His response (while detailed) does nothing to answer the very real concerns we have. This was my posted response to his blog, which I have copied here:
I'm sorry but your justification for doing this just doesn't match the detrimental effects this will have on PC gaming. Let's look at your comments above:
MATCHMAKING & SMOOTHER GAMEPLAY: Listen, if a PC gamer can't use a server browser they really shouldn't be playing. Matchmaking itself is a cool idea but PC gaming is all about choice. Fine, have an "automatch" button that allows you to leap into a server with players of the same rough level and a low ping, but don't do it at the expense of letting a player choose where to play. What you are doing is catering exclusively for casual gamers. And what happens if I don't want to limit myself to playing with people of the same skill level? I know several people that have had to reinstall CoD and have lost their level so needed to start again.
PLAYLISTS AND PRIVATE MATCHES: Playlists are just filters under a different name. Filters exist on server browsers as well. Where is the benefit? Private Matches? Okay so who exactly is hosting this private match? Where are the CPU and broadband resources coming from? IW? How will a clan be able to arrange a clan match if one of their own individual members has to host it? Surely the variation in latency between the host and the other players would preclude such a thing? You say that *you* can start a private match "which is essentially like running your own private server". NO IT ISN'T. The very reason that dedicated server programs were created in the first place is that you can run them on a server with more processing power and more bandwidth, rather than expecting a client PC to shoulder the burden. How exactly is your system going to match that? I don't host games for more than a few people because my system and connection cannot cope with it. That is why I prefer using dedicated servers. How will your "Private matches" help me?
PARTY SYSTEM AND FRIENDSLIST: Nothing wrong with either the Party System idea or the Friendslist idea (which has worked fine in Call of Duty: World at War alongside the server browser), but there is still the problem of resources - both processing power and bandwidth of client PCs. And by the way, if a "casual" gamer joins a server where they get thrashed by a more organised opposition because a load of clan members are all playing as an organised team, how is that any different to current experiences for casual gamers?
CHEAT/HACK FREE GAMES: This is pure rubbish. The number of cheats in COD:MW and even COD:WaW are fairly low and even though we know PB isn't the best system out there, VAC is not perfect either. I have seen someone complaining of a player running rampant on TF2 servers for weeks with a hack that VAC did not detect. No anti-cheat software is fool-proof, which is why the best form of cheat detection is always AC software backed up by active policing of a server by responsible admins. Your system does not allow for this.
In conclusion: Your decisions will have two very serious effects that none of your explanations deal with.
By removing the option to mod the game, you are removing one of the main advantages PC gaming has over console games. As PC gamers we do enjoy the option to play mods for games and indeed some of the best playing experiences I have ever had are with mods (that tweak the games to deal with flaws or limitations left by the developers), or total conversions that completely change the feel of the game and often give it a new and extended lease of life. Counter-strike, Day of Defeat, Team Fortress, Forgotten Hope, Desert Combat; these are all seriously good mods that apart from anything else, kept the games being played (and purchased) long after the original game became stale Most of them are still being played in one form or other now, many years after the original game was released. This means extended life and popularity for the game and extended sales.
One of the other main advantages PC games have over console games is the community support. Not just clans, but entire communities of gamers thrive based upon players being able to visit and revisit regular, trusted servers. I am a member of a friendly clan that play together for fun. We don’t take part in leagues and cannot be considered "hardcore". We came together playing Battlefield 1942 because of like-minded players playing on a specific dedicated server on a regular basis. We knew the server, we knew the admins and we knew the other players. We wouldn't exist under your system and neither would any other clan or community.
Your decision means that existing clans will only be able to manage a second-rate version of what they were able to do under the original MW and that forming new clans or communities will be virtually impossible.
The comment that “We’re just prioritizing the player experience above the modders and the tuners… we thought maybe it would be cool if the fans could play the game.” is grossly misleading and inconceivably flawed. What you are actually doing is catering solely to the player experience of casual gamers by extinguishing the online communities, clans and modders altogether .
Yeah and I notice his blog has gone bats**t as a result. These platitudes and explanations from IW are way off the mark, they are trying to sell a product to a market that doesn't want to buy. i have yet to hear from IW what was sooooo worong with the tried and tested (and working) set up that it needed to be changed, especially to a system which is so transparently inferior to a dedicated server system. They bang on about evening out the playing field but lets face it that holds NO water, so what if a player is level 1 or level 100 if they are good they are good and will 'pwn newbs' just as harshly as they are reputed to now.
What they also fail to adress is how much bandwith will all this p2p shennanigins take up? in the UK most of us have an acceptable use policy that determines upload and download availablity before throttling takes place, is this going to bring that about more often thereby effectively nerfing any semblance of online play?
All in all i reckon they are just arranging deck chairs on the Titanic.
yeah yeah yeah whatever IW, its all about control and you want to control the PC user base, you want to be able to switch off those servers as soon as the next CoD game is out so everyone buys your new product. You want to prevent users enjoying your game more with mods so they can buy the only new maps that you will sell as DLC for the PC.
Isn't this the same guy who 4 weeks ago told the PC community nothing had changed with regards to the way PC gamers play online? HE has proven him self to be duplicitous and untrustworthy. The system has not been openly beta tested to see if it can take the strain. This is BS, an underhanded attempt by Activision and there new Minion IW to take the PC backwards so that it fits nicely into there little scam all you can world they put console gamers through.
His response (while detailed) does nothing to answer the very real concerns we have. This was my posted response to his blog, which I have copied here:
I'm sorry but your justification for doing this just doesn't match the detrimental effects this will have on PC gaming. Let's look at your comments above:
MATCHMAKING & SMOOTHER GAMEPLAY: Listen, if a PC gamer can't use a server browser they really shouldn't be playing. Matchmaking itself is a cool idea but PC gaming is all about choice. Fine, have an "automatch" button that allows you to leap into a server with players of the same rough level and a low ping, but don't do it at the expense of letting a player choose where to play. What you are doing is catering exclusively for casual gamers. And what happens if I don't want to limit myself to playing with people of the same skill level? I know several people that have had to reinstall CoD and have lost their level so needed to start again.
PLAYLISTS AND PRIVATE MATCHES: Playlists are just filters under a different name. Filters exist on server browsers as well. Where is the benefit? Private Matches? Okay so who exactly is hosting this private match? Where are the CPU and broadband resources coming from? IW? How will a clan be able to arrange a clan match if one of their own individual members has to host it? Surely the variation in latency between the host and the other players would preclude such a thing? You say that *you* can start a private match "which is essentially like running your own private server". NO IT ISN'T. The very reason that dedicated server programs were created in the first place is that you can run them on a server with more processing power and more bandwidth, rather than expecting a client PC to shoulder the burden. How exactly is your system going to match that? I don't host games for more than a few people because my system and connection cannot cope with it. That is why I prefer using dedicated servers. How will your "Private matches" help me?
PARTY SYSTEM AND FRIENDSLIST: Nothing wrong with either the Party System idea or the Friendslist idea (which has worked fine in Call of Duty: World at War alongside the server browser), but there is still the problem of resources - both processing power and bandwidth of client PCs. And by the way, if a "casual" gamer joins a server where they get thrashed by a more organised opposition because a load of clan members are all playing as an organised team, how is that any different to current experiences for casual gamers?
CHEAT/HACK FREE GAMES: This is pure rubbish. The number of cheats in COD:MW and even COD:WaW are fairly low and even though we know PB isn't the best system out there, VAC is not perfect either. I have seen someone complaining of a player running rampant on TF2 servers for weeks with a hack that VAC did not detect. No anti-cheat software is fool-proof, which is why the best form of cheat detection is always AC software backed up by active policing of a server by responsible admins. Your system does not allow for this.
In conclusion: Your decisions will have two very serious effects that none of your explanations deal with.
By removing the option to mod the game, you are removing one of the main advantages PC gaming has over console games. As PC gamers we do enjoy the option to play mods for games and indeed some of the best playing experiences I have ever had are with mods (that tweak the games to deal with flaws or limitations left by the developers), or total conversions that completely change the feel of the game and often give it a new and extended lease of life. Counter-strike, Day of Defeat, Team Fortress, Forgotten Hope, Desert Combat; these are all seriously good mods that apart from anything else, kept the games being played (and purchased) long after the original game became stale Most of them are still being played in one form or other now, many years after the original game was released. This means extended life and popularity for the game and extended sales.
One of the other main advantages PC games have over console games is the community support. Not just clans, but entire communities of gamers thrive based upon players being able to visit and revisit regular, trusted servers. I am a member of a friendly clan that play together for fun. We don’t take part in leagues and cannot be considered "hardcore". We came together playing Battlefield 1942 because of like-minded players playing on a specific dedicated server on a regular basis. We knew the server, we knew the admins and we knew the other players. We wouldn't exist under your system and neither would any other clan or community.
Your decision means that existing clans will only be able to manage a second-rate version of what they were able to do under the original MW and that forming new clans or communities will be virtually impossible.
The comment that “We’re just prioritizing the player experience above the modders and the tuners… we thought maybe it would be cool if the fans could play the game.” is grossly misleading and inconceivably flawed. What you are actually doing is catering solely to the player experience of casual gamers by extinguishing the online communities, clans and modders altogether .
ronin - yes, it is the same guy.
Excellent response.
And I also agree they are basically doing it for DLC so people have to pay.
If this was any other game people simply wouldn't buy it. but because the franchise has become so popular and so large that it became an almost certainty for the fans that they were going to buy it. Now it turns out that it's not a package that they want, instead of reacting with the rationale of not buying they freaked out.
No matter what details they reveal about the match-making, their only hope of turning people is for them to actually experience it. I still think they could try to incorporate both dedicated servers and match-making side by side.
imagine if there was new annoucement that detailed no support for a mouse, lol, the internetz might just straight up explode.
So if you are one of the PC players out there that enjoy going to LAN Party's like the I-Series, you are going to have to put up connecting to the network and having non-LAN pings. May as well stay at home then(apart from the social aspect of these of course) No more 0 pings
So if you are one of the PC players out there that enjoy going to LAN Party's like the I-Series, you are going to have to put up connecting to the network and having non-LAN pings. May as well stay at home then(apart from the social aspect of these of course) No more 0 pings
Disappointing news from IW. They still seem intent on delivering a peer to peer server system. Have they not seen another 20,000 signatures appear on the petition in 24 hours, probably more now?
A shame as I was somewhat looking forward to this game but I am not forking out for something which will limit my multiplayer game fun.
Hell why not listen to the community IW! If we didn't lke browsing through server lists or enjoy people hacking then we wouldn't be PC Gamers! They need to sort their acts out and I suggest a big start by invading their forums and spamming their emails
Address issues similar to, but not exactly the ones brought up: check.
Characterise critics as making assumptions and being uninformed: check.
Over-sell your crap as a solution to a problem no one was previously aware of, citing evidence you haven't made fully public and opened up to examination: check.
Do NOT drop any hints that you may have been aware of hundreds of better solutions to such a problem that do not involve p**sing people off: check.
So basically, it's the L4D2 Boycott thing all over again only this time it's some of the hammer-legion getting kicked in the teeth the same way they were doing it to the L4D2 Boycott. Poetic justice.
The weirdest part for me is that DICE are saying BF:BC2 will have dedi servers and mod support.
If someone told me 2/3 yrs ago that I may very well be running back into the arms of DICE and spitting at IW, I would have said they were loco.
Oh well time to sell my soul to the devil I suppose. Actually bad analogy. More like trading my soul from one devil to another with better benefits and a nice room in EA hell. Lucky I like a dry heat.
Right i've had a good old think about this and i'm gonna take the high road and give IW the benefit of the doubt on this whole IW.net hoopla.
Still won't buy it on first day though. If IW.net turns out to be the second coming (as IW is promoting it) and it's a stable, well run and relatively lag free affair, then i'm in. I'll give it till about Feb and check how many people are still playing by then, and may even be tempted to pay full price. If by then they have also announced a free DLC, then that will help. If you have to pay, then it's a no thanks.
If I do get it, and I want the whole community aspect, then i'll just pop back to CoD4 and WaW for a while.
See us PC gamers can be level headed, just the same as you mature consolers
IW belongs to Activision. One of the main differences between console and pc gaming community is the fact that pc gamers are able to make mods and maps. For free for other players. Activision and IW want money from these mods and maps, but they will never get anything in this system. So, what can they do to make pc gamers pay even more? Cut their free mods and maps. Make the pc gamers be able to play only their own maps and mods. As dlc, but not for free. PC gamers will have to pay just like console gamers. But they can't make this happen with any game, they need a big game/franchise like COD, one that's sure to make people buy it and BAM, there it goes. From there on they'll make more and more games with this system of dlc. But if they want to sell you s**t, they have to hide it in a nice, shiny package. "This matchmaking system is GOOD for you! (Because you are stupid and don't know what's good.)" And take the pc community back in time on a trip to a dead past.
They don't give a s**t about community. They don't care that a lot games were successful thanks to mods. Valve wouldn't be where it is if they didn't allow mods for the original Half-Life *cough*Counter-Strike*cough* and they know it. But Activision doesn't give a s**t.
Well in that case f**k them. The only thing pc gamers can do is move their money to their rival, not pirate it because that'd only make them continue with the pirate bulls**t, but give those money to their rivals. Valve, or EA. I'm really starting to like EA lately. At least it's obvious they are trying to fix their image, Something I wouldn't even dream of saying a year ago.
and to all those people who say they wont buy it now - bulls**t, this will be the game of the year and when the reviews flood in and everyone is talking about it, you WILL buy it
You are all only upset as now you have to buy the game rather than illegally downloading it!
Get over yourselves, its going to be an amazing game, and IWNET does not prevent you from playing it.
heh you have no idea what you are talking about, do you? http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=225744
People who are upset most about this are those who bought COD4 for multiplayer and those who planned to buy MW2 for multiplayer, clans, progamers, modders, etc. People who are only interested in single player will download MW2 illegally anyway. Same thing happened with COD4. Those who wanted to play online, bought it. Those who didn't care about online either downloaded a pirate version or bought it anyway. Online and multiplayer is what makes people buy games on the PC. You should make some research next time and don't believe everything publishers like Activision tell you.
You are all only upset as now you have to buy the game rather than illegally downloading it!
Get over yourselves, its going to be an amazing game, and IWNET does not prevent you from playing it.
No, no, no, no, no! Stop portraying us PC gamers as scummy pirates that never pays for a game. This kind of perception of us really p**ses me off!
It is a generalisation so that original comment was a bit south of the belt. But you have to admit, there is a far far higher proportion of regular game pirates on the PC than consoles. It's just because it's so easy to do.
But on-topic, I'm going to reverse my opinion on this matter and say that maybe IW should be developing dedicated servers. When I think back to the days when I used to play CS a lot, having a server you knew was a bit like having a good local watering hole. You rock up and there's bound to be someone you've met before, and new people can come along and join in with the old 'uns - it's not the a sense of community you can replicate with matchmaking.
I guess I forgot my roots a little bit. Still prefer the 360 controller to m&k though
I give it, what... 10 maybe 15 minutes after release for this to have been cracked, uploaded to the torrents, patched to strip IWNET and dedicated server support re-establised.
You are all only upset as now you have to buy the game rather than illegally downloading it!
Get over yourselves, its going to be an amazing game, and IWNET does not prevent you from playing it.
No, no, no, no, no! Stop portraying us PC gamers as scummy pirates that never pays for a game. This kind of perception of us really p**ses me off!
It is a generalisation so that original comment was a bit south of the belt. But you have to admit, there is a far far higher proportion of regular game pirates on the PC than consoles. It's just because it's so easy to do.
But on-topic, I'm going to reverse my opinion on this matter and say that maybe IW should be developing dedicated servers. When I think back to the days when I used to play CS a lot, having a server you knew was a bit like having a good local watering hole. You rock up and there's bound to be someone you've met before, and new people can come along and join in with the old 'uns - it's not the a sense of community you can replicate with matchmaking.
I guess I forgot my roots a little bit. Still prefer the 360 controller to m&k though
Yeah, I understand what you mean. I guess PC owners will probably be a bit more computer savvy and be able to gain access to resources that would otherwise not be readilly available.
Back in the day when I started playing quakeworld and quake 2 on Wireplay. There really was a sense of community. The clan scene and the fact we knew each other etc. I used to create a dedicated server on our network at home and I would play some duels with my bro. We also had friends around where we all set up our PC's to my network and we had a home LAN party, get the quake 2 servers fired up and spend the weekend drinking lots of alcoholic beverages and playing until the early hours. That was great times... . Man! that was back in 97/98!
And shadyMyPatch... That thought also occured to me. I bet a third party dedicated server will be set up... People can always get round these problems
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