I kinda miss the Zone on stupid 28k dial-up, BO2 FF NG. Learning how to cut and past the user-made level into the proper folder, after unzipping it, on Windows 95, so I could play with some dude named "Five," basically my first internet "friend" who I haven't spoken to in 15 years. Then one day, seeing someone in a lobby named KOP_FlyDuDe, holy crap that's the guy who made Empire Nightclub! I jump into the game, he's a cool guy for being so famous. I check out his clan, I join it. I keep the tag looooong after I've done any associated activities with the clan, because there's a billion "snake"s out there, but only ONE KOP_Snake. Oh boy, Episode 1: Obi-Wan is coming out sometime! It's basically the next DF sequel! I go to obi-wan.net (or something) and try using these "forums" things that are new to me. I keep using them, but the game gets cancelled. Oh wait, everyone from this website posts at massassi.net anyways, I'll go there instead now! I used to be able to hit enter and make a new paragraph there, but apparently that feature is gone now?

In Soviet Russia, the Zone misses you.

See what I did there? XD

The Zone was a most wretched hive of scum & villany. The best times that I had with JK were either on the jediBoard/Qtracker, in #JediKnight on ETG (when it was mine--2000/2001) or in private IP games. It was pretty decent playing on Gamespy Arcade when it first came out as well but that eventually ended up becoming the Zone 2.0. When I did have to play there (IGZ), I would always password the room (people that I played with knew what it was or there'd be a clue (this is pretty much how most serious CTF games were hosted--it was a way of keeping out cheaters & lesser skilled players) depending on the mode) & my game (for those that joined via jediBoard/Qtracker or #JediKnight).

Of all the things I'm glad to have missed, being a part of the JK MP "phenomenon" ranks pretty high. SP 4eva! (play toedoeuh)

Agreed.

The Zone amassed a collective of awful people for years like some kind of abstract bodily discharge sponge on the internet. Some could describe a site like the Zone as the gaming's "Wild West," fine, but I'll argue that it's soul still lives on gaming networks to this day. If the Zone was resurrected today and its sponge body was squeezed out for its chunky fluids to absorb anew, it would not only have its share of mingebag teenagers but more raging manchildren to file the ranks. It just wouldn't work, my (admittedly brief) experiences with Xbox Live confirms that position.

All in all, I'll still stick to smaller community-minded servers and block all Youtube comments to game trailers.

I loved the zone. Making my conc fire faster than the repeater, Triscuit's build cogs, etc etc...

All the real games I had were private, with clan mates, or with people here on Massassi.

Echoman, I used to call people like that "Zoners."


But I still think the zone was great. Xbox live is terrible in comparison. I hit join game and get slapped into something random. I liked the lobby, and being able to write short descriptions of the game type.

I think Diablo 3 would be better on the zone lolol.

I just think I had a lot more tolerance back then. Lobby chat seemed more occupied with chat bots and sheer drama. But I guess Zone has the advantage of being new.

When finding a game, server descriptions are a plus though. Never looked back when I moved on.

My years of experience with Xbox Live confirms that position, as well. Really though, this is a problem anywhere online that's not either a tight-knit community or moderated in a very heavy manner, with younger average aged communities being the worst.

The problem with multiplayer gaming is that it involves interaction with other people.

I played a lot of Mechwarrior 3 on the zone. Only a little jk.

Played JK extensively.

NAR CTF. Password; fan

BGJ NF SABZ. Trick was to set mouse sensitivity to high and exploit the low-speed dial-up connection. Yeah, the Zone was pretty awesome.

Just remembered that map where you play "soccer" by using conc blasts to move a small box into your opponent's goal. And Caesar's Palace. What a map... Good times. JHS sucked balls though, IMO.

Dr00me_JCS did this so well that he ruined lives.


JediBall!

Holy hell I miss the Zone. Those were the ****in days!

It was fun for EWP/KWP/Goldeneye (the latter to spawn 100 client side stormies in the air vents and watch people ****)

JHS was great for some mods. Had lots of fun times in that map

The most fun I ever had playing JK MP was this time I helped Gris test the Life of Grismath coop mod. It was buggy to the point of being nearly unplayable but fun as hell.

I too miss the zone. Yes, it was a wretched hive of hackers and builders, but over time I've met a lot of cool and skilled players there too. I was always in SBX games, NF or FF duels... The best player I knew (and played with for yeeeeaaars), was really skilled all around, practically unbeatable at duels, but right up there with the best of the gunners too. I found out later that she was a girl, and she must have been only 14 or 15 when I started playing JK with her. Great times, made lots of good friends, some of whom I still occasionally have contact with.

That reminds me JoS, this one time I went into an I think it was a BGJ NF two-player game just to troll someone with modified cogs (I didn't normally do that, honest! All I ever really played was BGJ NF, though, which was pretty crazy thinking back because it was the simplest and least varied and thus, to a normal person, the most boring form of the game) and then they went "That's no way to treat a girl!"

Teenage years well spent...

...

...

Hmm, I think I tried out The Zone once but couldn't get it to work or something. I think I only ever played JK multiplayer via people on IRC.

I miss the JK launcher Hearing the CD whir in the drive, and then the launcher popping up on my screen... best part of my day in 1999.

And the click of the CRT as it switches to 1600x1200, after which you hear the patter of Kyle's footsteps in your new dflt.mat box.

Then kill yourself with the rail gun and quit.

I feel like the only person that hated the sabermods...

Manowar was pretty awesome though.

Yeah, Manowars was the ****.

ALT-TAB OUT

There was always the guy who didn't know what you meant and then you could never get more people in the game

Why was there a 4 player limit anyway? Other games on the Zone didn't have that. I wonder if they'd have changed it had someone just... told them about it.

If you gave people your IP, you could get a lot of people in game though. I've hosted JK/MotS games with 10-12 people.

It was always too laggy with over 6 people.

I wasn't a big fan of the saber mods either & also enjoyed Manowar 2 & 3. Some of the mods looked decent enough for the time but most of them made the gameplay worse.

I had the opportunity to play JK & MotS over LAN (a few clanmates of mine used to come to LANWAR & Million Man LAN) several times with quite a few people & it was a blast.

I liked just editing cog files and pissing people off.

I have a message for you from gbk circa 1999: go die in a hole.

IKR? That kind of player was the reason I always locked my lobby.

If I was in a really bad mood I'd force vision hom people

The concussion repeater was the best thing.

lol, those were the days... I remember when I discovered editing cog files...I was never "good" at it, but just swapping projectiles around was quite entertaining at the time.

I thought I remember hearing it was some bull**** like they determined it was the most ideal for lag.

That said, you could (in addition to just joining IP) tell people to leave the zone group after they joined the game and more people could join. Was a fairly common tactic.

I still remember my first game on the IGZ (I had previously only played with friends or on jediBoard). I hosted a VoJT F3 game & was excited about doing some duels on the donut (the roof area of VoJT). I jump up there & turn toward the center with my finger on the z-swing trigger. Out of nowhere, a tie fighter comes flying up through the center, scaring the **** out of me & blasts me to hell with Concussion Rifle blasts. I nearly had a heart attack. Whatever "holy **** that was cool!" factor I felt was quickly replaced by anger when I realized that the other player was cheating & I did what any serious Jedi would've done (before knowing about Kicker Helper)--RAGE QUIT.

Alt tab reminds me of "memoserv: You have recieved a memo. Type '/server memoserv 1' to read it"