I will be completely honest with you.
In the past, I have been struggling for months to find good information on internet on how to create and host real dedicated game server. There is hardly any well structured information on this topic. Now that I have a decent understanding on the topic I’ve decided to share it with you. I really hope this course will help you lay the foundation on your journey in the world of online multiplayer games.
Here is what you should expect in the course:
1. In the first section we are creating very minimal setup of our client-server communication using Unity3D, .NET 6 and the networking library LiteNetLib.
2. After we are done with the proof of concept, or as a like to call it “walking-skeleton” project, we will continue by laying the foundation of a strongly typed client to server communication. We will implement packet serialization and deserialization and will make it so the logic that handles different packets is separate in different packet handlers and it will use strongly typed C# structs.
3. Once the networking layer is done, we will work on two core scenes that are essential for any multiplayer game. Login and Lobby scenes.
4. In the login scene, we will allow the players to identify themselves and register in our server. We will handle user input validation and we will give the user visual feedback in the form of loading animation.
5. In the lobby scene we will create a sorted list of the top 10 players and will show their statuses (online or offline). We will also show the current total players count on the server. In addition to that we will update the list on all clients when a new player joins or an existing one turns offline.
6. After we are done with that, we will enable the players to register in our matchmaking pool and search for opponents by pressing the “Find Opponent” button.
7. Once a match is found, we will redirect the players to the actual game scene, where they will be able to play the classic game of Tic Tac Toe.
