Mike challenges PyroJockey on Descent

Continued from the topic "Special Classes Unlock at ..."

Mike wrote:

I would do some challenging to settle it, but I don't think he plays SWBFII on the Arena or anywhere besides his Official Glitching server. I would break out Descent if my Windows 95 were with me.

Mike wrote:

He plays this old computer game called Descent that was really awesome and I still have mine at my house too. I wouldn't mind having an excuse to play again.

I accept your Descent challenge and thus provide you with the aforementioned excuse.

Go to the DXX Rebirth web site. DXX Rebirth has ports of Descent 1 and Descent 2 with enhanced graphics and on line options that will run on contemporary systems (no Win95 required) and play on line without using Kali. DXX Rebirth is free but you must use it with your original game resource files. If you can't find them or the data has been corrupted you can buy the original games in a Descent 1 and 2 bundle from Good Old Games (GOG.com) for only $5.99. I believe this includes the "Levels of the World" expansion for Descent 1 but sadly not the "Vertigo Series" expansion for Descent 2.



You pick the level(s). I do ask that they be levels delivered with the game. (We don't want to have any secret weapon stores turn up or get shot through any unknown 4D walls ). User supplied levels included in the "Levels of the World" expansion are acceptable.

See you in the mines.....

Yay! I really did love this game when I used to play it. I'm happy about this, and this site is awesome. I never really played much online but I was pretty good in singleplayer. So, should I download Descent 1 or 2? I think I'd rather play some Descent II with you. I still have my old disc for the game. The problem is that I'm using my Macbook now, and I've downloaded both Descent I and Descent II for Mac OSX (I'm currently using Snow Leopard, 10.6.6), and neither of them will open properly. I'm sure this has something to do with the game resource files. I'm pretty sure they are saved on my Windows 95. Can you give me instructions on how to locate get these files? Is it a simple file transfer?

Nevermind, I just found in the readme file instructions on what to do. I'll get working.

I also noticed this in the readme:

"D2X-Rebirth supports Multiplayer over UDP/IP.
UDP/IP generally supports more features of D2X-Rebirth and uses Packet Loss Prevention while IPX, unsupported
on Mac OS X, is mainly meant to play together with non-D2X-Rebirth games."

Umm hopefully this doesn't mean we can't play on different operating systems. If we can't I could possibly use bootcamp (allows Macs to change operating systems by partitioning the hard drive), but I would need a Windows OS disc, which I would need to acquire somehow.

People using different platforms and operating systems (MAC/Windows/Linix/DOS) can play on line together. Using UDP/IP is the currently preferred method. The IPX protocol is the legacy method originally intended for playing LAN games. Descent was not originally designed for the internet but thanks to Kali it was possible to play IPX games over the internet. The IPX protocol is the "lowest common denominator" for all platforms including the original DOS game which does not have UDP/IP to play. Because of this the developer of DXX Rebirth left it in there but will not support any issues that arise if you use it.

Please see Zico's post on "UDP/IP or IPX?"

Sorry Pyro, I haven't made much more effort on this, it looks like I will need to buy it to get those files as well. I'll get back on it soon.

By the way, were you aware that they did make a Descent 3? This is the version most commonly played on line today, although just like SWBF2 we have more servers than players .


The PC version is still available from Good Old Games (GOG.com) for $6 and will run on most contemporary systems. There was a MAC version released but I don't know where you can find a retail source. I do see them on eBay from time to time but for about 10 times the price as the Windows version.

I as well as many others prefer the gameplay of the older versions. It tends to be faster, darker and more disorienting.

Mike wrote:

Sorry Pyro, I haven't made much more effort on this, it looks like I will need to buy it to get those files as well. I'll get back on it soon.

Mike,

if you haven't already found or purchased the Descent source files, Descent & Descent II at Good Old Games (GOG.com) is on sale until July 4th. You get both for $2.99.


Descent 3 with the Mercenary expansion pack is also on sale for $2.99 but this is the Windows version only, not the MAC.


I love a bargain

BUMP!

Still waiting on the challange

Another port of Descent 2 with lots of bells and whistles to bring it into the 21st century and they do have a MAC version.

The board has been awful quiet of late, I might as well give this a....
BUMP!

Yo Mike, where you been?

HEY MIKE!!!
If you are still interested, the Descent source files, Descent & Descent II at Good Old Games (GOG.com) are on sale again until January 2nd. You get both for $2.99.


I'll spring for the $3 if that's what it takes to get you into the mines.

Dammit, I'm slacking! Sorry about that, but yeah don't worry about it, I'm willing to pay 3 bucks those games are worth way more than that. I'll try to get them and then use Crossover to get them to work on my Macbook.

Mike,

Not sure what Crossover is (an emulator?) but there are MAC ports for Descent 1 and 2, just add source files.

FYI....

3 n00bs having a good time playing Descent 1 multiplayer


3 killer elite having a good time playing Descent 1 multiplayer


I fall somewhere in between.

PyroJockey wrote:

Mike,

Not sure what Crossover is (an emulator?) but there are MAC ports for Descent 1 and 2, just add source files.

Oh yea, thats right, this will be easy then.

And I have no idea where my skill level will be. I used to used a joystick with the game, but I don't have one anymore. We'll see. Lemme get this working.

Okay I think I got it working, no sound yet though. And when I click on multiplayer it says that an IPX driver was not found.

I am assuming you downloaded and installed the D1X-Rebirth and/or the D2X-Rebirth port for the MAC OS X.

I'm not sure why you wouldn't have any sound. I know there is an issue when using the source files for the MAC on a Windows version because the sounds are not included and have to be downloaded separately.

http://www.dxx-rebirth.com/addons/

I don't think this should be an issue using the DOS source files on a MAC but I have never had an opportunity to try it.

As for the IPX, that is the original networking protocol for Descent and it is outdated, being replaced by UDP. You can still use IPX if you want to play against some one with the DOS version of Descent. You will need to install the IPX networking on your machine in order for Descent to find it.

From the readme file:

D1X-Rebirth supports Multiplayer over (obsoleted) IPX and UDP/IP.
Please note that UDP/IP generally supports more features of D1X-Rebirth and uses Packet Loss Prevention while
IPX is mainly meant to play together with non-D1X-Rebirth games.
Using UDP/IP works over LAN and Internet. By default, each game communicates over UDP-Port 42424. This can be
changed via the menus while creating a game and manually join a game, command-line argument or D1X.INI. To
successfully host a game online, make sure UDP-Port 42424 (or otherwise if specified correctly) is opened on
your Router/Firewall. Clients do not need to open any ports.
The game also supports IPv6 if built in while compiling and should be backwards compatible to IPv4 builds
as good as possible.



Addendum:

I also found this: http://www.dxx-rebirth.com/frm/index.php/topic,1168.msg12758.html#msg12758

Okay I figured it out, I was running Descent I with trough Crossover (wine) which allows Macs to open and run exe files. This time, I took the DXX rebirth app and put it into the same folder as decent.hog and decent.pig and everything seems to be working. Now I just need to set up my controls and maybe find my old joystick. The multiplayer now allows me to join and create servers without saying anything about IPX this time.

Mike, I hear you're ready to roll. We just need to set up a day and time. I work from 8-5 during the week but my weekends are more flexible. What works for you?

Also do you use Skype, Teamspeak, Mumble or any other voice over IP for gaming? I have Skype but am looking into Mumble. Otherwise we can use Xat to set up the game.

See you in the mines.

FYI,

I don't know if you found this link yet, it's a web based DXX Tracker. You can see what games are online, if they are D1 or D2 and which version of DXX-Rebirth they are playing. The official release is v0.57.1. You may see some games running 0.57.2. This is a beta release available from the Descent Rangers (a Descent clan formed in 1995) web site. The DRangers are pretty much the only ones using it to host games. The biggest drawback with the Beta release is it is Windows only, and there are a lot of MACs out there playing Descent.

A few other web sites to look at:

There is a new site called Descent Task Force that hosts a lot of DXX-Rebirth games and is MAC friendly. There Leader is a MAC who goes by Obi-Wan Kenobi (Star Wars fan) and has the world's largest Descent collection.

There is also Planet Descent which has a good active community. PlanetDescent.com was originally a site hosted by GameSpy. When GameSpy pulled the plug the community created PlanetDescent.net. This game will never die because the community refuses to let it.

Lastly there are the 2 Descent Bulletin Boards.

http://www.descentbb.com/
http://www.descentbb.net/

These are the oldest forums where a lot of the old timers and the killer elite lurk. There originally was one Descent BB, but years ago there was big a falling out over how it was to be run, family friendly vs. adult content, so there was a split. Now they tend to look pretty much alike to me.

Okay I'm thinking Saturday because I won't have class then, and I only have work on Sunday for the weekend. Also yes, I use skype to talk to SWBF2 people already, I'll send you a message with my skype name.

I have used the tracker already a couple of times. I only managed to join 1 online game so far though. Mostly because I never seem to have the same mission files that people like to use. I found a site to download most of those from now. And yes, I've got v0.57.1 if we want to do this we will both need to use that one, I have tried to join games being hosted on 0.57.2 and failed.

Thanks I'll look at those sites, they seem pretty cool.

WHOO -HOO!

I got your message and got my Skype set up. Had to buy a new headset. The one I've been using since the 70's got ruined when I tried to rewire it. long story, but vacuum formed plastic parts do not respond well to any heat

I also got several new pieces of hardware I've been dying to try out. One is an Orbshield kit that allows me to use a older generation serial devices as a USB 6 axis game controller



I'm using mine with a Spaceball 4000 FLX rather than a SpaceOrb 360.



The Spaceball sits on the desktop so it only requires one hand to operate while the SpaceOrb requires 2, and the Spaceball has 12 programmable buttons compared to the SpaceOrb's 6.

More cool toys for Pyro!

I also have several old Microsoft Sidewinder 3D Pro joysticks I keep in reserve. I built a USB adapter for to use on modern machines (those without game ports). Thanks to Grendel on the Descent BB for the design.

See you in the mines...

Hey Pyro sorry about last night, I went out, forgot about this and didn't get back until late. Really sorry, this makes me look bad lol. Can we do this Tuesday after you get out of work maybe? I don't have much class on that day either.

Our first date and you stood me up...sigh.

I ended up jumping in a truly insane D2 total anarchy game with 7 others. they pretty much cleaned the floor with me. I need to fine tune and get acclimated to my new hardware. I also forgot I was playing D2, kept forgetting I had an afterburner and also how annoying flash missiles were.

We'll shoot for Tuesday evening then?

Alright I'm watching the Celtics game, as soon as halftime hits I'll be on skype.

We're all holding our breaths at the outcome of this

AURORUS wrote:

We're all holding our breaths at the outcome of this

We had a good game, played through the first 8 maps of the Descent 1 First Strike mission. I'd consider it a draw, I thought we were pretty evenly matched. We had numerous occasions where we simultaneously killed each other. Also several lengthy dogfights where it was a matter of who ran out of ammo first. Good times.

Oh, were you being sarcastic?