By Blood

One of the most exciting and rewarding aspect of most first person shooter style games is the multiplayer option. Playing with or against a friend or a group of friends can breath a whole new life into a game that has otherwise gone stale in single player or Internet mode.

Getting a group of friends together to have a multiplayer game is often called a LAN party. LAN Parties are more fun than Internet play because you can scream profanities at the top of your lungs when you die and flip off your buddy when he frags you. You can't hear your buddies gloating and laughing at you manically when you are gunned down when you play over the internet.

There is something about being in the same room as those you play with that brings a new aspect to the game. To have a successful LAN party you need to take several steps to make sure everyone involved has fun and comes away with the best experience possible. I have learned over the last several years what to and what not to do. Here are a few tips to make your game run a bit smoother.

I began playing LAN games back in the days of DOS and Netware on a coax cable network that was barely functioning with the aid of several cables stuck together with electric tape and a few salvaged terminators and T’s. Needless to say our network was up as much as it was down. Fortunately with hubs, routers, and better cables many of the problems with the earlier networks have been eliminated. This brings us to my first point.

1. Be sure you have all the equipment you need to set up your network. Make sure all the computers that are going to be used have network cards that are compatible with whatever network equipment you are going to use. Also be sure you have enough cables and enough ports on your hub(s) for all the computers

2. Make sure you have a big enough place to play. Find a room where there is enough space to set up as many computers as you need. If you need more space sometimes you can use two rooms that are close together. Also try to pick a location that is easy for everyone to get to and a location that is free from distractions. (i.e. bratty little sisters ect..)

3. Make sure everyone’s computers are working long before the LAN party is scheduled to start. I have spent many nights trying to have a LAN party when all I ended up doing was spending four or five hours fixing someone’s computer. This ruined the fun for me and the others who waited for us to join in.

4. Make sure you have all the computers configured so they can function on the network. Again I have spent valuable playing time trying to get someone’s computer configured for the network because they didn’t do it before hand. If you don't know how to set up you computers pcshooter's Parfla Gush has written an excellent article on how to do just that.

5. Get plenty of food and munchies. These add to a LAN party believe me!

6. This one sounds weird but It has happened to me and a few others I know. NEVER, EVER, EVER, install a new piece of hardware minutes before a LAN Party. I did this once and the new video card gave me problems all night. It really ruined the game for me. If you r system is working leave it alone. You can test the neat new piece of hardware later.

7. Plan what game you are going to play in advance. Don’t spend the night arguing about what game to play. Let everyone know in advance so there are no surprises and any problems can be solved well before the LAN party is scheduled. Also make sure there are enough legal copies of the game for everyone.

8. Let everyone know what they need to bring. If they need to bring their own cable let them know. Also let them know they need to bring a power strip. Keep in mind someone will inevitably forget something so have extras available.

9. If you are setting up a LAN for friends you will probably already know the rules. If it is a LAN party for strangers make sure you let them know what the house rules will be far in advance.

10. Be a good sport. I know that trash talk and numerous high fives are an integral part of any competitive game but try not to rub it in too bad. Also remember it is just a game. No need to stomp off crying "no fair" because you got killed thirty seconds into the game. Also balance the teams. Don’t set the teams as the "good" players versus the "crappy" players every single game.

The most important thing to remember above all is to have fun.