BZoo: Network Gaming made easy

[jbperin]

To announce the release of a new version of the BZoo network game template on this section, I revived and old thread that was issued by the time of the first version.

It turns out that it led to some confusion between the former generation and the new one.

The new BZoo site is here: http://bzooworld.org/

If you plan to react to the announce of the new BZoo release, please consider posting either in this current thread or the one posted on the News and Discussion section.

BZoo is a network game template that is especially designed to allow network game creation without having to program a single line of code.
Despite it is possible to quickly prototype games without any skills in programming, BZoo also offers programmers and Blender game creators a powerful framework to make pro level multiuser network applications such as MORPG, Persistent Virtual Worlds, network PVP and so on…

The newly issued version comes with lots of new features such as:

* Dual mode view
* Shooting system
* Synchronized and "collectable" objects handling
* Multi scene support
* Network saved inventory system
* Dialog with NPC
* Multi player connections handling
* Player authentication system
* Avatar selection screen
* Interoperability with IRC
* Flexible file organization for collaborative works
* Extensible player properties system

A documentation is currently being written … Get a bunch here…

For Python developers willing to extend BZoo or take advantage of its services here’s the Python API.

If you want to give BZoo a try:

• Download the BZoo Source Archive from here.
• Unpack it in the directory of your choice.
• Open the BZooClient.blend file
• Press P
• Press Del , enter your login and press Enter
• Choose your avatar with arrow keys and validate by pressing Enter

You should now be in the main game scene

• Use arrow keys to change point of view
• F1 to get a menu
• F2 to use use “in game” chat
• F3 to connect to IRC chat
• Right click to throw a bomb
• Left click to shoot bullets
• Space to open door (you’ll need to have the key in your inventory to do that)

To catch an object from the scene, collide with it.
To start dialog with NPC, get in touch with the character.
To teleport to an other scene, collide with the teleporter.

A DemoWorld is in progress that will demonstate all BZoo features in a nicer way.

Stay tuned

Jean-Baptiste PERIN

PS: BZoo works on Windows XP,Vista, Ubuntu, Debian and MAC OS X and it is released under GPL licence.

[chuzzy06]

So Ive been lookin at this for a couple of days and im about to try it. From the looks of it you made Bzoo alot more user friendly.
-Lemme get this straight: I can just use the libraries to create a distributable networked game?
-I’ve playd around with IzE’s ultiplayer scripts, Morgrade’s Multiplayer Deathmatch and even ashids old client socket setup but they ll had thier own problems. This one looks very promising:)

[_LsBlend]

:eek:

the coolest thing i have ever seen.

:spin:

okay, maybe exagerating a littttttle

still, totally wickedly awesome

[jbperin]

@chuzzy06

-Lemme get this straight: I can just use the libraries to create a distributable networked game?

For sure you can …
BZoo is GPL, you can do everything that is allowed under the term of this license.
Just one thing, it would be very kind of you to let me know if you do something with it … just to add you in the user list … for communication purpose.
BZoo is a lot of work … and the only award I can expect for that is to know that some people use it.

@chuzzy06

-I’ve playd around with IzE’s ultiplayer scripts, Morgrade’s Multiplayer Deathmatch and even ashids old client socket setup but they ll had thier own problems. This one looks very promising:)

I do think that BZoo currently is a the richest solution (in term of features). But I might not have an objective point of view :D.

@_LsBlend

still, totally wickedly awesome

LOLL
great great great thanks to you LsBlend.
If only my poor english could help me to convey how pleased I am when I read this kind of post.
That’s the very oil I fill up my tank with.
Thank you very much.

[marcusc]

hey ho fellas a trully exiting development.
i loaded the self installer. works but cant see anyone about but the interface and stuff is good
as i am on vista i still have problems getting blender to recognise python installed on my machine therefore the client template doesn’t work for me, same error as one of the guys above, i’ll just have to fiddle for a while.
what is the most popular bzoo world at the moment ?
is the world empty cos no ones about (cos it’s not very exiting in there) or is it just that i can’t see anyone cos of my connection or summit?

[jbperin]

@marcusc

i loaded the self installer. works but cant see anyone about but the interface and stuff is good
as i am on vista i still have problems getting blender to recognise python installed on my machine therefore the client template doesn’t work for me, same error as one of the guys above, i’ll just have to fiddle for a while.

That’s a fact that there seldom have people in it.
I try to be connected from 9 pm to 11 pm (GMT+1)

@marcusc

what is the most popular bzoo world at the moment ?

In fact BZoo is not a world but a template to create worlds with Blender.
That’s the reason why it is so empty.

I hope I will soon be able to work on a demo world …
Otherwise… theres the BlendLife project that has recently decided to use the BZoo.

Lot’s of contributors in sight Join us if you want

@marcusc

is the world empty cos no ones about (cos it’s not very exiting in there) or is it just that i can’t see anyone cos of my connection or summit?

To make sure you’re connected … Press F2, Enter a message, and press Enter.
If it is displayed in the upper part of the screen, it means that you’re connected.

[_LsBlend]

ok am in process of making my own world
EDIT: and it is coming out quiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiite nicely, may i add

[whyroc]

LsBlend… somehow I think you found my Bzoo world yesterday. A desert world with a reddish castle?

It was a big shock as I didn’t think I had my ports open to see you there all of the sudden.

Let me ask, how did you find it?

[jbperin]

@whyroc

LsBlend… somehow I think you found my Bzoo world yesterday. A desert world with a reddish castle?

It was a big shock as I didn’t think I had my ports open to see you there all of the sudden.

Let me ask, how did you find it?

There might be a misunderstanding.

When you and LsBlend are testing your respective world. You both are accessing the default server that bzoo provides.
Server name:bzooworld.org or ascensionwars.com
Port : 50001
This server is running 24h a day and 7 days a week so that world creators can test their games and new users can give bzoo a test.

It is likely that LsBlend was in his own world and you were in your own one … but as you were both using the same server, you just just met one each other on it.

• BZoo client doesn’t open any port on client side.
• If you want to host a server and make people connect you have to run the server and let people know your IP (or use something like dyndns).
• If you want people to visit your castle, you have to give people your bzooarchive with the castle in it.

[jbperin]

@_LsBlend

ok am in process of making my own world
EDIT: and it is coming out quiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiite nicely, may i add

Great !!!

thank you for making me testing it …

Two things about the last archive you sent me:

• Think of either packing your textures or put them in the directory named textures and load them with the relative path option checked, otherwise people won’t see the texture.
• Use the Relative path option when you append or link something into an other scene,
  so that paths are built relatively to the .blend location.

For instance, in the archive you sent me, when I open the main.blend file, blender attempts to append things from:
C:\Documents and Settings<Your name>\Desktop\bzoo\art\cenes\main\Spacescene.blend
and
c:\Blender\MGP\bananaMOBILEdynamic.blend

which do not exist on my computer. So it failed.

If you had checked the Relative Path option, the append path would have been .\Spacescene.blend which exists in your archive.

[whyroc]

@jbperin

There might be a misunderstanding.

When you and LsBlend are testing your respective world. You both are accessing the default server that bzoo provides.
Server name:bzooworld.org or ascensionwars.com
Port : 50001

I was running the server (with the command options 50001 10) on my local network and changed my client to point to my lan IP address. I didn’t think I was connected to the default bzoo server as all the changes I was making to my main.blend file were there in my world.

@jbperin

This server is running 24h a day and 7 days a week so that world creators can test their games and new users can give bzoo a test.

It is likely that LsBlend was in his own world and you were in your own one … but as you were both using the same server, you just just met one each other on it.

Maybe I’m not understanding how Bzoo works, if I run my own server is it independent from any other bzoo server?

@jbperin

• BZoo client doesn’t open any port on client side.
• If you want to host a server and make people connect you have to run the server and let people know your IP (or use something like dyndns).
• If you want people to visit your castle, you have to give people your bzooarchive with the castle in it.

Ok. this is the way I thought it works… and why I was very surprized to see an avatar pop into my world (lsblend). So maybe he was there by some chance but would not see any of the content in my world…

-w

[jbperin]

How weird…

@whyroc

I was running the server (with the command options 50001 10) on my local network and changed my client to point to my lan IP address.

Perhaps you were running the server on your local machine … and changed the server ip in the bzInit.py script but you forgot to reload the bzInit.py script in the BZooClient.blend file.
You can check the server to which you’re connected by looking at the chat screen (F2)
in the upper right part of the screen just below Server.

Any how, your address on your LAN (192.168.1.xxx) is not reachable from the internet.
For LsBlend to connect on your machine, it should have downloaded your client file with your real internet adress (62.xxx.xxx.xxx or something like that)
Moreover, it should have been informed of this address.

@whyroc

I didn’t think I was connected to the default bzoo server as all the changes I was making to my main.blend file were there in my world.

If you change the bzoo files on your PC, theses changes are visibles whatever the server you’re connected to.
The server has nothing to do with the world content.
If LsBlend were connected to your server, you should have seen its connection in your server console.

@whyroc

So maybe he was there by some chance but would not see any of the content in my world…

I really think you forgot to update your bzInit.py script in the BZooClient.blend file.
It happened to me tons of times.

[whyroc]

Yes, you are right… I changed the bzInit.py but did not reload and save script in the client… lol.

I am understanding better now, since I started by modifying the ‘main’ scene I would see my local content but still be connected to the ascensionwars.com server.

Thank you for explaining jb.

[jbperin]

Two important news:

• A SVN repository with the most up to date version of BZoo is available on projects.blender.org (thanks a lot to JesterKing).
• BZoo was selected by BlenderLife project.

[jbperin]

Just a quick post to say that an article was published on Allan Brito’s Blog.

and that it is a very very very good news for the BZoo project !!!

Thank you very much Allan Brito.