INX Game Servers Blog

Ok, here’s the deal. I’ve been so busy with work recently (read support tickets) that the only time I do get to game, its a session with Fifa 2010. Or Tekken 10. At the weekend, on the horrible Xbox 360 console. Which really isn’t good for the Managing Director of INX-Gaming, a game server provider, is it?

There was a time where I would play CS 1.6 for 15 hours a day (and in between answering tickets). We are going back 6,7,8 (I forget) years here. And then came CSS. Then Call of Duty 4. All big FPS games I didn’t half get into and waste some time on.

But then we really grew, and support became rather busy, as did running the company. And as a consequence I just haven’t had the time to devote to online gaming. After a prolonged period of what I call ‘Windows illness’ I lost my rag with the freezes, and blue screens. And I bought a MacBook. The final nail in the coffin. And really, you can’t play games on a Mac. I feel guilty…..dirty even.

So while setting up an office at home, I’ve decided to put aside a nice budget (read Christmas present to oneself) for a PC gaming rig. Woo

Now if I’m going to spend £700-£800 on a decent PC setup, I really need to find some decent games and game servers to play on.

COD4 is really over done for me. Lot’s of time spent on that. I’ve spent so much time on Counterstrike source servers that it would be like taking up an old heroin habit. Not a good idea.

There’s also the consideration that with not much time, we are talking 30 mins here and there for a gaming fix. Let’s face it, if you are going to play Call of Duty 4, or CSS, it’s to be competitive. Or maybe that’s just me?

What game fills that void?

And then I thought….Team Fortress 2. TF2 with it’s cartoony exterior. The laid back atmosphere on the servers. I reckon before people play on Team Fortress 2 servers, they *have* to have a crate of lager next to them. It’s the law don’t you know?

It suits me down to the ground. So as of tomorrow, I might just give Team Fortress 2 game servers a go. Well it can’t harm to form another addiction can it?

What do you guys think?

A required update for Team Fortress 2 is now available. Please run hldsupdatetool to receive it. The specific issues include:

- Fixed client-side perf problem after changing levels on Koth_Harvest_Event.

Linux:
- Add warning if +map is not specified on the command line
- Steam is located by searching .., . and $PATH
- Added -steambin option to specify location steam, overrides search
- Added -steamverify option to add -verify_all when updating with steam

Jason

An update for TF2 servers was released late last night.

A required update for Team Fortress 2 is now available. Please run hldsupdatetool to receive the update. The specific changes include:

Team Fortress 2:
- Added “+quickswitch” command, which brings up a small panel allowing you to rapidly change the loadout of your current class & active weapon slot
- Added server ConVar “tf_teamtalk” to allow alive/dead teammates to talk with each other during a match (default is 0)
- Added 1/2 Bonus Point for healing a teammate with a dropped sandvich
- Updated the class menu to show the local player’s current class
- Updated server ConVar “tf_playergib” to have 3 settings for player gibs: 0: never, 1: normal, 2: always (default is 1)
- Updated “player_hurt” game event to include “damageamount” and “crit” values
- Fixed a rare crash in particle system
- Fixed being able to eat your sandvich (via taunt) and drop it in the same frame
- Fixed not correctly remembering the last weapon if you’re using “remember active weapon” and the last weapon was the weapon in slot 0
- Fixed Medic not being able to release his ÃœberCharge if his team won the previous round and the Medigun was his last active weapon (while using “remember last active weapon”)
- Fixed not remembering the last active weapon correctly if the player didn’t die before the next round restart
- Prevented servers from using steam:// commands in their MOTD text
- Fixed using the regen cabinets to get more health than you should when you switch between weapons with/without max health reduction attributes
- Fixed friendly-fire/spectator exploit using projectiles
- Fixed disguised spies not getting ammo from enemy dispensers
- Fixed thrown sandvich traveling through players before being activated
- Fixed sandviches sometimes spawning inside walls, or being thrown through thin walls
- Fixed fire overlay drawing on hats in DX80
- Fixed an exploit that allowed servers to corrupt client’s item database
- Fixed full packet updates showing cloaked Spies for an instant
- Fixed a prediction error resulting in mis-predictions of crits

Community requests:
- Added new “func_flag_alert” entity that fires an alert when a player carrying a flag starts touching the entity
- Added server ConVar “bot_crouch” to make bots crouch
- Added model override for item_teamflag entity
- Added ability to turn off particle trail for players carrying the item_teamflag entity
- Updated team_train_watcher to support 8 cp/track links (was previously 4)

Jason