An evaluation of videogame network architecture performance and security

Abstract

The recent introduction of higher reward in videogame competitions is expected to motivate unethical players to pursue opportunities to gain unfair advantages while playing networked videogames. Networked videogames implement a variety of approaches to attain a balance between reliable data transfer and game performance. Certain aspects of these network approaches may be exploited by players to gain unfair advantage or degrade the gaming experience for others. This paper lays the conceptual groundwork for networked videogames by describing common network architectures that facilitate competitive videogame play. These networking concepts are then evaluated for susceptibility to potential exploits. Finally, three current gaming titles are selected as case studies, using the principles established within this paper, to evaluate the effects of client-side exploits, latency, and state synchronization, on competitive game play.