On Black Ops 2 PC Servers & Security

tweakboy

Diamond Member
Jan 3, 2010
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www.hammiestudios.com
A post on the Call of Duty Community Website outlines details on PC online security, matchmaking and servers in Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, Treyarch's upcoming military shooter sequel. Here's a handy summary of key points courtesy of One Of Swords, where there's also a discussion of some of the negative backlash this has inspired:
  • All servers are dedicated servers, used for public matchmaking and league play.
  • There will be servers located around the globe.
  • You can’t rent a dedicated server; they’re just free for your use.
  • Anti-cheat is handled via VAC + Treyarch’s own proprietary tech working in tandem.
  • Treyarch has a “full-time dedicated anti-cheat team” to police the servers.
  • Server files will not be made available to the public. Treyarch runs them.
  • Mods will not be supported.
 

nsafreak

Diamond Member
Oct 16, 2001
7,093
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Wow, I guess if they want to kill any kind of PC community there's one way to do it.
 

_Hayabusa_

Junior Member
Sep 1, 2012
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I bought a copy of mw3 pc and let me tell you it's totally unplayable the amount of cheating in that game makes it totally unplayable. It cost me only $58 dollars Australian PC copy because of the cheating and lack of support and anti cheat whilst the Xbox and ps3 retail $100 Australian.
 

Smoblikat

Diamond Member
Nov 19, 2011
5,184
107
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I bought a copy of mw3 pc and let me tell you it's totally unplayable the amount of cheating in that game makes it totally unplayable. It cost me only $58 dollars Australian PC copy because of the cheating and lack of support and anti cheat whilst the Xbox and ps3 retail $100 Australian.

I had the same problem, look up AlterIWnet. Its a good alternative.
 

DesiPower

Lifer
Nov 22, 2008
15,366
740
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so is this good or bad? no mods allowed = no cheating? so I am guessing that would be good?
 

darkewaffle

Diamond Member
Oct 7, 2005
8,152
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I won't be buying it, but if you're running a competitive FPS I think that sounds like a very good approach. I'd much rather have it closed down than opened up.
 

natto fire

Diamond Member
Jan 4, 2000
7,117
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It also gives them an easy way to force buying the next iteration of the series by simply shutting the servers down and not releasing the server code.
 

Childs

Lifer
Jul 9, 2000
11,450
7
81
Wow, I guess if they want to kill any kind of PC community there's one way to do it.

This is much better than it has been since COD4. If it wasnt killed by COD5+, it aint gonna die. Unfortunately, people cant run their own ranked servers. I really dont get why they dont let people run their own ranked servers. Activision seems to go out of their way to prevent something that PC gamers have had since FPS's got multiplayer.
 

DeadFred

Platinum Member
Jun 4, 2011
2,740
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so is this good or bad? no mods allowed = no cheating? so I am guessing that would be good?


Just because something "isnt allowed" doesnt mean it wont be used. Try playing MW2 or MW3 and you'll see what I mean. VAC (valve anti cheat) is a friggin joke.

I got suckered into buying MW2 after IW promised to release dedicated servers at a later date, that day never came and I swore not to fall for that line again. I bought BO because we at least could admin our own ranked servers.

I tried MW3 ranked servers on a couple of the Steam free weekends and I have never seen so much blatant cheating in my life. It sucks because I had been a huge fan of CoD since the beginning but now its dead to me.
 

YBS1

Golden Member
May 14, 2000
1,945
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I have mixed feelings about the way they are handling the servers. On one hand I don't like how there will no longer be many great clan servers out there and I'm pretty sure without admins around frequently there may be an increase in cheaters over Black Ops (but certainly still better than MW3). However it sure will be nice to go into a game and know you will always be able to play it the way it was meant to be played without restrictions. Towards the end of Black Ops run it had become ridiculous, nearly every server had some stupid rule. No matter what you can think of it was probably forbidden on some server. I actually was kicked for using the base gun you start with....an M16, this wasn't on a sniper/shotgun/pistol only server, everyone was blazing with full auto spray and pray guns and I get the boot for an M16.
 
Aug 11, 2008
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Dedicated only servers is not a bad thing. In MW3 most of the listen servers were horrible. It would be nice to have a lan option though. Free servers is a bonus.

So how would a LAN option work on a steam game, since 2 people cant be on the same steam account at the same time? Would you have to buy the game on 2 different steam accounts to play LAN (i.e. purchase 2 copies of the game)? Kind of defeats the purpose of LAN play, no? I remember good times playing Borderlands 1 with a friend and we only had to buy one copy to play LAN.
 

KaOTiK

Lifer
Feb 5, 2001
10,877
8
81
So how would a LAN option work on a steam game, since 2 people cant be on the same steam account at the same time? Would you have to buy the game on 2 different steam accounts to play LAN (i.e. purchase 2 copies of the game)? Kind of defeats the purpose of LAN play, no? I remember good times playing Borderlands 1 with a friend and we only had to buy one copy to play LAN.

That's how most games are for LAN, need a copy for each person playing. The way some get around it and it breaks the Steam EULA is to put Steam in offline mode and then you can log into to Steam on another computer. This method only works if the game doesn't check to make sure each copy has its own key.
 

KaOTiK

Lifer
Feb 5, 2001
10,877
8
81

M0oG0oGaiPan

Diamond Member
Dec 7, 2000
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I remember spawning installations for starcraft. I always had a second copy of most other games and I was playing stuff like doom, qwtf, descent, warcraft, etc.

Now that I think about it though most were played over direct connect or modem. For quake I think we just used a shareware cd and loaded up qcrack. Unlocked like every id software game except for ultimate doom. longgggg time ago.

The reason I mentioned the lan option is because some guys I know have done a couple of lans recently and although they're in the same room they still have to do an online game for most of the stuff they play.
 
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KaOTiK

Lifer
Feb 5, 2001
10,877
8
81
I remember spawning installations for starcraft. I always had a second copy of most other games and I was playing stuff like doom, qwtf, descent, warcraft, etc.

Now that I think about it though most were played over direct connect or modem. For quake I think we just used a shareware cd and loaded up qcrack. Unlocked like every id software game except for ultimate doom. longgggg time ago.

The reason I mentioned the lan option is because some guys I know have done a couple of lans recently and although they're in the same room they still have to do an online game for most of the stuff they play.

Yeah, funny enough Starcraft 2 requires you to be online to play on a LAN. There was a lot of bitching about it because like you said, the first SC had spawn installations.