PUBLIC RELEASE: NovaHQ Heartbeat DLL (DF1-BHD)

[Scott]

THESE ARE THE SAME FILES THAT WERE APPROVED FROM THQ FOR THE GOG RELEASE!

Now that we have our own game lobby (http://nw.novahq.net), we also needed our own lobby reporting tools.

While I’ve been busy porting my host tool (Now supports DF1, DF2 and DFLW (soon TFD and BHD)) over to all DF games, some people might not want to deal with additional tools running or already have their favorite host tool. Because of that, I have created replacement DLL files that will load automatically with your game whenever you are hosting. They will report your game status to the NovaHQ and NovaWorld.cc lobby automatically so anyone can join your game. Additionally, these files can be used to create your own lobby or server status for your own website.

I’ve created DLL files for DF1 – BHD. All you need to do is download the archive, find your game version and replace the files in your game folder. These files will not affect gameplay in any way; they work with all mods and simply report your games online status when you are hosting a “NovaWorld” game session. By default they report your games online status to http://nw.novahq.net and http://novaworld.cc but you can add an additional lobby if you choose. I will be releasing some sample PHP scripts that will show you how to display this information on your own website or even create your own lobby.

WHY DO YOU WANT TO RUN THESE FILES?
Because when / if NovaWorld goes down, servers that are running these DLL files will have a steady lobby to use for players to join through. AND with our alternate Startup.htm files NovaWorld is no longer necessary for players to join games. Yes that means no login or account required. This makes it easy to join games, without having to use pingers or any other software. All the player needs to do is load their game, click play online, and select a server to play in. Just like the good old days.

THESE DLL FILES WILL NOT AFFECT GAME PLAY IN ANY WAY AND WORK WITH ALL MODS. YOUR GAME WILL STILL REPORT TO THE OFFICIAL LOBBY LIKE NORMAL. THESE ALSO WILL NOT AFFECT ANY HOSTING TOOLS YOU CURRENTLY USE.

Information that is reported with these files: Map Name, Current/Max Players, Game Type, Time Remaining, Game Name, Port, Player Name, Team, Weapon, Kills, Deaths etc. Pretty basic stuff. An example of a server running these files can be seen here: http://nw.novahq.net/df2/info/0001500


NovaHQ would also like to thank Thor from NovaWorld.cc for hosting alternate lobbies for all this time, allowing the community to continue playing these great games without NovaWorld.