Online game

Online games (also known as Internet games) are computer games that are played online via the Internet.

History

In the early days in the seventies and eighties, the online games especially from text adventures, MUDs and popular board games existed (Chess, Go, etc.), early games were still running over mailboxes or other non- Internet connections.

With Ultima Online in 1997 established for the first time a graphical MMORPG, in which thousands of players can be online at the same time.

Meanwhile, there are games where thousands of players - usually distributed across multiple servers or clusters - interact.

Overview

Online games can technically be divided into two categories: First, there is browser - based online games ( browser games), single or multiplayer, either based on pure HTML or additional browser plug -ins (eg need Flash or Java).

There are client-based multiplayer online games to others. These require the installation of client software. The client software then connects either with other clients - these peer -to-peer architecture is particularly widespread in strategy and action games for small numbers of players - or they will make a connection to a game server. That is how most online first-person shooter and all MMOGs.

There are numerous other subdivisions possible, eg by cost and genre. In the meantime, have a lot of games of all types over - some optional - online elements.

Technology

Online games use on the server side is often a database to store the game information and thus to ensure persistence. The transferred to the server from the client data is usually encrypted, and it is in the user agreements they prohibited to decode in order to protect the game hacks.

Very many users to connect simultaneously to a server still represents a technical challenge, therefore the players are in MMOs usually distributed across multiple servers. The transition between the individual servers is sometimes possible, sometimes not.