In case you missed it, gaming is huge. We mean huge. The videogaming industry is, believe it or not, bigger than the entertainment industry generated by Hollywood. Billions of dollars per year are spent on PC game software and hardware and on gaming consoles such as PlayStation and Xbox. You probably know a bit about gaming — we bet that you at least played Minesweeper on your PC or Pong on an Atari when you were a kid. What you may not know is that videogaming has moved online in a big way. For that, you need a network.
All three of the big gaming console vendors — Sony (www.us.playstation.com), Microsoft (www.xbox.com), and Nintendo (www.gamecube.com) — have made it easy for you to connect your console to a broadband Internet connection (such as a cable or DSL) to play against people anywhere in the world. Online PC gaming has also become a huge phenomenon, with games such as EverQuest II attracting millions of users.
A big challenge for anyone getting into online gaming is finding a way to get consoles and PCs in different parts of the house connected to your Internet connection. For example, if you have an Xbox 360, it’s probably in your living room or home theater, and we’re willing to bet that your cable or DSL modem is in the home office. Lots of folks string a CAT-5e/6 Ethernet cable down the hall and hook it into their game machine — a great approach if you don’t mind tripping over that cable at 2 a.m. when you let the dogs out.
Enter your wireless home network, a much better approach to getting these gaming devices online.
In this topic, we talk about some of the hardware requirements for getting a gaming PC or game console online. In the case of gaming consoles, you may need to pick up some extra gear. However, Nintendo’s and Sony’s current consoles have Wi-Fi built in — in fact, Nintendo’s Wii is so wireless friendly that you have to pay extra for a wired network connection, as opposed to the tradition of wireless being the option! We also talk about some steps you need to take to configure your router (or the router in your access point, if they’re the same box in your wireless local area network) to get your online gaming up and running.
Our focus here is on wireless networking connections. Keep in mind that gaming consoles have also become unwired in terms of the connections that their controllers use. All three of the current consoles (the Wii, the PlayStation 3, and the Xbox 360) use wireless technologies such as Bluetooth to connect their controllers to the console. The Xbox 360 can even work with wireless headsets, so you can wirelessly yell "I’m ripping your head off right now" to the gamer on the far end of the connection (you Seth Rogen fans out there know what we’re talking about here!).
We’re approaching this topic with the assumption that your wireless gaming network will be connected to the Internet using an always-on, broadband connection, such as DSL, fiber-optic, or a cable modem, using a home router (either the one built into your access point or a separate one). We have two reasons for this assumption: First, we think that online gaming works much, much better on a broadband connection; second, because with some console systems (particularly the Xbox), you’re required to have a broadband connection to use online gaming. And, even if the console (like the PS2) doesn’t require broadband, many of the games do.
PC Gaming Hardware Requirements
We should preface this section of the topic by saying that this topic isn’t entitled Gaming PCs For topic. Thus, we don’t spend any time talking about PC gaming hardware requirements in any kind of detail. Our gamer pals will probably be aghast at our brief coverage here, but we really just want to give you a taste of what you may want to think about if you decide to outfit a PC for online gaming. In fact, if you’re buying a PC for this purpose, check out the class of computers called gaming PCs, optimized for this application. Throughout this topic, we use the term gaming PC generically to mean any PC in your home that you’re using for gaming — not just special-purpose gaming PCs.
Your best resource, we think, is to check out an online gaming Web site that has a team of experts who review and torture-test all the latest hardware for a living. We like CNET’s www.gamespot.com and www.gamespy.com.
At the most basic level, you need any modern multimedia PC (or Macintosh, for that matter) to get started with PC gaming. Just about any PC or Mac purchased since 2002 or so will have a fast processor and a decent graphics or video card. (You hear both terms used.) If you start getting into online gaming, think about upgrading your PC with high-end gaming hardware or building a dedicated gaming machine. Some key hardware components to keep in mind are the following:
Fast processor: Much of the hard work in gaming is done by the video card, but a fast Intel Core Duo (or the AMD equivalent) central processing unit (CPU) is always nice to have.
Powerful video card: The latest cards from ATI and nVIDIA (www.nvidia.com) contain incredibly sophisticated computer chips dedicated to cranking out the video part of your games. If you get to the point where you know what frames per second (fps) is all about and you start worrying that yours are too low, it’s time to start investigating faster video cards.
We’re big fans of the ATI (www.ati.com) Radeon HD 3850 card, but then we’re suckers for fast hardware that can crank out the polygons (the building blocks of your game video) at mind-boggling speeds.
Fancy gaming controllers: Many games can be played by using a standard mouse and keyboard, but you may want to look into some cool specialized game controllers that connect through your PC’s Universal Serial Bus (USB). For example, you can get a joystick for flying games or a steering wheel for driving games. Check out Creative Technologies (www.creative.com) and Mad Catz (www.madcatz.com) for some cool options.
Quality sound card: Many games include a surround sound soundtrack, just like DVDs provide in your home theater. If you have the appropriate number of speakers and the right sound card, you hear the bad guys creeping up behind you before you see them on the screen. Tres fun.
Networking Requirements for PC Gaming
Gaming PCs may (but don’t have to) have some different innards than regular PCs, but their networking requirements don’t differ in any appreciable way from the PC you use for Web browsing, e-mail, or anything else. You shouldn’t be surprised to hear that connecting a gaming PC to your wireless network is no different from connecting any PC.
You need some sort of wireless network adapter connected to your gaming PC to get it up and running on your home network.These adapters are often built right into your PC. If your PC doesn’t have a network adapter, you can fit one in the PC Card slot (of a laptop computer, for example), add one internally (in your desktop PC) using a PCI card, or connect the adapter to a USB or Ethernet port of a desktop computer. If you have a Mac that you’re using for gaming, you’ll probably use one of the Apple AirPort or AirPort Extreme cards.There’s nothing special you need to do, hardware-wise, with a gaming PC.
When it comes to playing online games, you may need to do some tweaking to your home network’s router — which may be a stand-alone device or part of your access point. In the upcoming sections "Dealing with Router Configurations" and "Setting Up a Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)," we discuss these steps in further detail.
Depending on which games you’re playing, you may not need to do any special configuring. Some games play just fine without any special router configurations — particularly if your PC isn’t acting as the server (which means that other people aren’t connecting to your PC from remote locations on the Internet).
Getting Your Gaming Console on Your Wireless Home Network
Although PC gaming can be really cool, we find that many people prefer to use a dedicated game console device — such as a PlayStation 2 (PS2) or an Xbox — to do their gaming. And, although hard-core gamers may lean toward PC platforms for their gaming (often spending thousands of dollars on ultra-high-end gaming PCs with the latest video cards, fastest processor and memory, and the like), we think that for regular gamers, consoles offer some compelling advantages:
They’re (relatively) inexpensive. Although they are more expensive than the previous generation of consoles, today’s current consoles are cheaper than a PC — the Wii (if you can find one) starts at about $250, the Xbox 360 starts at $350, and the PS3 starts at about $400. Even if you dedicate an inexpensive PC for gaming, you’ll probably spend closer to $800 — and even more if you buy the fancy video cards and other equipment that gives the PC the same gaming performance as a console.
They’re simple to set up. Although it’s not all that hard to get games running on a PC, you’re dealing with a more complicated operating system on a PC. You have to install games and get them up and running. On a game console, you simply shove a disc into the drawer and you’re playing.
They’re in the right room. Most folks don’t want PCs in their living rooms or home theaters, although some really cool models are designed just for that purpose. A game console, on the other hand, is relatively small and inconspicuous and can fit neatly on a shelf next to your TV.
They work with your biggest screen. Of course, you can connect a PC to a big-screen TV system (using a special video card). But consoles are designed to plug right into your TV or home theater system, using the same cables you use to hook up a VCR or DVD player.
They can replace your DVD player. The PS3 and Xbox 360 (as well as the previous Xbox and PlayStation 2) can play DVD videos on your big screen. The PS3 even includes a built-in Blu-ray disc player for high-definition movies (which makes it a great deal, because stand-alone Blu-ray players cost as much as the PS3), and the Xbox 360 can be accessorized with a $199 external HD-DVD player. (The HD-DVD and Blu-ray systems are two new disc formats aiming to replace the DVD with a new high-definition format for HDTVs.)
Today’s game consoles offer some awesome gaming experiences. Try playing the Xbox 360 game Halo 3 on a big-screen TV with a surround sound system in place — it’s amazing. You can even get a full HDTV picture on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. And, because these gaming consoles are really nothing more than specialized computers, they can offer the same kind of networking capabilities that a PC does; in other words, they can fit right into your wireless home network.
Getting your console onto your wireless network is possible (and easy) with almost all current or recent gaming consoles. The steps you need to take depend on which console you have.
People who own the most current generation of consoles are pretty much all set. Nintendo Wii and Sony PlayStation 3 have built-in Wi-Fi capabilities. If you’re using an Xbox 360, you need to pick up the Xbox 360 Wireless Networking Adapter ($99, www.xbox.com/en-US/hardware/x/xbox360 wirelessnetadapter/default.htm).
Owners of the older PlayStation 2 or original Xbox need to add some hardware to their systems to get online via a wireless network. Both of these consoles include a built-in Ethernet port.
Early PS2 units (before the "slim" case design was introduced in 2004) do not have built-in Ethernet. Sony used to offer a PlayStation Network Adapter that provided this feature, but it is no longer available. If you have one of these older PS2s and don’t have the adapter, search sites like eBay and Craigslist for a used adapter.
To connect one of these Ethernet-only consoles to your wireless network, you need a special Wi-Fi adapter known as a Wi-Fi Ethernet bridge (discussed in the upcoming section titled "Console wireless networking equipment").
Console wireless networking equipment
As we mention earlier, the current consoles all have inherent Wi-Fi networking capabilities (though this is optional with the Xbox 360). For older Ethernet consoles, you simply need to add an inexpensive Wi-Fi Ethernet bridge. The deeper you get into the networking world, the more likely you are to run into the concept of a bridge, which is simply a device that connects two segments of a network. Unlike hubs or switches or routers or most other network equipment, a bridge doesn’t do anything with the data flowing through it. A bridge basically passes the data straight through without manipulating it, rerouting it, or even caring what it is. A wireless Ethernet bridge’s sole purpose is to send data back and forth between two points. (It’s not too tough to see where the name came from, huh?)
While we’re discussing these wireless Ethernet bridges in terms of game console networks in this topic, they’re handy devices that can be used for lots of different applications in your wireless LAN. Basically, any device that has an Ethernet port — such as a personal video recorder (PVR), an MP3 server (such as the AudioReQuest), and even an Internet refrigerator (such as the Samsung Internet Refrigerator) — can hook into your wireless home network by using a wireless Ethernet bridge.
The great thing about wireless Ethernet bridges, besides the fact that they solve the problem of getting noncomputer devices onto the wireless network, is that they’re the essence of plug and play. You may have to spend three or four minutes setting up the bridge itself (to get it connected to your wireless network), but you don’t need to do anything special to your game console other than plug in the bridge. All the game consoles we discuss in this topic (at least when equipped with the appropriate network adapters and software) "see" your wireless Ethernet bridge as just a regular Ethernet cable. You don’t need any drivers or other special software on the console. The console doesn’t know (nor does it care in its not-so-little console brain) that there’s a wireless link in the middle of the connection. It just works!
If you have encryption (such as WPA) set up on the network, you need to complete one step before plugging your wireless bridge into your gaming console’s Ethernet port. Plug the bridge into one of the wired Ethernet ports on your router and access the bridge’s built-in Web configuration screens; there, you enter your WPA passphrase (or WEP key if you’re using WEP) and network name (or ESSID). After you’ve made these settings, you’re ready to plug the bridge into your console and get online. It’s that simple!
D-Link DGL-3420 wireless 108AG gaming adapter
D-Link (www.dlink.com) has developed the DGL-3420 wireless 108AG ($99 list price) with gaming consoles in mind. D-Link even has its own online Gamer-Lounge site with lots of great gaming information (games.dlink.com). The DGL-3420 (see Figure 11-1) doesn’t need any special drivers or configuration. It does include a Web-browser-based configuration program that enables you to do things like enter your Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) passphrase.
The DGL-3420 is a loaded Ethernet bridge that supports both 802.11a and 802.11g (most folks use 802.11g) and even supports the higher-speed Super G 108 Mbps variant of 802.11g — if your router also supports it.
There’s even some special "secret sauce" for making gaming faster — the D-Link GameFuel prioritization technology, as discussed in the nearby sidebar, "Getting your router optimized for gaming."
SMC SMCWEBT-G EZ Connect g wireless Ethernet bridge
The SMC Network SMCWEBT-G wireless Ethernet bridge is an inexpensive Swiss army knife of an Ethernet bridge. First, it’s an 802.11g wireless Ethernet bridge with a theoretical 108 Mbps maximum speed (you need a router that also supports the Super G protocol). Like the D-Link bridge we discuss in the preceding section, the SMCWEBT-G supports WPA encryption, which means that it plays nicely on your secured wireless network.
Figure 11-1:
The D-Link DGL-3420 gaming adapter.
There’s more to it, though: The SMCWEBT-G can be configured to work as an access point all on its own (so that you can plug it into a stand-alone router to provide wireless access) and even as a WDS repeater that can extend the range of your network if your primary router is one of the SMC wireless routers. For only $79.99, it’s a relative bargain and well worth checking out.
As we write, no manufacturers offer 802.11n versions of these adapters. We expect that such adapters will hit the market by mid- to late-2008. If you’re installing an 802.11n network and if all your other network clients use 802.11n, you might consider holding off on buying an 802.11g bridge until the 802.11n models arrive — simply because having 802.11g clients on your 802.11n network will slow down the overall speed of the network. If you can’t wait (and we don’t blame you — who wants to wait), you might consider searching online classifieds and auctions for a used 802.11g bridge as a stopgap measure.
Console online gaming services
Having the hardware to bring your console online is only half the battle — you also need to sign up for an online gaming service. Each of the big console manufacturers offers an online gaming service, providing head-to-head network game play as well as fun stuff like game downloads (both demos and full-blown games), text and voice chat, shopping, and Web browsing.
Not all console games are designed for online play. Each service has dozens (if not hundreds) of online-capable games, but just as many games are not network-enabled.
In this topic, we’re talking about the network gaming services offered by the three major console manufacturers. For the most part, these services are the way you will access most online games for each of the consoles. Some games, however, might use their own network, or are accessed via the console manufacturer’s network but require an additional subscription to use.
Living large with Xbox Live
The Microsoft online gaming service Xbox Live (www.xboxlive.com; in the U.S., this URL will take you directly to the home page: www.xbox.com/en-US/ live/?WT.svl=nav) is the longest running of the three console online gaming networks, launched right after the original Xbox was put on market in late 2001-early 2002. Xbox Live has over 8 million subscribers worldwide, as we write in late 2007, so it should always be easy to find someone to play with!
Xbox Live isn’t just about playing against someone else; it’s almost a new lifestyle. With Xbox Live, you can Communicate in real time during games. Set up chats with your friends.
Meet gamers from all over the world and put together a posse of your favorite teammates to go after others.
Set up your own clans and start competitions with Xbox Live features. Join Xbox Live tournaments.
Download cool new stuff for your favorite games that’s available only online — new maps, missions, songs, skins, vehicles, characters, quests, and more. You can even download entertainment content (such as movies and music) for your Xbox 360.
Play games against hot celebs that Microsoft courts online.
With the discontinuation of the original Xbox and the focus on the Xbox 360, Xbox Live has been mainly focused on users of the new console. There is still service available for the original Xbox, but we devote most of our discussion here to the Xbox 360.
There are two levels of service for Xbox Live:
Silver: This is a free service; anyone with an Xbox 360 can sign up for it and access game content (like additional levels), and get the ability to create a gamertag (online identity) and participate in online chats with friends. What you can’t do with the free silver service is participate in multiplayer online games; to do that, you need to be a gold member (read on!).
Gold: This is the subscription (in other words, pay) service in Xbox Live. You get to play online games against friends (and strangers) and get additional features such as access to an online marketplace and enhanced friends list functionality. There are a number of different plans for signing up for Xbox Live Gold; the most common is a $59.99 plan, which provides a year’s worth of service and includes a headset for live voice chat during gaming.
Microsoft doesn’t provide the broadband service for Xbox Live (none of the gaming companies do) — just the gaming service itself. Thus, you need to already have a cable, fiber-optic, or DSL modem set up in your home.
If you’re going to play Xbox Live, you need to make sure that your router is Xbox Live compatible. Go to www.xbox.com/en-US/support/connecttolive/ xbox360/homenetworking/equipment.htm. On this page, Microsoft lists routers that don’t work with its Live service, so be sure to check the list before you buy. If your router isn’t on the Works or Does Not Work list, it’s in a huge gray area of "we have no clue, but don’t blame us if it doesn’t work." Microsoft always loves a scapegoat!
If your current router isn’t on this list, don’t despair. Check the router manufacturer’s Web site. Often, it has specific steps, such as installing a firmware update (updating the router’s software), that make the router work just fine. Some routers work just as they are, but they simply haven’t been certified for some reason.
Playing online with PlayStation Network
Sony’s previous game console, the PlayStation 2 (PS2), was the most successful console ever, with over 120 million (say that really slowly in a Dr. Evil voice for full effect) consoles sold by 2007. This older console, as we mentioned, had some networking capabilities, and indeed over 200 network-capable games have been released over the years, with millions of users taking advantage of them. But Sony never put together an integrated competitor to Microsoft’s Xbox Live with the PS2 — essentially the gaming software companies themselves set up online portals for their individual games.
With the new PS3 console, however, Sony has pulled out all the stops and launched the PlayStation Network. The PlayStation Network, a free service for PS3 and PSP (PlayStation Portable) owners, provides the following services:
PlayStation Store: You can shop online for downloadable games (they get stored on your PS3′s hard drive), demos of new games, and high-definition trailers of new games and movies.
Online game play: Registered users can participate in free online head-to-head gaming. PlayStation Network also supports online gaming for some specific titles that require additional subscriptions (typically directly with the game software company itself) — so while the PlayStation service is free, you may have to pay a subscription fee for certain games.
Online community: As is the case with Xbox Live, when you register with PlayStation Network, you can establish an online identity and participate in message boards and live text or voice chats with your gaming buddies over your wireless network.
Web browsing: Not actually part of the PlayStation Network (in other words, you don’t need to register to do this) but neat nonetheless. The PS3 has a built-in Web browser so you can surf the Web on your big-screen TV.
The best selling of the three new-generation gaming consoles is Nintendo’s Wii — fueled by a lower price and especially by the absolutely cool Wiimote, which uses motion control instead of buttons to control game action. The Wii
PSP: Your passport to Wi-Fi gaming
If you’re into handheld gaming devices, the Sony PSP (PlayStation Portable) may be just the ticket. For about $200 (for a Value Pack including a couple of games and accessories), this slick little handheld lets you take your gaming with you. But there’s more to the PSP than just gaming. The PSP is an all-purpose media player, with a Memory Stick DUO slot designed to let you carry photos, music, and even video along with you.
That’s all cool, but what’s cooler is that the PSP has a built-in Wi-Fi (802.11b) adapter that lets you connect to any 802.11b or 802.11g Wi-Fi network. The initial PSPs shipped with support for only WEP encryption, but a firmware upgrade in 2005 lets you connect even the older models to a properly secured WPA network. When connected via Wi-Fi, you can play online games against others on your network or over the Internet. There’s even a built-in Web browser, so that when your thumbs need a break from all that hot gaming action, you can surf your favorite Web sites.
With the Wii, Nintendo has pulled out all the online stops — the Wii includes built-in Wi-Fi, a Web browser, loads of online games, and an online ecosystem for you to enjoy using your motion-controlled gaming controllers.
Nintendo’s Wi-Fi Connection service provides free online gaming for the Wii and also for Nintendo’s DS handheld gaming device (both have built-in Wi-Fi). As is the case with the PS3, most networked Wii games can be played online for free, but some titles require you to purchase a subscription with the game’s software vendor.
The Wii also includes an Internet Channel — which is Wiispeak for a Web browser (specifically the Opera Web browser) that allows you to surf the Web on your TV. Additionally, like the other gaming consoles, the Wii includes an online store for buying games, downloading game demos, and more.
In previous editions of this topic we talked about the online gaming hardware and service available for Nintendo’s older console, the (very cute little) GameCube. Online gaming never took off with the GameCube (most likely because the target audience for that console was younger kids), and in the end only three games were available for online play. As of April 2007 there were none, as online play for those games has been suspended. So get a Wii!
Going Wi-Fi and portable with Nintendo DS
Nintendo has a nifty handheld gaming console called the Nintendo DS (it’s Nintendo’s competitor to the Sony PSP) that features, among many things, two screens. (Imagine driving in a race while looking simultaneously out your windshield and at a bird’s-eye view of your car on the track.)
Like the PSP, the DS has built-in support for Wi-Fi network connectivity. This connectivity is now used for hooking up with other nearby DS users — using a feature of the DS called PictoChat, which allows you to share drawings and have text chats.
To make it even easier to get your DS online, Nintendo has its free Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service. This service allows you to connect the DS to your home Wi-Fi network to play a number of online games being launched with the service (just as you can connect your Wii to your home Wi-Fi network).
The coolest part of this service is that Nintendo is in the midst of launching thousands of free Nintendo DS-accessible hot spots around the United States to connect to online gaming when you’re on the road. The biggest issue you’ll face with the DS on the road,is that you can’t log into Wi-Fi hot spots that require you to sign in on a Web page for full access. Nintendo’s own hot spots (they aren’t actually building their own, but rather have partnered with some hot spot providers) won’t have this limitation (you’ll be able to log in automatically). Go to www.nintendowifi.com/ to find out where Nintendo has hot spots near you.
So far in this topic, we talk a bit about the services and hardware you need to get into online gaming using your wireless network. What we haven’t covered yet — getting online and playing a game — is either the easiest or the hardest part of the equation. The difficulty of this task depends on two things:
The platform you’re using: If you’re trying to get online with a PC (whether it’s Windows-based or a Mac), well, basically there’s nothing special to worry about.For certain games, you may have to do a few fancy things with your router, which we discuss later in this topic. If you’re using a gaming console, you may have to adjust a few things in your router to get your online connection working, but when you’re using a game console with many routers, you can just plug in your wireless equipment and go.
What you’re trying to do: For many games, after you establish an Internet connection, you’re ready to start playing. Some games, however, require you to make some adjustments to your router’s configuration. If you’re planning to host the games on your PC (which means that your online friends will be remotely connecting to your PC), you definitely have to do a bit of configuration.
Don’t sweat it, though. It’s usually not all that hard to get gaming set up, and it’s getting easier every day because the companies that make wireless LAN equipment and home routers realize that gaming is a growth industry for them. They know that they can sell more equipment if they can help people get devices such as game consoles online.
You need to accomplish two things to get your online gaming — well, we can’t think of a better term — online:
1. Get an Internet Protocol (IP) address.
Your access point needs to recognize your gaming PC’s or console’s network adapter and your console’s wireless Ethernet bridge, if you have one in your network configuration. If you have WEP or, better yet, WPA configured,your game machine needs to provide the proper passphrase or key. Your router (whether it’s in the access point or separate) needs to provide an IP address to your gaming machine.
2. Get through your router’s firewall.
The part that takes some time is configuring the firewall feature of your router to allow gaming programs to function properly.
Getting your router optimized for gaming
A few vendors have begun to sell wireless routers (or gateways, depending on their terminology) tweaked to support gaming. A wireless router manufacturer can do two things to ensure that gaming works well:
Make it easier to support online game play:
Routers can be designed to work specifically with online gaming applications. For example, a router may include more built-in game application support in its Web configuration, so you can easily "turn on" game support in the firewall and NAT routing functionality, without having to go through lots of trouble setting up port forwarding and DMZs (discussed in the final two sections of this topic). Many gaming-specific routers support Universal Plug and Play (UPNP), also discussed in those sections, which makes the configuration of game applications automatic.
Provide prioritization to game applications:
For the ultimate in gaming experience, some routers prioritize gaming applications over other traffic flowing through the router. Therefore, if two (or more) different applications are trying to send traffic through your router at the same time (such as your game and your spouse’s e-mail application sending a work document to the server), the router makes sure that the gaming data gets through to the Internet first. This concept can reduce the latency(or delay) you experience in playing online games and make the experience better (you can blow up the other guy faster!).
An example of this kind of wireless router is the D-Link DGL-4500 Wireless Gaming Router (http://games.dlink.com/products/?pid=643, 8199.99). This router includes the D-Link Game-Fuel prioritization technology, an 802.11n draft AP (promising raw speeds, when used with D-Link’s own adapters, of up to 300 Mbps), and a wired switch supporting Gigabit (1000BaseT) connections for your wired PCs and consoles.