LAN (Local Area Network) gaming can utilize many popular computer gaming genres with the most popular being; First Person Shooters (FPS); Role-playing games (RPG); Real Time Strategy (RTS); and Simulation games (SIM).
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First Person Shooter games involve the player taking a first-person character role. These games usually contain violent themes and involve a variety of weaponry in a combat situation. Players pit their gaming skills (reflexes and strategies) against others in static arena-like 'environments'. Various game rules are predefined each game such as deathmatch, team-deathmatch and capture the flag. These rules determine the goals that players must achieve in order to be successful. Many players can be involved in simultaneously in FPS games. Some of the more popular FPS series have been Counterstrike, Quake, Doom, and Unreal Tournament.
Role-Playing games require the player to undertake a chosen role and play out a narrative. In most RPG's, players can customize their character (within a limited framework) and then interact with other players to complete goals or quests. The gaming environments are often simulated 'worlds' with characters and quests programmed into them. The game play, while appearing to be vast and unbound, often follows a central linear narrative. The views vary, game to game, from first-person to third-person perspectives. Some popular examples of this genre are Diablo, Neverwinter Nights, Baulders Gate and Morrowind.
Real time strategy games can best be likened to traditional tabletop war games with the exception that everything happens simultaneously. To add a challenge to players, resources must collected and managed in order to build forces. These games require players to employ various strategies, with combinations of 'troop' types, against each other. These games are set on various sized maps which the players must take control of. Like many conflicts throughout history, those who use their troops strategically will have the upper-hand in these situations and usually achieve victory. While RTS can be played in teams, games usually only involve between 2-10 players at a time as coordinating mass troop movemnts can become quite tedious. Command & Conquer, Red Alert, Starcraft, Warcraft, and Age of Empires are some good examples of RTS games.
Simulation games provide the gamer with a simulated experience. Popular examples of these games are flight, racing, sporting, building and even communal development simulations. These virtual games challenge the players to participate as accurately as they can, in order to make the most out of the experience. The environment is often quite flexible as to allow players to push the boundaries of the virtual experience - often adding to the realism. Microsoft Flight Sim, Need for Speed, and Heroes of the Pacific.
There are many games which are now combining these popular genres to capture a larger gamer market. Battlefield 1942, for example, is roughly a cross between as FPS and simulation game. Recent releases such as Savage contain elements of both RTS and FPS while Spellforge is both a RPG and RTS game.
Luke Smart 02:03, 31 Oct 2004 (EST)
