Question

I developed a turn based game for Android, and now I want to add multiplayer gaming. I don’t want to use providers like “skiller”, I would like to develop my own server.

I don’t have a dedicated server, but I have a php hosting with “1 and 1”. Would be a good idea to use this hosting like a game server? My idea is that my Android game polls server every X seconds waiting for opponent move.

What do you think about it?

Answer 1

I have looked into using them for hosting and I have heard great things about their support. BUT unless your using a dedicated server that they offer (instead of the base level shared hosting service) you probably won’t have the resources available to support a gaming server.

If you can handle doing the server config yourself or are good with detailed instructions on how to set one up then I highly recommend using the $20 a month linode.com base plan. I am using it for site hosting and it makes a huge difference in terms of performance and flexibility. Also I have seen some performance benchmark comparisons done between it, slicehost, rackspace, and Amazon S3 and it blew all of them (especially Amazon) out of the water. The benchmark is 2 or 3 years old, but it is still rather telling.

Linode will let you do ANYTHING you want within the bounds of the law with the server. So if you want to host an adult site they won’t have a problem with it. They will probably have a problem with setting up a spam server or some shady things like that. But they are cool with everything else it seems. Plus they are probably the most affordable option out there.

I would add that you may look into the technology behind APE servers (AJAX Push Engine). Its a high efficiency chat system that works with pretty much any server-end language and front-end.

http://www.ape-project.org/