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Rage may ditch dedicated servers too News

PC News by Tom Bramwell

6 November, 2009

id Software tech supremo John Carmack has said that Rage may follow Modern Warfare 2's lead by ditching dedicated server support on the PC.

"It's not cast in stone yet, but at this point no, we don't think we will have dedicated servers," he told Variety.

"The great thing is we won't have to be a pioneer on that," he added. "We'll see how it works out for everyone else."

At the moment it's not working out super-brilliantly for Activision and Infinity Ward in PR terms. The decision to ditch dedicated servers saw PC gamers petitioning the duo to reconsider (184,000 signatures and counting).

Activision is sticking to its guns, however, with president Mike Griffith defending the decision in yesterday's earnings call.

Elsewhere in Rage news, Carmack told Variety that a 2010 release for the PC, Mac, PS3 and Xbox 360 shooter/racer was "looking realistic". Whatever happened to "when it's done"?

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Comments: 1-38 of 38 in total

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M4RV
06/11/09 @ 09:57
#1
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Woww... Didn't really see that coming.

[/irony]

Follow the leader, bitches...!!! Another blow to the superior ultra epic master race and no, I am not happy with that.
Edited 3 times, most recently on 06/11/09 @ 09:58
menage
06/11/09 @ 09:58
#2
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Id used to be the leader, go figure.
20charactersmax
06/11/09 @ 09:59
#3
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They haven't made a good game since Quake 3 anyway.
M4RV
06/11/09 @ 10:01
#4
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I was actually under the impression that "Doom 3" was a great game, when it was first released... Not groundbreaking, but great nonetheless.
Meho
06/11/09 @ 10:03
#5
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Et tu, Brutus???
Mogs
06/11/09 @ 10:04
#6
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What happened to you iD? You used to be someone I could trust.

Cooked up some bullshit story and dropped PC gamers into the meat grinder!
MrMarc
06/11/09 @ 10:08
#7
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Mogs wins the thread.

iD, you son of a bitch! What's the matter?! Activision got you pushing too many PENCILS!
M4RV
06/11/09 @ 10:11
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Everyone loves "The Predator" apparently...
Schiraman
06/11/09 @ 10:15
#9
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Worrying.

Hope they change their mind before it comes out, as I certainly won't be buying it otherwise.
Nukemasta
06/11/09 @ 10:19
#10
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RUUUUUUUUN GET TO DA CHOPA! always brings a laugh on the l4d no mercy campaign
steviepunk
06/11/09 @ 10:20
#11
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"They haven't made a good game since Quake 3 anyway. "
Haven't they only released 1 game since Quake 3?

Guess it's all goig to depend on what multiplayer involves. If it's just drop in/drop out style coop then dedicated servers would not be required. However if there is any form of death match or stand alone multiplayer rounds, then a dedicated server should be a must
Bremenacht
06/11/09 @ 10:29
#12
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No-one wants to pay for servers anymore.

Activision guy says that having no servers "improves that consumer experience overall by a significant margin"

So that's alright then.
VicViper
06/11/09 @ 10:31
#13
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well... When it rains it pours in PC land.
hiddenranbir
06/11/09 @ 10:56
#14
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Rage will be shit anyway.
mkreku
06/11/09 @ 11:01
#15
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Hmm, this doesn't bother me as much. I would not buy Rage for the multiplayer anyhow. It looks like an interesting single player game though.
redneon
06/11/09 @ 11:46
#16
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The vast majority of games are peer-to-peer these days, anyway. Granted, that's because of the shift to consoles as the primary network platform but it's the reason there's no need for dedicated servers anymore.
Skurmedel
06/11/09 @ 12:09
#17
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Noooooo!
OnyxLilninja
06/11/09 @ 12:14
#18
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what. the. fuck. ? Carmack is a tech genius, if anyone could pull off a working, low latency p2p system it would be him. But but but... jesus (carmack is jesus) surely he understands that there is more to the issue than just technology. We NEED dedicated servers so communities can form in a server, so that you know you can go somewhere well moderated and build up relationships with the other players. That's just impossible with matchmaking, you get left with a series of shallow fleeting encounters with strangers. Console players will never understand that as all they know is the shallow experience.

This is the stupidification of gaming in the pursuit of profits from the legions of casual gamers. Core gamers that supported and created these companies are being ass-fucked and left behind. All bow down to your new Wii Fit playing overlords.
smoison
06/11/09 @ 12:41
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So ID confirms RAGE is a consol game being ported to PC and will probably be mostly single player.

Ringot
06/11/09 @ 13:00
#20
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Yeah isn't this going to be a largely single player rpg type thing anyway with co-op thrown in rather than levels of corridors gubbins?
notmyrealname
06/11/09 @ 13:27
#21
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Errr I'm a total noob at this... but doesn't dedicated server code also means that the game is unplayable (unmodded at least) online when those servers (which are from the dev) get closed? Or is dedicated server interwebslang for people using their own servers?

ISn't that a BIG argument against dedicated servers? I can't imagine the horror of ET QW closing down for pc...

please explain if I'm wrong here.
Edited 1 times, most recently on 06/11/09 @ 13:29
MrMarc
06/11/09 @ 13:39
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@notmyrealname, it's pretty much the latter of what you said.

It's why the likes of Quake 3 are still alive these days long after the game is no longer supported by iD.
notmyrealname
06/11/09 @ 13:44
#23
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Ouch! ID then.. not .. ... but they invented... Doom.. pc gaming... fps... they... no... servers?

/does not understand and cries softly
Synthesis
06/11/09 @ 14:22
#24
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id are wise, but they also need to make money, they'll do whatever works well and makes the most money.

Rage is more of a console friendly game than anything they've ever produced before anyway, it's nothing like Quake or Doom - games that were designed and built for the PC exclusively.
DaemonSpawn
06/11/09 @ 14:27
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I will buy it anyway, because Rage isn't for multiplayer as far as I can see from previews. And for those who tell about no good games from id since Quake 3 - DOOM 3 is one of my favourite shooters. It's atmospheric, it looks and sounds great, design is perfect and polish is unmatched. So my next PC will be assembled personally for Rage next fall.

And again - do people really THAT much care about dedicated server and mods, especially in mostly single-player games?
raion
06/11/09 @ 15:18
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"And again - do people really THAT much care about dedicated server and mods, especially in mostly single-player games?"

well, in a mostly single-player game, no, servers aren't that big of an issue (although I'll never forgive Bungie for dropping net game in Oni), but modding. modding should always be there. look around, if you see ancient gamest still going on, that's mostly due to mods.
DaemonSpawn
06/11/09 @ 15:51
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2 raion
look around, if you see ancient gamest still going on, that's mostly due to mods.
I look around and see almost all high profile games make most sales on consoles, where are no mods. I see Dead Space with DLCs which are some reskinned weapons ans bumped damage. I see DLC lifting level cap in Fallout 3. All that stuff could be added by anyone using mod-kit, but there're no mod-kits on consoles, and these DLCs generate some good profit for publishers. Most developers aren't interested in mod community and longivity of their single-player games - they are interested im maximizing sales a year or slightly more after launch and then making sequel to sell some more. If people willplay some freeware mods, they're less likely to buy sequel or dumb DLC.
hiddenranbir
06/11/09 @ 16:51
#28
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Dedicated servers these days are awesome 64-bit, which offer great performance.

Throwing back to p2p when not everyone have 64-bit machines, surely this must mean something! :(
TitusCrow
06/11/09 @ 19:04
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mind over matter - no one minds this from ID because they no longer matter.. if its only some co- op team based play in this game ( which seems to be RPG world based single player type stuff ) then P2P isnt SO bad. Still nowhere near as good a performance as servers but for 2-3 people its ok.
If however they are intending to do anything quake style / deathmatch based then this decision is astonishing. Made on only monitary ideals and not on gaming ones. So if this is so - fuck him and I'll Dl the game to see the single player and then forget it ( if it gets decent reviews! )
Rack
06/11/09 @ 19:35
#30
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Is it me, or is this REALLY clever marketing? I mean reading this strengthened my resolve to not by MW2 because of the idea it may damage the idea of dedicated servers elsewhere, but that would inevitably make me more likely to buy Rage for my multiplayer fix later, especially if before launch they get to announce they are going with dedicated servers anyway. Given the negative feedback so far it seems strange iD would be thinking "yeah, that's a good idea"
cw-
07/11/09 @ 14:29
#31
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Fuck sake ... but then, like someone already said, iD haven't made a good MP game since Quake 3. Only looking at Rage for the SP myself.
YourMessageHere
07/11/09 @ 18:41
#32
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OK, I can sort of see why this might appear sensible to IW, given how much they have invested in MW2 on consoles where dedicated servers don't occur. It's not sensible, it's fucking stupid, but I can understand how they might think it is. But Rage is PC exclusive, right? What the balls makes it better for iD to run thousands of their own servers to matchmake rather than code a small application that allows others to cover those costs? I mean really, what is the advantage for them? Why would this be attractive?
semitope
07/11/09 @ 19:33
#33
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They can watch the response to MW2 all they want but I doubt rage will be as big as MW2. It might not be too significant in their case though. If rage isnt a multiplayer game ppl really care to play, then the few playing it might not care what kind of mp it has. I think Bad company 2 and cod4 will rule PC fps online for next year. BC2 is looking awesome and DICE is committed to doing it right on PC.

I dont think rage is a PC exclusive
Edited 1 times, most recently on 07/11/09 @ 20:57
jambo74
07/11/09 @ 20:35
#34
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Cherrio Dedicated Servers
TheGuvernor
07/11/09 @ 22:52
#35
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BOLLOX - another stab in the back from a former pc powerhouse.
What are these exec wankers smoking in the boardroom?
Dedicated to non dedicated servers?

Make sure you go to the DICE & VALVE community boards & give 'em a big up for keeping it real.

Hey, maybe this is just a seasonal virus - like a digital piggie plague that turns former genius developers into money grabbing piggies with no loylalty or ethics?!

sarcasmoidosis
07/11/09 @ 23:43
#36
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Problem is that MW2 is doing this and it'll sell bundles even if they neuter you along the way. So, the final figures will show that "the PC community was OK with P2P".

Never really used dedicated servers as my CoD4 days were as a "random" and I haven't touched any shooter since then. But... it's a betrayal from Carmack. Damn him and his megatexturing!!
Quixz
08/11/09 @ 01:28
#37
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Bad idea ID, RAGE will fail with such silly decisions..
IWestyI
21/11/09 @ 16:13
#38
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Bah, we need dedicated servers!

Sign the petitions!

http://modernwarfarenetwork.blogspot.com/

Comments: 1-38 of 38 in total

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