Improvements to online multiplayer system

[GGGuenni]

Ideas to improve the multiplayer. Some things were already planned and pursued in #9497

• Resign at any time
• Multiplayer lobbies
• Public/Private lobbies with a list for public lobbies to easily join games
• Kick players from games
• invite links
• Turn notifications per game
• Option to allow players to join already running games (Take over AI)
• Move multiplayer game related settings (kick, invite, resign, etc.) to WorldScreenMenuPopup (right side?)
• Usernames to hide UUIDs
• Feature request: Password validation in Unciv  #8482
• disable charts for non spectator players until the game ends.

2. Multiplayer lobbies: A lobby before the game starts, where everyone can choose their Civ themselves and only the leader can change game related settings
3. Public lobbies + list: Is this worth the implementation effort? Would this even be used? Maybe ask in a Poll if people would use this
4. Kick players: Should it be a democratic vote or leader decides? Maybe Poll this

[ravignir]

Imo, the most important thing is to implement some anti-cheating features.

[GGGuenni]

Imo, the most important thing is to implement some anti-cheating features.

Sadly not possible as far as I can tell. Players will always have the ability to modify the game files or even create a cheating version of unciv on their own repo. There is not much we can do about that.
But that's one of the reasons I don't know if public lobbies would even be used.

[xlenstra]

I don't think we have to make it completely fool-proof, but making it more difficult might already be enough to stop most ways of cheating. Currently, in order to start a game you need to send the host your userID, which the host can then later use at any moment to log into the game and mess up your empire.
One way to prevent this, is by not sharing userID's, but by sharing usernames (as you're already planning) and not making these one-to-one translatable to userID's. For example, adding a file in the dropbox saving usernames, hash-encrypted passwords and password-encrypted userID's. This will also allow users to easily sync multiplayer games across different devices; simply logging in with the same account on a different device automatically gives access to the userID, no copy+pasting between different devices required.
We could then also save the username, password & userId in gameSettings.json, so we can automatically try logging in again whenever the multiplayer tab is opened.

This would, of course, still leave open the possibility for people to clone the repo and create a version where all passwords are accepted, but the only way out of that is to run all authentication server-side, which is in the current server setup impossible.

[GGGuenni]

One way to prevent this, is by not sharing userID's, but by sharing usernames

My current plan is to not share anything directly with the game creator but to join a game through a lobby yourself. The only thing that is displayed in-game to everyone in the lobby is currently the first 8 characters of the UUID as I do not have user names implemented yet. Ids can still always be read from the game file itself though

Login system through dropbox sounds kinda crazy but maybe worth a try if it's needed

Looks like the number one priority for me should be finding a way to handle the rate limit fiesta that is going on.
Don't know what the Dropbox tos say about it but as the rate limit is enforced per User we could create multiple accounts that all access the same dropbox which can then in game be selected as different access points

[SomeTroglodyte]

Shouldn't #1 prio be to finish the backing storage abstraction with at least one working alternate provider, be it local UNC paths or WebDAV?

[touhidurrr]

Multiplayer lobbies: A lobby before the game starts, where everyone can choose their Civ themselves and only the leader can change game related settings

I will say that try not to create more type of files. Ditch Multiplayer Lobbies data to the _preview file and when the game start create the game file.

[touhidurrr]

Imo, the most important thing is to implement some anti-cheating features.

I was thought of implementing some on UncivServer.xyz as such that players game files won't have data about other civs. So, that they can't see others conditions and cheat.
But this has some problems even if cleverly implemented.

1. The host needs to process the game and thus needs everyones data
2. Other's can mimic players and see game data anyways (by using others user ID)
3. Might lead to many unknown circumstances
   That's why my plan never progressed.

[itanasi]

Another idea, turn timer? If you don't move in X time, either skip turn or resign eventually. Might need to be a Server thing unfortunately

[touhidurrr]

Another idea, turn timer? If you don't move in X time, either skip turn or resign eventually. Might need to be a Server thing unfortunately

It can also be manually programming in a per client basis so that clients secretly kick out a player who doesn’t move for X time. That would be a fun to know feature that would give chuckles to a programmer. Maybe kinda like using Clients to mine Crypto. (Lol)

I have always had similar Idea from mid 2021 when i started played Unciv. But for lazyness forgot it quickly. Maybe since now I have a server, I would try to implement such logic.

[touhidurrr]

Also now that I think about it. How would you know if this is a server or client thing if when you try to join a game, you see yourself kicked out. It would seem like seamless right? XD

[itanasi]

Trouble with client side is you can easily change system time.

Also, how would the system then pass the game to the next player?

[touhidurrr]

Trouble with client side is you can easily change system time.

Also, how would the system then pass the game to the next player?

Fetch the time from NTP or something on startup!!! Case closed!!!!