PS3 lives on....

[RCBH928]

Is it expensive to keep a server running for multiplayer?

I thought ps3 multiplayers were hosted on a user's consoles. I recall on the 360 I got to be host a few times.

[isiolia]

I would assume that it's less the basic hardware cost, and more the official commitment to running the servers. Fixing them, policing them, all that. If the game is no longer bringing in money, then that might not make financial sense, even if it's relatively cheap.

Some games use dedicated servers, which are usually preferable for consistency. Back in the day, it wasn't uncommon that PC games would allow the game to be run as a dedicated server, or developers would provide a free download of a dedicated server application.
Other games do just have one of the player's machines host the game, which can mean things have to get shifted to another console if they leave the match. Can also mean that whichever player is hosting gets an edge via low latency. You'd still need lobby/matchmaking servers in that case though.

[Violent By Design]

Solution: PC version.

Ha ha, even those get shut down eventually!

Dedicated servers.

[RCBH928]

I would assume that it's less the basic hardware cost, and more the official commitment to running the servers. Fixing them, policing them, all that. If the game is no longer bringing in money, then that might not make financial sense, even if it's relatively cheap.

If the are going to take down the servers down because its unprofitable then they should make all DLC free as well since no one is buying them :p

Any how, how does this work in the ps3/360 since the servers are MIcrosoft's/Sony's and publishers/developers do not get paid for their online services unlike WoW

[isiolia]

If the are going to take down the servers down because its unprofitable then they should make all DLC free as well since no one is buying them :p

Any how, how does this work in the ps3/360 since the servers are MIcrosoft's/Sony's and publishers/developers do not get paid for their online services unlike WoW

Far as I know, because you're looking at two separate things, at least with PS3 and 360 games.

The role of Live or PSN isn't to host multiplayer matches, but to serve as middlemen. If you want to play some Halo 3 online, then Live will find another player who might be hosting a game and connect you to them. It uses peer to peer, like the majority of last-gen console games. Effectively, it's less a question of servers shutting down, and more the matchmaking service. So in that case, it would be more a question of when Live for 360 goes away (and even then, LAN play should be fine).

If you want to play Left 4 Dead on 360, then Live would direct you to Valve's dedicated servers. It's reliant both on those, and on Live to tell your console where to find them. 'course, Valve also provides for player-run dedicated servers and all that too, at least on the PC side. Just saying, it's a rare non-peer to peer game on 360.

Outside of first-party games, it's not necessarily MS or Sony that'd be footing the bill to keep servers up.

That said, Xbox One games (at least) are all supposed to have dedicated servers, which will likely often be using MS's Azure cloud services. Even then, MS still seems to be charging for the service. Could be that we'll see support die out faster due to that.

[Retrogamer0001]

So, just finished Nier on the PS3 and was pleasantly surprised - the game is much better than I would have thought. The graphics are about average, but the story and characters are excellent. The bosses are very cool and somewhat Dark Souls-esque, and there are portions of the game that are almost schmup-like. The soundtrack is also amazing. If you guys can find this one somewhere, definitely give it a shot.

I've had this track on repeat for the last few days:

[RCBH928]

What game is most similar to Nier? Is it like God of War?


and whatever happened to MAG, it was supposed to be the next big thing in multiplayer

[CavZee]

So, just finished Nier on the PS3 and was pleasantly surprised - the game is much better than I would have thought. The graphics are about average, but the story and characters are excellent. The bosses are very cool and somewhat Dark Souls-esque, and there are portions of the game that are almost schmup-like. The soundtrack is also amazing. If you guys can find this one somewhere, definitely give it a shot.

I've had this track on repeat for the last few days:

I'll be starting this game up sometime soon. Want to play through it before Drakengard 3 comes out. I've read it has some great music so I'm looking forward to it.

[Retrogamer0001]

What game is most similar to Nier? Is it like God of War?

More like a watered-down Zelda with weapon upgrades and leveling up. It's not a mind-blowing game, but it's very solid.

[Hazerd]

I'll be starting this game up sometime soon. Want to play through it before Drakengard 3 comes out. I've read it has some great music so I'm looking forward to it.

Ive been trying to bring myself to beat the first Drakengard, but the combat is just so bland and repetitive.

The 3rd one looks really good, but im not going to buy it till i can beat the first one, just cant stand skipping games in a series.