Chapter 3: How does the Internet Play?
This chapter is designed to illustrate the many ways to use the Internet as a tool to fulfill all your gaming needs. There are literally thousands of resources whether your preference is to download games to play off your hard drive, play real-time games online (single or multiplayer), or to get information to assist you (or add to) your existing games. Strap yourself in as we have a lot of ground to cover first, before we start on our digital journey...
Archived Sites and Resources
The most common means of gaming on the Internet is to find the game you are looking for and download it to play off your hard drive. At this point in time your internal hard drive, or hard disk which stores the data, is faster than your modem connection through a server. For this reason alone it is beneficial to copy the game first to your own computer. Another purpose of doing this is to eliminate the time you are online for the obvious cost concerns, notwithstanding the amount of Internet traffic we would all experience if we just played our games in real time off the Net. The games that we download are not full commercial releases but are shareware, freeware and game demos.
Based on the honor system, shareware games are free to play and distribute, providing the gamer with a unique opportunity to "try before you buy." However, a small donation to the author is expected if continually used (information on how to contribute is usually stored in the readme.txt or order.txt file." Freeware, although some consider it to be the same thing, has taken on a slightly different meaning over the past few years. Freeware are games that are free to play and a fee is not necessary (but most often welcome, of course); and they are usually made by independent authors willing to give out their work for recognition. Most often freeware derives from college or university students designing games as a hobby or to gain programming experience. Game demos are similar to shareware in the sense that they may only contain part of the full game and are expected to give you a taste of what the gist of game is all about. No donation or fee is required-these companies are banking on you getting hooked on their games so you will go out and pick up the full copy. (For example, seven levels are free to download although 35 levels are found in the full version of the game). Once downloaded these can either be single-player or multiplayer games (networked or modem-to-modem play but not on the Internet), but the key is you have to play it off your hard drive.
There are thousands of places online that house these shareware, freeware, and game demos-they are most often found in FTP archives or on the World Wide Web.
FTP or File Transfer Protocol Sites
File Transfer Protocol is just what it sounds like-a common way of moving files across the Internet. By logging onto an FTP site you can send or retrieve files. These publicly accessible repositories of material are known as "anonymous FTP servers" as you ID anonymously as a temporary visitor on their computer. FTPs contain vast indices and gaming manufacturers often make their product demos accessible to the public by having them stored on these FTP sites ready for download. For example, the Electronic Arts (EA) FTP server is ftp://ftp.ea.com/ where the EA games are available with a mouse-click in the Demos section.
(FTP site for Electronic Arts)Other prevalent FTP sites are huge archived lists; such as ftp://ftp.cdrom.com (72GB of hard drive space on their system!), or ftp://ftp.sunet.se (Swedish University Network) where thousands of games from different companies are obtainable. The World Wide Web is fast becoming a common front door for these FTP sites so you may not need to visit a raw FTP site often.
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web (WWW) exploded over the past few years as an exciting hypertext server application by which through browsers we access text, sound, and images. Instead of plain text as on FTP sites, the WWW browser uses a user-friendly graphical interface to help you navigate through the Internet easily, with big colorful clickable buttons.
(Example of a Web page-King Link & Games)The majority of games covered in this book are available on the World Wide Web. These Web site addresses, or URLs (Uniform Resource Locator), house these games on their server for download, or their page is a graphical front door to a FTP archive. There are three main types of Web sites to get games: gaming manufacturer Web sites, personal or fan-related pages, and larger independent mega-sites.
Gaming company Web sites are either the developer or publishers of a computer game you are interested in playing such as Interplay http://www.interplay.com/ or 7th Level http://www.7thlevel.com/.
(Interplay)
Personal home pages or fan-related sites are usually specialized into genres of games or one game in particular, such as Grendel's Gaming Lair (http://www.grendelslair.com/), or Tom's Doom Page as a tribute to the game Doom (http://www.cs.tulane.edu/ww w/Ward/doom.html).
(Tom's Doom Page)These sites are made by everyday people of all ages that would like to share their gaming interests with the online world. The game-related Web sites that receive the most hits (number of people to visit the page) are definitely the huge sites that house thousands of shareware and demo games under one "roof" such as Happy Puppy (http://www.happypuppy.com/) and Games Domain (http://www.gamesdomain.com/).
These mega Web pages can afford to offer such services because they are supported by advertisements and some sites may embody an online store to purchase games by mail.
Besides downloading games, all of these Web sites discussed also contain useful gaming news, strategy tips and hints, patches (an update that fixes bugs in a computer game), Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), add-on levels, chat groups, and discussion forums.
Online Gaming: Single-Player, Head-to-Head or Multiplayer Games
Another way to enjoy games on the Internet is to actually play online in real time. Single-player or multiplayer games are available in many formats on the Net which do not require you to download the game first.
Single Player Real-Time Games
Real-time online games on the World Wide Web are fun and convenient because there is little or no waiting involved. More and more Web sites are featuring games to play while you are there, but keep in mind they are considerably slower and probably less-detailed than the games you would be playing off your hard drive.
Refreshed Frames
In your Web travels you will come across some game pages that allow you to play games online in real time by using refreshed frames-the Web site reloads the screen to a new related page based on your clicked or typed decision. Sites such as the Net Noose game of hangman (http://www.netscape.com/people/nathan/netnoose/index.html), the 80s server's Who Can It be Now? musical trivia game (http://www.80s.com/who.html), or the Cindy Crawford Concentration game are perfect examples (http://www.Facade.com/Fun/concentration/).
(Net Noose Game)
(Cindy Crawford Concentration)There are, of course, more in-depth free epic-like role-playing game pages that you can play in real time as well, such as CyberDungeon: The Game (http://www.cyberdungeon.com/ game/game.html) and S.P.Q.R. (http://pathfinder.com/@@ThtPtAcAPgvo5BTO/twep/rome/#cont).
Plug-Ins
Plug-ins are exciting new additions for World Wide Web browsers-namely Netscape's Navigator and Microsoft's Internet Explorer. Unlike refreshed-frames, you can now experience games with real-time interactive animation and sound. These plug-ins or browser add-ons such as Sun Microsystem's Java, Macromedia's Shockwave, and FutureWave's FutureSplash are available for free on the Net or may already come equipped with your newest browser version. For example, WebFrog, a Frogger clone, can be played at The Internet Arcade (http://www.rocketsci.com/interarc.html), or try your luck with Broderbund's Mudball Wall (http://www.broderbund.com/studio/activemind/mudball.html).
(Shockwave WebFrog game)
(Shockwave Mudball Wall game)Needless to say, these plug-ins have brought real-time gaming on the Web to new levels and examples of great Java applets/scripts and Shockwave games will be given throughout this book.
Multiplayer Real-Time Games
If solo play isn't your thing or artificial intelligence just doesn't challenge you enough, then take advantage of the Internet's awesome head-to-head or multiplayer games. There are many types to play and most have their own chapter later in this book, but here is a brief overview of multiple-user dungeons (MUDs, and MUSHs, MOOs, MUXs, MUSEs), Commercial Online Services, Game Networks, and other real-time multiplayer games.
Multiple-User Dungeons/Dimension/Dialogue (MUDs)
These real-time multiplayer Role-Playing games embrace the gamer in combat, strategy, and adventure scenarios with many others around the world. Most often these games are text-based and an online avatar or alias (a virtual representation of you), explores a huge world involving a large cast of characters and puzzles. These are the oldest (and probably still the most popular) games played on the Internet as there are thousands of variations of MUD-type games. The best place to start is a MUD Index-a list of what's out there on the Net, such as The MUD Catalogue of Catalogues (http://www.educ.kent.edu/mu/catofcat.html), MUD Links (http://shsibm.shh.fi/mud/muds.html), or The MUD Connector (http://www.mudconnect.com/).
See Chapter 12 for more information about these games.
Commercial Online Services
Before the WWW's "Big Bang," major online services offered gamers text-based and graphical head-to-head games, and still remain strong despite the fierce competition from the Web. Well-known online pay services (which are really just big bulletin boards) have fairly good multiplayer games: America Online (AOL), The ImagiNation Network (INN), Prodigy, CompuServe, and especially Genie (with over 25 multiplayer games). These commercial online services carry an exclusive line of games and charge roughly $10.00 a month for five free hours and $3.00 per extra hour to be part of their online community. See Chapter 13 for more information.
Entertainment has always been a priority for these companies, but recently they have been having problems keeping up with the new generation of online networks using the Internet as a platform for multiplayer computer games.
Game Networks
Enter the newest and best thing to hit the Internet for gamers since the onset of the World Wide Web-online dial-up networks allowing you to play your favorite CD-ROMs against anyone, anywhere. Companies such as DWANGO, TEN (The Entertainment Network), XBAND PC, and M-Player GameWay are paving the way for head-to-head or multiplayer gaming as if you were playing through a networked or basic modem connection. By downloading their software first at their Web site (or may be bundled with newer store-bought CD-ROMs) the gamer can play titles such as Quake, Duke Nukem 3D, Command & Conquer, and Warcraft II in a fast real-time environment.
As this book goes to press these gaming networks are offering free software and access for now, but they do mention prices are soon to be announced. Game companies such as Blizzard Entertainment (developers of Diablo and the Warcraft series) have also begun to start their own multiplayer pages for their games. "Battle.net" is Blizzard's free gaming arena where all you need is your usual TCP/IP access Internet account.
See Chapter 13 for more information about these sites and other free Internet gaming networks, such as Kali and IHHD, where you can use your current Internet account and existing CD-ROM games.
Other Multiplayer Games
As in the single-player section, there are also refreshed-screen Web pages that offer live real-time multiplayer games. One such popular site is The Bingo Zone (http://www.bingozone.com/).
(The Bingo Zone)A new ball is shown every 20 seconds as you compete worldwide for cash prizes but you have to click to reload the screen when ready. Another example of a refreshed real-time multiplayer game is Legends of Kesmai-an interactive graphical SVGA role-playing game (http://www.kesmai.com/).
E-mail Games and Non-Computer Games
A small but dedicated group of gamers enjoy non real- time e-mail games or play-by-mail games (PBMs). People have been playing Diplomacy since the 1960s via snail mail but the onset of the Internet has made e-mail games not only faster, but more convenient and more exciting. These include various role-playing and Dungeons and Dragons games, mysteries, online scavenger hunts, wargames, trivia, and other strategy games such as Chess. See http://www.pbm.com/~lindahl/pbem_magazine.html and http://www.pbm.com/~lindahl/rg p.faq.html for your various choices. Chapter 11 will also provide more information and a deeper look into these types of games for all parties interested.
Let's not forget that the Internet can also be used to aid in other electronic gaming endeavors such as TV console video gaming systems (Nintendo, Sega, Sony PlayStation) and arcade and pinball games. Non-electronic amusements such as sports, card, tile, and board games can also benefit from the information attainable online. Many strategy guides, FAQs, and specific posting forums (newsgroups) are located on the Net and offer specialized interactive information on your favorite pastime.
(newsgroups)For example, do you need the fighting codes to beat Sega Saturn's Virtua Fighter 2? Then visit The Virtual Times International WWW site at http://virtualtimes.com/vidgames/satvlfr.htm. Not having much luck at your weekly poker game with your buddies? Then roll on down to RTG Online at http://www.RGTonline.com/ for some useful tips. Do you want to see who may own a nostalgic pinball game you have always wanted to buy for your basement? Then zap to the rec.games.pinball newsgroup and post your request. Get the picture? The Internet can be used in so many ways to satisfy all your single-player or multiplayer gaming needs. We are now ready to dive into thousands of exciting gaming sites on the Net outlined and categorized for you in the pages to follow. Don't forget-if you like what you see at a particular Web page, save it as a "favorite" or "bookmark" it for future visits. Enjoy your online expedition, and happy surfing!
