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1 | Map Name (Column): Lists the map being played in the multiplayer game. |
2 | Host (Column): Lists the username of the player hosting the game. Also displays what playstyle the host is looking for - see more below. |
3 | Players (Column): Indicates the number of current human and AI players present in the game lobby. |
4 | Game Time (Column): Shows how long the game has been running already. A ‘-' indicates the match hasn’t started yet. |
5 | Refresh: Force refreshes the lobby list from the server. |
6 | Join with Code: Brings up a dialog box where you can enter a unique game code to join a game. |
7 | Join: Joins the selected server from the list above. |
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You can also invite players to your game via the Steam Friends interface. |
Host New Game
This tab is where you can setup your own multiplayer game as host.
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1 | Reveal Map on Lost: Enabled by default. Uncovers the fog of war across the entire map after you’ve lost the game (in fixed Team games, the entire Team must lose). You can continue on as an observer if you wish. |
2 | AI Hotseat: Enabled by default. Allows human players to join public games already in progress by taking over for an AI empire. |
3 | Human Hotseat: Enabled by default. If a human player drops from the match, allows another human player to join in their place, taking over their empire. |
4 | Public Lobby: Enabled by default. Makes your game lobby open to anyone. Disable this to create a private match - you will need to invite others to your game via game code. |
5 | Game Type: Let’s other players know what type of playstyle you’re looking for. This is for informational purposes only. See below for more info. |
6 | AI Takeover: Enabled by default. Allows an Unfair AI to take over a human player’s empire should they drop from the game for more than a few minutes. |
7 | Infinite Pauses: Enabled by default. When disabled, each player is limited to 5 pauses for the entire game. |
8 | Create Online Lobby: Creates an online lobby with the options you’ve specified. |
Game Lobby
Once you’ve created the lobby you’ll come right into the game lobby view. Here you’ll find a lobby chat for everyone in the bottom left of the screen Apart from that, this screen operates very much like it did for Single Player with a few exceptions.
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Screen Overview
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5 | Game Code: A unique game code that’s automatically generated once you create the lobby. You can share this code with others so that they can easily join your game. |
6 | Player Ready: Indicates if a player is ready to start the match or not. The Host can always start the match regardless. |
7 | Start Game: We’re on our way! |
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It can take several minutes to get into a multiplayer game depending on the Host’s system and the Internet connections of all the players. The more players and game data, the longer this can take. Be patient. |
Game Types
Casual FFA - Casual free-for-all for beginners. No set teams. |
Casual Teams - Casual game where beginner players are part of teams. |
Casual vs AI - Aka ‘compstomp’ where a team of beginner players faces off against AI opponents. |
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Fair warning that Expert Teams games are quite cutthroat. |
Host Save Game
In addition to joining games in progress, you can also save your multiplayer game at any time and with any player. To load a multiplayer save, simply find the game in your list and load it. This will recreate your player lobby for everyone else to rejoin using a game code (which is regenerated from the original).