playing games on LAN

[Owl]

I'm wondering if anyone would be interested in playing any games on LAN.

Me and Kit are sorta setting stuff up but I'm wondering if anyone else is interested. I'm mostly interested in first person shooters and RTS games. Especially older ones.

Stuff online is good too naturally.

[Kithop]

I'm actually slowly building up a bit of a setup here at my place out in Mission with the potential for LAN parties.  Behold (if the img tag works)!

https://www.kithop.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/wp-1459480371495.jpg

https://www.kithop.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/wp-1459480390221.jpg

I've even got a pair of rackmount dedicated servers in my basement, and some beefy networking gear:

• Internet Feed: TekSavvy tDSL 25Mbps / 5Mbps Unlimited
• Router: Ubiquiti EdgeRouter PoE 5
• Switch: Ubiquiti EdgeSwitch 48-port 500W PoE
• Wireless: Ubiquiti UniFi AC
• 1U Primary Server: AMD Opteron 6274 (16-core @ 2.2GHz), 128GB RAM (yes!), 2 x 120GB SSD + 4 x 6TB HDD storage, bonded dual Gigabit NICs, FreeBSD w/ Ubuntu & Win2K8 VMs
• 1U Secondary Server: Intel Xeon E5530 (4-core @ 2.4GHz), 30GB RAM, 2 x 250GB SSDs, FreeBSD
• Gaming Desktop: Intel i7-4790K, 32GB RAM, nVidia GeForce GTX 980, 1TB SSD (Ubuntu), 250GB SSD (Win7)

I've been a SysAdmin by trade, so I'm more than dangerous with this stuff. ;P  I have yet to run proper Ethernet cabling in my walls (but it's planned!), though for now I've got a handful of long, hand-crimped Cat6 runs to the 'party room', as it were.

I've also got a bunch of dedicated servers running on the primary, either actively running or can be fired up:

• Various Minecraft modpacks (mostly FTB flavours + vanilla)
• Starbound
• Space Engineers
• Empyrion - Galactic Survival
• ARK - Survival Evolved
• Factorio

Plus a Mumble instance for voice chat.

I usually stick to games that I can run natively under Linux (94/184 of my Steam library), so really it's a matter of finding out what people want to play and organizing it all.

[Kit]

im down for sure! I can Host here in Surrey, and can travel to Mission, looks like we got solid 3 people so far

and I have a good friend that's not a furry but loves to game and LAN he could be in as well if we need spots filled
he lives in abby

[Kithop]

I'm actually just starting the process to upgraded to a bonded line (i.e. 2 x 25/5 for a 50/10), since TekSavvy here is demoing it and wants beta testers. Will be at least a few weeks to get going, but that'll help for any internet stuff (especially upstream!).

One of the other things I'd love to get into is more livestreaming, particularly if we do a LAN in-person.  Courtesy of all the studio stuff I have in my basement, I've got access to plenty of professional microphones and a 32-channel digital mixer - 5Mbps isn't bad for streaming, but 10Mbps would be plenty for a solid 1080p60.  Just a matter of mastering OBS and things.

Couple examples:
ATS with wheel + pedals (solo): https://youtu.be/0HQoyNv-cu8
Empyrion (2 player co-op online): https://youtu.be/GIY7cPL3Hlc
Modded Minecraft (3 player co-op online): https://youtu.be/uFaYyjQ_PLE

Feel free to add me on Steam or check out what I've got access to, game-wise already: http://steamcommunity.com/id/Kithop

[Kithop]

I've created a Google Doc with a list of games and some of the info from this thread:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Qesj9MxCvNzYX29e3bDZ_75aSoFwyCEOWgcP6rC8m1g/edit?usp=sharing

Feel free to PM me your Google account address if you'd like edit rights to make suggestions.

I'm fine with hosting a LAN party at my place, as long as people are able to get out here to Mission, but there's a bit of planning involved around what games people would want to play, making sure we've got everything we need - I'm thinking of getting another couple computer chairs, and potentially another box of network cable to crimp a couple more hardline connections to the room, for example.  Also stuff like crash space.

Victoria Day long weekend next month might be a good early one to aim for, for example (Fri May 21st - Mon May 23rd) https://www.labour.gov.bc.ca/esb/facshts/stats.htm

Some of these games may have server components to them - if there's at least a Linux dedicated server, I should be able to get something up and running there to use fairly simply (though I can host Windows-only ones in a pinch).

I've also figured out a really fun and easy way of chaining instances of Open Broadcaster Software (OBS) together through my laptop to use as a livestream video mixer.  As long as someone (probably me) can reach over to switch scenes with some hotkeys, we can potentially record & livestream the games we play to e.g. Twitch/Hitbox/YouTube, complete with split-screen, picture-in-picture, overlays, whatever we want. :)  (Technical details: Each gaming PC streams directly to an RTMP server on the laptop, the laptop then reads all those streams simultaneously into its own copy of OBS.  I got this set up in < 1 hr, and it's trivial to point everyone's own OBS copy to the laptop.)  Especially if my line upgrade tomorrow goes as planned, I should have a solid 10Mbps+ of upstream bandwidth at my disposal, making 1080p60 streaming at reasonable bitrates totally viable.

Long long term, this means it's totally doable to do things like host tournaments / ladders, or just be silly and stream some good old fashioned co-op stuff for fun.

All we need is people!  So, who else would be interested?

[Owl]

I updated the Google Doc with some of my own recommendations

[Kit]

SHEESH Kith that spread sheet puts me to shame!

[ItsJustBear]

I'm always up for some gaming!

[Kithop]

Well, my internet is supposed to be hooked up again properly (this time at 50/10) this Thursday, so I can dig into this a bit better than using a 3G hotspot like I have been doing all week...

That said, Zen suggested once we have a good list of games and people interested, that we set up something like a Strawpoll (e.g. with multiple choices allowed), to narrow down to a reasonable sized list of what games everyone has and is interested in playing.  Again, if you guys have any suggestions or additions to that document, you can request access through Google Docs or PM me your Gmail / Google account address and I'll add you with edit rights to make changes.

If everyone has transport, I'm totally willing to host this at my place - I've got two servers in my basement, a 4-way quad desk arrangement, provisions for livestreaming, and a decent amount of crash space at my house.  But you really do need wheels, unless you already live in the valley, transit is not fun.  Maybe from Abbotsford or Maple Ridge (is there a bus that runs east on Hwy 7?) at best.

Still thinking of the Victoria Day long weekend as the first potential run, here - what do you all think of that timing?  Basically about a month from now.

[Jay]

I soooooooo want to be a part of this! As long as Lance is up for it, as he's my driver, then I'm available any weekend. Victoria Day long weekend would be great! My games library is extensive, but still lacks many of the titles listed in your document. I am willing to buy games if we are certain that it will be played. I do have a few questions / comments though...

1) Lance and I are both using Windows. Is that going to be a problem?

2) A few games I would suggest are Dungeon Siege, Diablo II, and Unreal Tournament. Old games are best games. Figured that I didn't need editing permissions on that document just to suggest a couple games.

3) Unfortunately, Lance doesn't have anything high-end or new as far as computers go, so anything that he could play would need to have low requirements. He can run anything released in 2008 or earlier, or simpler titles. He's okay with just watching for some of the time, but not ALL the time.

That's all I can think of at the moment. I sent you a friend request on steam, Kithop. Hope to be able to play with you soon.!

[Owl]

Well, my internet is supposed to be hooked up again properly (this time at 50/10) this Thursday, so I can dig into this a bit better than using a 3G hotspot like I have been doing all week...

That said, Zen suggested once we have a good list of games and people interested, that we set up something like a Strawpoll (e.g. with multiple choices allowed), to narrow down to a reasonable sized list of what games everyone has and is interested in playing.  Again, if you guys have any suggestions or additions to that document, you can request access through Google Docs or PM me your Gmail / Google account address and I'll add you with edit rights to make changes.

If everyone has transport, I'm totally willing to host this at my place - I've got two servers in my basement, a 4-way quad desk arrangement, provisions for livestreaming, and a decent amount of crash space at my house.  But you really do need wheels, unless you already live in the valley, transit is not fun.  Maybe from Abbotsford or Maple Ridge (is there a bus that runs east on Hwy 7?) at best.

Still thinking of the Victoria Day long weekend as the first potential run, here - what do you all think of that timing?  Basically about a month from now.

Thursday I'm iffy on. I should be good for Victoria day long weekend. I'm good on transport.

[Kithop]

1) Lance and I are both using Windows. Is that going to be a problem?

Nope! Pretty much all of the games I have for Linux are cross-platform, so Windows/Mac/Linux.  I do also have a Windows drive to boot into for the odd Windows-only game if necessary.

2) A few games I would suggest are Dungeon Siege, Diablo II, and Unreal Tournament. Old games are best games. Figured that I didn't need editing permissions on that document just to suggest a couple games.

Added the first two; the latter I implied with Doom/Quake/Unreal/etc., but yeah, point taken - there's a bunch of those.

3) Unfortunately, Lance doesn't have anything high-end or new as far as computers go, so anything that he could play would need to have low requirements. He can run anything released in 2008 or earlier, or simpler titles. He's okay with just watching for some of the time, but not ALL the time.

Totally fine - we don't need to be playing bleeding edge latest-and-greatest here, and people might be wanting to bring laptops to make it easier.

Also, re: Thursday, that was just me saying when I was supposed to get hooked up, and I did. :D I'm back online finally with 50/10 service, after almost a week with no internet at home save for my cell phone.  I'm nowhere near ready to host just yet, which is why I said Victoria Day long weekend at the absolute earliest.  I really have a lot of cleaning and prep work to do...

I think I accepted everyone's Steam invites, though I'm off to bed shortly as I have to be up at 4:30 tomorrow for work.  I don't mind granting write access to the doc, too, just PM me your e-mail address / Google account, or I think there's a way to request it if you're signed in when you're reading it.

One thing to note, same as when I hosted a furmeet a few months back - I'm still recovering from a hospital stay late last year; I like to think I'm a good 75% better at this point, but I'm not able to exert myself physically too much, so I might need a hand here and there if heavy stuff needs moving around to make room as we go.  Just a fair warning that I might rope you into physical labour to make this happen. ;p

[Kit]

my work schedule changes often, but saturday nights are always good for me, should we start a facebook group or something so we can all communicate easier? or a text circle or w/e lol

pm me for my cell number or something

[Jay]

Yay! All good news! (From Kithop at least, heh)

I thought I saw Unreal on the list already, but when I did a quick search for it I totally skipped it. One other suggestion is Killing Floor, either 1 or 2. It's a wonderful cooperative arena shooter, which I tend to prefer over competitive. It started as a UT 2004 mod and is advertised as a co-op survival horror, but it's really more action than anything.

After looking at what games actually came out in 2008, I realized Lance could probably run anything from 2010 or older. For instance, he can run Starcraft 2, albeit at reduced settings.

Also, Lance and I would be more than happy to help with heavy lifting! I work in metal fabrication, and he's a damn strong little skunk.

my work schedule changes often, but saturday nights are always good for me, should we start a facebook group or something so we can all communicate easier? or a text circle or w/e lol

pm me for my cell number or something

Lance and I avoid Facebook, but do have Telegram or could text.

[Kit]

TELEGRAM work for you Kith and Owl?