SiMPLE | Forum

{Phantom}

Player

Reputation: +59

Registered: 2016-08-09

Posts: 206

Midnight Rant / 1942 on Web Browser / Identity Reveal / My 1942 Life

This is just a rant post.

The goal is to get 1942 playable on a website, so there is no downloading or installing (or launching the game) on your computer. The reason is to bring in a steady amount of new players for eternity.

Whether or not it would achieve it's goal of bringing in new players to keep the game somewhat populated for decades to come would likely depend on the amount of advertising the website received.. ..and in the end if EA Games would allow such a non-diverse, white-privileged game to remain for free on a website like this or if they would bring down the ban hammer like they did with Battlelog.co project.

I have receieves quotes from agencies and the average price these companies look for is around $3,500 for this project. If I was single and did not have a non diverse white privileged family to look after I would put the money down in a heartbeat. That is however not the case, but it would be cool if someday tuia or someone reputable could start a donation grab and I actually think, considering how intelligent tuia is, he could do this project. Maybe we can pay him.

In two years, the game will be 20 years old. In two years I will be 30 years old..and yes, it has been on my computers since I was 10.

Even before the release, I was always printing oit screenshots of the game and I remember I would put a blank paper over the printed copy and trace over the screenshot with a pencil. There was an undeniable, unbreakable attachment to the game even before I playes it.

Throughout the years I ran multiple servers and some rinky dink clans that really did nothing except wear the clan tag.

My two clans were:
<<RTR>> (This stood for Road to Rome.. Yes.. It was a clan with a 13 year old leader)
-=UPS=- (United Postal Service.. This was a couple years after RTR, but we did nothing other than play together under one tag.. And outside a few members I had no real contact with the members, only hoping they would join my server tomorrow)

I became admin on the {Phantom} server at one point -- because anyone that asked could become admin.. And yes, we admins would fight for the next map, change it to what we wanted, and runnext at the start of a map if we didnt want to play it..

My first servers hosted on my home computer when I was 13 was the first time I experimented with it.. My brother always wondered why the DMZ shut off by itself! Hey.. Port forwarding was too damn complicated!!

I had a server for RTR which was a very legit and fun modded version of Raid on Agheila. It was only this map. The only downside to my rather badass version was I was too dopy to figure out how to get the wasserfalls to work, so they were just for looks. I didnt want a small server so I made it 20 slots, but hey, my internet could only handle 10 at a time so I reserved 10 slots!! For a map modded by a 13 year old, the server done fairly well. Especially since it was SW only. There would practically always be a handful of people on playing.

I had a server for UPS but it was hosted on another members computer, who apparently had T1 interwebs. I knew this would beat mine, and hey.. It was hard to populate (we played vanilla maps), but I do recall getting around 14 players in it once or twice.

Another home computer based server I experimented with when I was young was BF1942 MODDED MAPS. Or at some point possibly RTR MODDED MAPS. I had it on COOP maps where I had modded knives that would shoot a bazooka projectile, for example. Usually a few people on this server.

I am about to reveal my identity..

My last home computer sever came at the university of Kansas State. Terrible University, major propaganda telling white people to be ashamed of my skin color and anything to do with my race.

I one day threw up a BF1942 server and unsure about the name to use, I called it Schindler's List after my favorite movie at the time. This was rather short, though. I added "powered by KSU", the KSU being Kansas State University.

The next day I am absolutely shocked to find 23 players in Schindler's List powered by KSU. I mean, really, this was the first day it was up. Remember, this was before the origin release. The server was on v1.6 as I felt it was the way to go if I wanted players in my server. 1.61 was always more difficult to populate.

As the story goes, this server stayed online with my computer for sometime.. But as I would not be living in the dorm at KSU forever, I knew I had to upgrade my newly found popularity.

I first upgraded it to some random game server and the following days not one person joined the server. I could not believe it.. Why was I able to get all of these players on my ksu server but not on a professional server? After much messing around, I finally came across the in game server browser has a hidden secret that would allow certain servers to appear before others before you "Update" the list.

These servers all had server IP prefixes with "1", so an IP with , for example: "108.x.x.x" will appear before the server ip "180.x.x.x", or "68.x.x.x"

This was the reason why my ksu server with ip address "131.x.x.x" was attracting so many players. It was one of the first they saw.

Knowing this I eventually came across gameservers.com and ordered out 20 slots to test and see if it would pick up. It did! Great! I upgraded to 30, and for a couple of years was smooth sailing, at least for such an old game.

Along came the Origin release in 2012. After tuia released the patch where you could accept v1.6,v1.61 or v1.612 (origin) players onto your server I took full advantage of this opportunity. The server was now full 24 hours a day and I upgraded to 40 slots even though I had no income.

With all of the new players, you better bet I began server planning.

I set up a 24 slot Expansions only server, which would end up becoming popular enough to remove the bots every sunday and add 64 slots.

This was not enough. I put up a 64 slot sever for 1942 vanilla maps, which would be the server I used for slightly moddified gameplay, such as limiting grenades. Remember, powered by ksu server was 100% pure unmodded. This server eventually became known as Schindler's List: Blitzkrieg.

I had more ideas. I always loved dogfighting! I threw up a dogfight server with a few modded maps to turn the maps into plane maps. Success! Schindler's List: Dogfights was born.

I really could not control myself so I began a new adventure.. Modded maps!! I originally put my own modded berlin and battleaxe into the rotation, but due to procrastinating all the time, I contacted the old head admin of SL Soldier Legends clan and thankfully he let me use all of his modded maps.

With no more ideas and no more money to spare, I had to have more!! Eventually I added Schindler's List: Luftwaffe. It was a 16 slot server with bots, but the catch was you could only be in cockpit view on the airplanes.

I swear I had another, but maybe not. Anyway all of these servers were popular, in the top 25 at the same time -- due to one reason ---

They all had preferres IP addresses that would show up on the server list before other servers, so those origin players too lazy to scan servers joined them.

These servers brought great joy, something I always wanted.. And something I never gave up on.

Before I go any farther, i do want to mention I had bought severs for other clans in the past in hopes of having a populated sever.. What can I say.. It worked okay. {IB} Iron Brotherhood was the first, but then along came (Delta), and I originally let IB use the server, but Delta was a little better at populating server so I made them both share it, LOL. Eventually I dumped IB from server and it became only Delta.

This server I was sending cash in the mail each month to the [DAGL] server owner. $25 a month for 32 slots. See.. I was too young to have a card of my own and I knew my parents would say no.. So I found a way. Thank you DAGL man, which I don't remember your nickname or real name. It was fun.

Now back to the story from above..

All is good until Gamespy decides they're going to be progressive and shut down all their master servers. The shit hits the fan, and all of my servers essentially are dead. In a panicked mode, I poorly ddos aX server, angry he "stole" all of my players.

He bans my servers fron his master list, which I agree with the actions taken on his end. We must work together to save this game, not ruin it.

I shut down all of my servers, but I noticed one I still had access to even though I was no longer paying for it.. So I threw it back up for half a year until the company found out and shut it off.

This was the end of my server hosting. A quite painful death after it all got too big for my pea brain.

I occassionally think, it would be cool to have a server -- but I know it would not gain traction, and at best I could get a few players through modded maps.. But then I look around and say 1942 has plenty of modded servers. Tanks n Planes Unlimited, bihnet, etc..

Until enough money is available for the internet browser 1942 project, the only thing I can do now is to continue providing the free download on my website which has probably been downloaded around 70,000 times (i can not tell how many dl from MEGA, Only MediaFire).

To sk, I am sorry.

To anyone who ever played on any of my servers, RTR, UPS, IB, Delta, Schindlers List..

Thank you. It was amazing.

s/w

Player

Reputation: +805

Registered: 2017-01-02

Posts: 532

Re: Midnight Rant / 1942 on Web Browser / Identity Reveal / My 1942 Life

Schindler's list dogfight server, that was the single best server i've played on in this game.

It was always fun to have a constant NEW challengers on that server.

Last edited by s/w (2020-09-13 08:57:41)

Bad Actor

What Have The Romans Ever Done For Us?

Reputation: +321

Registered: 2015-12-29

Posts: 386

Re: Midnight Rant / 1942 on Web Browser / Identity Reveal / My 1942 Life

Schindler's list dogfight server, that was the single best server i've played on in this game.

It was always fun to have a constant NEW challengers on that server.

That was an amazing server, had terrific battles on there whilst honing my mouse keyboard flying skills.
Very much missed.

Torture Box was a close second.

Count ComBat

Player

Reputation: +383

Registered: 2014-09-06

Posts: 343

Re: Midnight Rant / 1942 on Web Browser / Identity Reveal / My 1942 Life

Lotsa nice mods @ Schindler-Servers back then, e.g. Midway with 4 carriers (+ pt-boats instead LCVs) each team, the same i guess @ Coral Sea, a nicely modded Gua-Map either etc., unfortenuately i hardly had time to play then, and when i was in there was always a lack of players, often some gamekilling morons ofc. instead, looks like i sadly have missed the best times there, a pity - hey just bring back 1 or 2 hehe, the more servers the better for the game!

s/w

Player

Reputation: +805

Registered: 2017-01-02

Posts: 532

Re: Midnight Rant / 1942 on Web Browser / Identity Reveal / My 1942 Life

Schindler's list dogfight server, that was the single best server i've played on in this game.

It was always fun to have a constant NEW challengers on that server.

That was an amazing server, had terrific battles on there whilst honing my mouse keyboard flying skills.
Very much missed.

Torture Box was a close second.

Indeed.

At that time, I could fly with either js or mouse+kb, so I wanted to learn to fly with keyboard only. Schindler's list DF server was the perfect place for that.  Took me many months to get used to it tho.. But still tons of fun with my rivals.

The Torture Box was also good. 

It was awesome playing with 100+ players.

s/w

Player

Reputation: +805

Registered: 2017-01-02

Posts: 532

Re: Midnight Rant / 1942 on Web Browser / Identity Reveal / My 1942 Life

Lotsa nice mods @ Schindler-Servers back then, e.g. Midway with 4 carriers (+ pt-boats instead LCVs) each team, the same i guess @ Coral Sea, a nicely modded Gua-Map either etc., unfortenuately i hardly had time to play then, and when i was in there was always a lack of players, often some gamekilling morons ofc. instead, looks like i sadly have missed the best times there, a pity - hey just bring back 1 or 2 hehe, the more servers the better for the game!

Not very long ago there was a coral sea server with all fighter planes, and we would gather there with  you, hanz, viita, jazzy, bud,  zoidberg, + a few others, and have group fights. I really miss those days.

Black Mamba

Member

Reputation: +1497

Registered: 2012-12-01

Posts: 4,362

Re: Midnight Rant / 1942 on Web Browser / Identity Reveal / My 1942 Life

I didn't know you were the owner of Schindler's List... great server, played there a few times. It would have been nice to see this server revived. I personally like to play on unmodded servers as they represent the genuine BF1942 experience. Nowadays, the vast majority of servers online are modded and I don't even know which ones are ''PURE'' bf1942 servers with no mods.

As for creating a browser version of the game well... that's definetly illegal. I assume you want it to be free? You can't redistribute EA/DICE's intellectual property without their consent, and you definetly cannot redistribute free versions of the game. A couple of years ago EA contacted BF-League because that website had a direct link to download the game. They kindly asked the site admin to remove the link. You will quickly notice that all the remaining BF1942 communities, forums, etc never advertise a direct download link to the game for the reason I mentionned.

I would advise you to find a way to bring back your Schindler's List family of servers rather than embark on the BF1942 browser project. They were well liked by the community and I think there is a group of people, me included, that would like to play on the servers. Maybe s[sk] could be reasoned with for your servers to show in the server list, but I doubt it since you attacked his servers. It seems like a pretty hard situation to resolve.

Last edited by Black Mamba (2020-09-13 18:51:07)

Trench

Member

Reputation: +130

Registered: 2014-05-05

Posts: 221

Re: Midnight Rant / 1942 on Web Browser / Identity Reveal / My 1942 Life

As for creating a browser version of the game well... that's definetly illegal.

The first thing that came to mind for me -- since I wasn't aware of anyone sitting on the source code of BF1942 in order to adapt it to other platforms -- was that "play this game in a web browser" would be spinning up a single-application view of Battlefield 1942 running on a Linux or Windows desktop.

i.e. Using on-demand Amazon or Google compute services to spin up however many of these are needed to service the players trying to join by web browser.  The "code" that must come through the web browser is purely remote control, not the game.  Consequently bandwidth requirements would be high compared to Battlefield 1942 itself, since you're transmitting remote viewing and not just the game protocol.

Don't know where that would fall on the legal spectrum, since you're not "giving their game code away" or making it available for download; you're giving away the ability to play their game, by essentially "borrowing a computer on which you have it installed."

Black Mamba

Member

Reputation: +1497

Registered: 2012-12-01

Posts: 4,362

Re: Midnight Rant / 1942 on Web Browser / Identity Reveal / My 1942 Life

Would using a browser version of the game enable clients to automatically download custom mods and maps from ther server as opposed to the current situation now where someone has to download everything manually?

I know that Quake Live used to have a browser supported version of the game up until 2014. Maybe talk to the devs of that game and see how they pulled it off.

Beyond the insane technical complexities of pulling off an Internet browser version of the game, the ultimate question is, what would be the advantage of using that version? I'm thinking other programs and utilities have to be developped in parallel with the browser version, such as an anticheat program that actually works, automatic server-to-client downloads, enhanced graphics and other things that would give old players an incentive to come back, as well as impress new gamers that only care about graphics.

A revamped version of BF1942, basically. Legally, it's not doable, unless you want EA/DICE lawyers knocking at your door. This has to come from the original developpers of the game themselves, and it's not going to happen.

Last edited by Black Mamba (2020-09-13 20:13:03)

Pleiades53

Administrator

Reputation: +659

Registered: 2015-06-26

Posts: 1,355

Re: Midnight Rant / 1942 on Web Browser / Identity Reveal / My 1942 Life

I played Schindlers list as well and yes it was a GOOD server!
Nice to know the origin. ***TIPS the hat!!!***