SFP1/WoX Multiplayer Revival?

[+streakeagle 864]

Is anyone interested in trying out multiplayer with SFP1/WoX?

The last time I did this, a lot of people had just switched to Windows 10 and the SFP1/WoX series ran horrible on it. To top things off, the old Microsoft DirectPlay multiplayer interface used by SFP1/WoX did not work well if at all on Windows 10.

Now, many years later, I can get Wings Over Vietnam with the final 2008b patch to run on Windows 10 at Vsync speeds (60 Hz in my case) with maxed out graphics quality on my nVidia control panel and in-game settings. I can also host multiplayer locally. The enb series makes the graphics a lot more stable, but I still have problems with the game frequently crashing to desktop when I end a flight. Though it sometimes lets me get to the menu several times in a row before it starts crashing again.

If anyone wants to try this we need two things:

1. An identical stock install of a game patched to the 2008b level or in the case of Wings Over Israel, optionally patched even later by the expansion pack. I personally prefer starting with WoV. It always drew the most players. If everyone involved has WoV and WoE, it is even better to use a merged WoV/WoE install for the expanded stock plane set. But if anyone wants to try this out, I am willing to host whatever install it takes to get people flying. Once you have it working with a stock install, you can experiment with adding mods. But you have to be very careful. The anti-cheat file checker is very temperamental. It has been known to reject totally stock installs for no particular reason and can have an even harder time matching up modded installs. The key is everyone having exactly the same install to avoid file checker problems.

2. A free VPN service to trick the game into seeing a LAN that it can easily handle versus trying to set port forwarding, firewalls, and anti-virus to allow internet communication. Hamachi used to be the go-to tool, but last time around, I discovered Evolve was a much better replacement. Evolve provides a VPN and effectively replaces Hyperlobby as a way of meeting up to start games. Optionally, we could open a Discord channel for meeting or even use Hyperlobby, but you still need a VPN package like Evolve to get reliable connections.

Hyperlobby is the optional third thing. Hyperlobby natively supports SFP1 and WoV. The problem is that it is hard to get servers set up to work correctly and for clients to join on Hyperlobby. Internet service providers, routers, firewalls, antivirus, etc. all conspire to block the very basic interface provided by DirectPlay. But traditionally, I start my server on Hyperlobby to attract players then tell them how to connect using a VPN host like Hamachi or Evolve. I think Hyperlobby is largely obsolete. This forum is clearly the place to meet players and once you meet here, you can agree on whatever platform is most acceptable for general communication/starting game sessions.

Edited February 6, 2021 by streakeagle

[+streakeagle 864]

In the time since my last effort, Evolve has become part of player.me as of 2018 and lost the VPN functionality. I really wished SFP1/WoX worked perfectly with Hyperlobby as it otherwise works great and hasn't changed in years. It appears that the current equivalent to Hamachi is: Radmin VPN | Download Free VPN (radmin-vpn.com)

If anyone is interested in multiplayer, we will need to download, install, and configure this.

Edited February 6, 2021 by streakeagle

[00Mayday00 1]

Ill look into it this evening and give it a shot as soon as I have time to sit down and hash it out. Sounds like a great idea and at least a good testing project.

[osmanfirat 10]

I am very interested in this, but i have only WoE.

[+streakeagle 864]

I have all the SFP1/WoX sims. Whichever one is common to the people interested is obviously the one to use. If everyone has WoE, then that is fine. Once we agree on a sim, we all need clean, unmodded installs, and to try to meet each other using Radmin VPN.

I just tried RAdmin... it is very similar if not easier than Hamachi used to be, now it is just a matter of how well it works with the SFP1/WoX series.

Edited February 7, 2021 by streakeagle