2142: the dreaded "Lost connection to EA master server" :/

[TdC]

hmm I just read on the ea webby that there is a 1.41 patch as of the 16th. I'll give it a go if I ever get home again

 

[TdC]

there's a 1.5 patch too atm. I've installed, and even set the cpu affinity and though the game did let me play for about 45 mins non-stop after that it was back to the old connection lost thing

 

[Wij]

Is it a shit game yet ?

 

[Maljonic]

there's a 1.5 patch too atm. I've installed, and even set the cpu affinity and though the game did let me play for about 45 mins non-stop after that it was back to the old connection lost thing

It's a pity, it's a great game otherwise. I don't know why they have to be such wallies with the netcode, especially seeing as it's a pretty much online-only game - like most of them are these days.

 

[TdC]

Is it a shit game yet ?

feh. the game itself is good fun. shoddy workmanship, but good fun

 

[Dr_Weasel]

What ever happened to the uproar about the in game advertising and tracking? Is that still in there? I didnt hear any more about it after the initial posts...

 

[TdC]

damn, I've left off running the anti-spyware stuffs till now. I'll do so tonight and let you know. also, when I installed the game I had to OK a microsoft and a punkbuster EULA and nothing else. there were no extra papers in the box or anything.

 

[Maljonic]

feh. the game itself is good fun. shoddy workmanship, but good fun

The auto sentry puts me in mind of my of TFC days, I'm already getting quite good at finding sneaky places to put them.

 

[Wij]

The auto sentry puts me in mind of my of TFC days, I'm already getting quite good at finding sneaky places to put them.

I'll wait for TF2 tbh.

 

[TdC]

I've decided to stop playing for a while. If the connection is ok I get pins and medals. If I get kicked every two minutes I get bloody FA

 

[Athan]

What ever happened to the uproar about the in game advertising and tracking? Is that still in there? I didnt hear any more about it after the initial posts...

It was FUD due to mis-interpretation of the legalese in the box. Admittedly said legalese was worded in a very wide-ranging manner, but EA have categorically stated that the data gathered and sent is very minimal (your IP so as to attempt to identify your country, a unique to you ID, and then data about which *in-game* ads you actually see and for how long).

There was never anything in BF2142 snooping in your normal web browser history, cookies, or any part of the computer other than the BF2142 installation.

-Ath

 

[Poag]

Theres no actual adverts yet either.

Currently its just a data grab when you look at the signs ingame....you know the ones that say

"The EU wants you!"
or
"Visit Berlin..in flames!!"

I expect in a future patch they will turn these into proper adverts, I hope however they work the graphics so they fit into the scene they are in...eg the current signs have snow on them in snowy maps, sand on sandy maps.

 

[TdC]

In an aside on the connection dropping problem, I now know that the ping time to my firewall shoots up stupidly whenever BF2142 does network operations like refreshing the server listing. When this happens, the ping time on the internal lan jumps from <1ms to ~600ms for sustained periods up to 8 seconds.

Now that is wierd, and I have not noticed the problem until now, and I have had this type of firewall for about a year now

 

[Athan]

That's likely simply due to BF2142 pinging/scanning a buttload of servers at that point, all in parallel. Adjusting the network setting down a notch might help with that, dunno.

And this, of course, is why external game browsers like ASE (when it was supported anyway) are better as they tend to have nice settings for max bandwidth, max parallel scans etc.

-Ath

 

[TdC]

yeah Ath, I thought as much. for instance, I notice the same ping spike when I start up my bittorrent client, but it settles down after a few seconds. also I can download large files and still be at a <1ms ping so I gather that it is more the parallel operations than actual bandwidth issues.

I was thinking of getting a cheap pci nic to plug in my poota to test with, but I'm not particularly sure if it will do any good. It won't do any harm either eh

 

[Maljonic]

I think the manual that comes with the game suggests switching off firewall software if you experience problems. Sounds a bit scary though.

 

[Scouse]

feh. the game itself is good fun. shoddy workmanship, but good fun

Have to agree with you there. Really good game but the network disconnects, on the same underlying engine and after all this time, are unacceptable tbfh.

Still playing it tho!

there were no extra papers in the box or anything.

Actually, I got one in mine saying something along the lines of "don't worry about this advertising, we honestly won't give other companies your personal information and we're doing nothing bad. Honest. We just want to show you in-game adverts that are tailored to the sorts of things we think you'll want to buy. If you don't like it, don't play the game on any machine connected to the internet...."

Not that I've seen any in-game advertising yet.

It was FUD due to mis-interpretation of the legalese in the box.

Actually - although it was overstated it certainly wasn't FUD. It was a gut reaction to the ethical road that EA have chosen to go down.


People don't like EA because they act like corporate c*nts and have been increasingly so for a long time. When little Jonny's mum goes into WHSmiths and buys Battlefield 2142 for Christmas there's nothing on the box to tell her that her son is going to be profiled and adverts fed to him.

So what? You may say.

It's the principle of the thing. You've paid for an online-only game only to get it home and find that they're feeding you adverts and a message saying if you don't like it then don't fucking play it.

It's so far from the gold standard opt-in that it's not even got an opt-out other than travelling back to the shop based on your principles. That policy is actually going to cost you.

Add the fact that you've paid for this. Why should you even get advertising at all? They're not offering you a slice of the cash they're going to make off your personal information. They don't offer you, say, money off the game if you install an "optional advertising component". They do something that doesn't enhance your gaming experience (in fact it's got the potential to detract substantially as buggy advertising code could fuck it all up) and they use you to make even more cash.

That's a step-change in what you're buying and they're hardly advertising that fact are they? The whole "go back to the shop" thing is a disincentive. They rely on you to just accept it. (Which, I must admit, I've done - on this occasion).


EA. Bought the game but hope they go down the pan and release the talent to more ethically-minded companies. Unfortunately though, because of the system we all live and work under, acting like EA gives you the competetive edge.

 

[throdgrain]

You lot are mental !

 

[Scouse]

Nah. Just me m8.

 

[Scouse]

Actually. Been playing this morning and the number of servers that the in-game browser can see is down from 100+ to 36. I've also been getting disconnected every 5 mins.

Looks like it could be a combination of things - but server-side code is definately one of them. Playing a 48 player Titan map, disconnected - along with all but 3 of the other players.

Doesn't look like a client-side problem when 45 people get kicked at the same time (but you can't rule it out).

Wish EA would pull their fingers out their asses and do something about it.

 

[Poag]

Got the new 1.06 patch?

Going by ur post you have 1.05 where it crashes at the end of Titan rounds.

They put out a new patch yesterday which fixes that....quick turn around really...

 

[TdC]

yes I have the 1.06 patch, and no it hasn't solved any of my problems

 

[Poag]

I was referring to Scouse

 

[TdC]

but I want to be speshul too!

 

[TdC]

it's getting to the point that I am not wanting to play the game any more. in fact, I've even blogged about it :/

 

[Maljonic]

I suppose, in a way, it makes those of us that can play it kind of elite.

 

[Xtro]

Thank fuck I didn't buy this.

I got BF2 and Special Forces pack free, played it twice online and didn't bother again. I can't say I'll touch EA anymore.

 

[Flimgoblin]

I suppose, in a way, it makes those of us that can play it kind of elite.

I r l33t!

Unfortunately unlike TdC even though I can stay connected I get cack scores

but that's more due to me sucking...

 

[Wij]

Or maybe it's just a shit game.

 

[TdC]

no foo, the game is good, the tech is teh badd!


*ban wij*