I’m planning to build a real-time multiplayer web game using JavaScript for both the front and back end. The game will support up to 20 players per room. I’ve got a few ideas but I’m not sure if they’re the best approach:
To deal with latency, I’m thinking of tracking each player’s ping time and using the slowest one as a baseline. Then I’d tell other clients how much to delay their actions to keep everyone in sync.
I want to run the game logic on both the server and client side. This should make the game feel smooth, with occasional corrections from the server to keep things accurate. It might also help prevent cheating.
For gameplay, I’m considering having the server receive player actions, broadcast them to other clients, and periodically send out full game state updates to keep everyone synced.
Does this sound like a good plan? Are there other things I should be thinking about for a multiplayer web game? Any tips or advice would be really helpful!
Also, if anyone knows of good resources on multiplayer game development, I’d love to check them out. Thanks!
hey ava, sounds like u got a good start! couple thoughts: consider using websockets for real-time comms, its way faster than http, try interpolation/extrapolation for smoother movement, and add basic anti-cheat on server. good luck with ur project, lmk if u need more tips
Those are some interesting ideas, Ava! have u thought about using a game engine like Phaser or Three.js? They can handle a lot of the multiplayer stuff for you. Also, what kind of game are you making? The best approach might depend on the genre. Have you considered how you’ll handle disconnects and reconnects?
Your approach seems well-thought-out, Ava. Regarding latency management, consider implementing client-side prediction and server reconciliation. This can significantly improve the perceived responsiveness of your game. For the game logic, running it on both client and server is a solid strategy, often referred to as an “authoritative server” model. It’s crucial for preventing cheating and maintaining game integrity.
I’d recommend looking into optimized data serialization methods for your state updates to minimize bandwidth usage. Libraries like ProtoBuf or FlatBuffers can be beneficial here. Also, consider implementing a rollback netcode system for handling high-latency situations more gracefully.
For resources, I’d suggest checking out Gabriel Gambetta’s ‘Fast-Paced Multiplayer’ article series and the GDC talks on multiplayer game development. They offer valuable insights into the challenges and solutions in this domain.