Project Reality Forums

Server licensing is killing Project Reality. We need more servers worldwide. But most players either cant or wont fill out a legalistic form, just to be able to run a server for a videogame. Even those players such as myself with the capability to do so, and are able run and manage a server, would rather just not deal with the paperwork, waiting time and other requirements. Just to be able to provide a space, for the community to play a game we all love. Applying for PR server license feels very cold, harsh, corporate.

If you're worried about the "project reality experience." Then, segregate the servers into two. Official and Custom. The only difference being that official servers are how you want the game to played and are fully endorsed by the devs. And custom servers allowing for custom rules and more flexibility.

Personally I would rather run official servers to preserve the integrity of the game. With custom servers for community made maps and modes.

Server license is there for a reason. It doesn't hurt to host a custom server with a server license

ALADE3N wrote:Server license is there for a reason. It doesn't hurt to host a custom server with a server license

Server licensing took the wind out of PR's sails. I remember when it was first implemented in 2007. Immediately interest in PR nosedived. Yeah the first few weeks of .6 were ok. But after? Nah. Nothing. The numbers kept dropping that even some of the most hardcore and loyal communities quit. Not to mention that when .6 originally hit, all the south american and asian servers went poof. Nobody from a country where most people can barely understand english, is going to jump through all these hoops, just to be able to run a server.

I would love to run a PR server again. But I sure as shit aint going to deal with server licensing again. It's the principal of the thing that matters to me. The principal being server licensing itself.

dcm1 wrote:Server licensing took the wind out of PR's sails.

Semler. Stop being a redditor.

If you're worried about the "project reality experience." Then, segregate the servers into two. Official and Custom. The only difference being that official servers are how you want the game to played and are fully endorsed by the devs. And custom servers allowing for custom rules and more flexibility.

This is how it currently is.
Anyone can setup their own server but only the official ones, ie endorsed by devs, will be displayed on the browser list.
This ensures anyone can have a minimum expectation of gameplay when joining a server, no matter which one.

Server licensing is killing Project Reality.

You already have the difficult time of setting up a server, installing the required dependencies, setting up mumble, setting up Tracker files, the game itself, assembling a admin team and a set of rules.
Once this is all setup what's the issue of a just a minor form?
Is there any real example of someone that prepared all this and has given up because of the licensing? If so what is the real reason they stopped at the license? Is the form broken? Did the team took a long time to reply? Or the license it self has requirements to strict?

UTurista wrote: You already have the difficult time of setting up a server, installing the required dependencies, setting up mumble, setting up Tracker files, the game itself, assembling a admin team and a set of rules.
Once this is all setup what's the issue of a just a minor form?
Is there any real example of someone that prepared all this and has given up because of the licensing?

Yeah, Me. Among many others.

Many, Many times. I get this urge to play PR. I think to myself; "Wouldn't it be nice to run a PR server again?" And then as soon as I hit the final hurdle. I'm like; "Fuck this. I aint jumping through all these hoops, just to play a game." Same with other people I talked to, who ran PR servers back in the day. It's just a hassle.

Server licensing prevents the drop-in/drop-out nature of online FPS games. Sometimes when I come home from work. I wanna boot up my pc, start a game, join a server, and play the game. There's a reason why games like' BF3/4, COD, Battlebit, Etc, are still very popular. Because they're easy to get into and easy to leave, when you need to. Both on the player and admin end of things.

For similar but opposing reasons; is why I dont play battle royales, roguelikes and games like tarkov. Or wave spawn games like insurgency. Too much time investment required. And too much time wasted waiting for respawn. You cant play them casually. You're always on edge, because you have so much to lose.

UTurista wrote: If so what is the real reason they stopped at the license? Is the form broken? Did the team took a long time to reply? Or the license it self has requirements to strict?

For me, it's the principal of the thing. I just dont like the idea of server licensing for 'civilian' end users. I understand licensing, if it's in the corporate or professional world. But in videogames? Nah. That's just a step too far.

dcm1 wrote:Semler. Stop being a redditor.

I was being serious. Your opinions are opinions, not facts. Licensing is not a hassle, and it is certainly not a burden. I've maintained a server license for VG over 10+ years, and never once have I had any issues, never had any hassle, and it has never been a burden.

Your argumentation of "teh principle" is based on subjective values and individual beliefs rather than empirical evidence or concrete facts. Without shame, you present what are clearly straw men who agree with you (yet who refuse to post up in support of your notion in this here forum thread), and you can't even tell that we can see right through you: This is your opinion solely, and it is not shared by any potential server hosts of PR.

In the end, let's be honest... all you truly have are your "feelings" based on principles which are not shared by the vast majority. You present no facts, ignore pragmatic considerations as to why licensing exists, and your thinly veiled insults and repudiations in your replies to R-DEV's (and even existing server license holders such as myself) make your opinions of anyone who doesn't fall over themselves agreeing with you quite apparent.

I find it quite odd that you would honestly expect R-DEV's to read your post and say, "Hey, they're right! Let's just ditch this well thought out server licensing agreements to 'save' the Project Reality game, because 'principles' muh dudes."

What did you truly expect to be gained from this post beyond expressing your own disdain for the leadership of the PR mod itself and the direction they choose to take with the game they developed? All you have accomplished is to further demonstrate your lack of appreciation for why things are the way they are, and lack of understanding given the salient reasoning which lead to the way things presently are (as pointed out by folks replying here).

Your replies to anyone presenting sound reasoning and the decision making process behind it typically amount to, "Don't confuse me with the facts, I've already made up my mind".

While personal preferences and principles can sometimes be valid, it's equally essential to acknowledge the pragmatic necessity of server licensing in providing a consistent and enjoyable gaming environment on publicly listed PR Servers. The focus of your argument should be on how licensing negatively contributes to the gaming ecosystem rather than viewing it solely through a lens of corporate imposition and claiming "it is the principle of the thing" without any valid facts, if you plan to make any sort of considerable point.

dcm1 wrote:...
Server licensing prevents the drop-in/drop-out nature of online FPS games. Sometimes when I come home from work. I wanna boot up my pc, start a game, join a server, and play the game.

Yeah, because so many times I wanted to play PR. I wanna boot up my pc, start PR, join a server, and play the game, but unfortunately the PR Server Licensing prevents my ability to drop-in or drop-out of this online FPS game.

Obviously, very sound logic and I'm sure everyone here agrees.

dcm1 wrote:Many, Many times. I get this urge to play PR. I think to myself; "Wouldn't it be nice to run a PR server again?" And then as soon as I hit the final hurdle. I'm like; "Fuck this. I aint jumping through all these hoops, just to play a game." Same with other people I talked to, who ran PR servers back in the day. It's just a hassle.

If (for whatever reason) filling a few form fields is "too much of an effort", there is a reasonable suspicion that proper administration of the server will also be "too much of an effort" to handle. The form itself plays such a small part in preparing a server that claiming it is in any way "killing PR" sounds like an exagerration. Not to mention the current number of servers is technically able to accomodate ~250% of the average daily peak population. So what exactly would getting rid of licensing result in, other than even more empty servers in the server browser?

dcm1 wrote:Server licensing prevents the drop-in/drop-out nature of online FPS games. Sometimes when I come home from work. I wanna boot up my pc, start a game, join a server, and play the game. There's a reason why games like' BF3/4, COD, Battlebit, Etc, are still very popular. Because they're easy to get into and easy to leave, when you need to. Both on the player and admin end of things.

Server licensing has no influence on drop-in/drop-out nature of PR from POV of a player.

Semler. I'm not reading all that.

Suchar wrote:If (for whatever reason) filling a few form fields is "too much of an effort", there is a reasonable suspicion that proper administration of the server will also be "too much of an effort" to handle.

You're being too controlling. You're expecting server admins to operate akin to employees or subcontractors, without a financial incentive to maintain your expectations of professionalism and your own set of 'standards'(kinda like reddit mods). Which leads to corruption and abuses of power because there's no reason to be an honest man, working for free(just like reddit mods and third world hellholes). You need fear, the fear of revoking the server license to keep your server operators in line. Such fear only leads to even more abuses of power and corruption(exactly like reddit and third world shitholes).

Suchar wrote: The form itself plays such a small part in preparing a server that claiming it is in any way "killing PR" sounds like an exagerration.

To you it's only a formality. To server operators it's an affront to the very nature of how community run multiplayer fps games should operate. Freely and without bureaucracy.

Suchar wrote:Not to mention the current number of servers is technically able to accomodate ~250% of the average daily peak population. So what exactly would getting rid of licensing result in, other than even more empty servers in the server browser?

Well for one. The community would be able to innovate the game from the ground up. Without needing permission or blessing from the developers. I would be able to run custom maps, modes and games without the need for a password. Do you know how few people see a password on a server and actively go searching for it, to be able to join the server? Very, very few. Most of the time they get discouraged and never end up joining the server at all. Passwords are server killers for non special events.

The PR player base has bottomed out, yes. But it could still grow, because you have something good on your hands. Something that is underappreciated by the vast fps community as a whole. When I introduce people to PR, at first they hate the graphics and jankiness. But always end up falling in love with the gameplay. When they quit it's almost always for the same reasons. They couldn't play PR the way they wanted to.

Suchar wrote: Server licensing has no influence on drop-in/drop-out nature of PR from POV of a player.

It does to potential server admins who wanna run a PR server. But are met with bureaucratic roadblocks. Less willing server owners/admins = less servers = less players.

dcm1 wrote:Semler. I'm not reading all that.

Nobody cares what you read or not - in fact, no one here cares at all what you have to say. You are objectively and demonstrably wrong.

You definitely don't want to read my last replies to you because you can't selectively quote portions of them to refute with further nonsense as you so clearly enjoy doing, and this is because unlike you, I used logic and reasoning to address your statements - and we all know how you struggle with logic.

Just know: This thread exists merely for the rest of us to tell you how things are, why they are the way they are including the fact that things will not be changing, and that you are absolutely wrong in your conclusions and assumptions about PR.


You are far too unsocialized to have any productive discussion, and you spout your own opinions as if others share them, and as if they are established facts.

TLDNR - Let me be very clear: Things you say do not become facts merely because you say them. That's not how this works. That's not how any of this works.

This also goes for your "opinions" about most everything you've shared, including how common the English language is as a second language in many SE Asian countries (or how easy it is for interested parties to use text translators), how server hosts approach the decision to host PR and what they consider "difficulties", and pretty much everything else you present as if they are facts.

You haven't got a clue as to how a game like this should be run from a server host standpoint, and that is fine - you're not a server host and never will be - but it's when you tell these developers that they are wrong and you are right that your true ignorance shines through in the face of sound reasoning presented by those developers.

User warned for attitude - Suchar

Semler. Your rage is misplaced. I'm just trying to bring fresh blood into PR.


- snip -


User warned for attitude - Nate

PR is an old game with outdated graphics, held back by an old engine which makes it so that even modern systems struggle to keep a stable 60 FPS on some maps. There are newer better looking alternatives for people that enjoy the PR-style of gameplay.


Why are the player numbers so low in 2023? Must be because of something implemented in 2007.


I mean, look at FH2. It doesn't require people to sign up for a server license to set up their own servers, and the game is clearly booming with thousands of players at any time. It and multiple other BF2 mods that are still active and teeming with life almost 20 years after BF2's release. All because people can just set their servers at will.


Clearly it's the server licensing that's holding back PR.

These "PR is dying" threads are getting old and just bring out the worst in the community.

Plus its not true. Servers are still seeding.

Throwing my 2 cents but lots of people play newer titles, but those that like playing PR will keep on playing PR. It's always the case with also FH2.

dcm1 wrote:I'm just trying to bring fresh blood into PR.

Generally, it seems you want to trade the unique PR gameplay, moving it towards a more arcade one, for a few more players. Let's be honest, that's the most likely direction any player-driven changes would follow. However, once that's done, we are no longer playing PR, so what's the point of attracting more players to the game? I find it very difficult to imagine us ever trading our gameplay vision for any number of new players or servers. That's what commercial products have to do, not us.

Also, let's not forget that this game already is community-driven as it is the community that is the source of our developers. In regard to our vision, if anyone wants to influence it, they are more than welcome to contribute to the game development and start actively influencing the process of decision-making in the team.
Currently, we are in the process of implementing fundamental changes to the recruitment of testers. It will be a good opportunity for anyone interested to help with the game development. There will be some sort of announcement on the forum once we are done with that.

SShadowFox wrote:I mean, look at FH2. It doesn't require people to sign up for a server license to set up their own servers, and the game is clearly booming with thousands of players at any time.

Even FH2 has empty servers too

I would say that server licensing is what made PR what it is. So many other games you jump into a server and there is total chaos because there is no proper administration or ruleset.

As the person managing licenses, the main inhibitor for people to add more active serves to the game comes down to:

(1) Technical inability

(2) Lack of a community.

People think "I wanna have a server", don't read what that entails, apply for a license, get it and then fail to set it up and if they do manage to set it up they realise that it doesn't magically become populated.

dcm1 wrote:Semler. Your rage is misplaced. I'm just trying to bring fresh blood into PR.

You truly think by being a lapdog, that you'll be rewarded with some sort of special privileges? How deluded are you? This aint reddit boy.

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/user warned for useless content