It is annoying but as an admin/owner for a major TF2 server chain in the past (GTFOGaming) I can understand why it is done. We needed to sell slots to keep servers running Luckily TF2 had more admintool support (plus we wrote our own) so people got the choice to be redirected to another server or be kicked if a res slot holder joined (and with 13 full servers at our height you could be bounced about).
Simply don't join the servers if you don't like the idea of being kicked if someone joined. We informed people on join. Personal insults to the server owners is unacceptable though, as I said, servers are not free. To the people giving insults how about posting a solution instead of hot air? Maybe someone could mod that in or take advice - tactical gamer is already working with one modder and has acted very maturely.
Oh and the ones that boot players who have been connected for a long time over someone who joined later, even when there are still reserve slots available.
Reserved slots aren't extra slots to play on top of the normal server population. The extra slots are there for someone to join so the server can know if they qualify for a reserved slot, then it trades out so the max population is the same.
kudos for typodaemon's worksround!
That is how it is supposed to work but for some reason a lot of server admins for this game disagree and convinced the people that make admin mods to make it work a bit differently from how you have seen reserved slots in other games.
@kk20 - While I'm not disagreeing with anything you said, your post misses the point raised by the OP and others in this thread.
The complaint is not that people get kicked from servers that use reserved slots. The complaint is that there is no way to know from within the server browser which servers will kick you. There's no distinguishing between servers with reserved slots and servers that are completely public, and there's way to know that a server which appears to have available slots is in fact closed to the public because the non-reserved slots are full.
This means that people will waste time connecting to a server WHICH THEY CAN'T JOIN, loading the map, and then getting kicked. If the server browser were better, servers whose public slots are full would not appear to be the same as servers that have open public slots, and nobody would waste time trying to connect to servers that they can't join.
@typodamon's browser mod is a great step in the right direction.
ScardyBobScardyBobJoin Date: 2009-11-25Member: 69528Forum Admins, Forum Moderators, NS2 Playtester, Squad Five Blue, Reinforced - Shadow, WC 2013 - Shadow
One of the few times I got into the Tactical Gamer server I noticed a steady stream of "X is being kicked because of Reserved Slots". It wasn't uncommon to see a dozen+ people kicked over the course of a single match.
The proper solution requires some changes on UWE's end, but I think the best current solution is to password the server when its public slots are full.
I just ignore KingKahuna, TacticalGamer for this reason. IbisGaming only kicks you if you join after 20 iirc, but doesnt kick you in game, so I have played this server a bit if I can get in.
The KingKahuna is the most annoying. If I wanted to join another server, I would. I don't need it sending to another full server in an endless loop (if they check to see if there was room BEFORE they sent you, well, that would be much better. As it stands, the developer for this redirect lacks vision).
Tactical I understand they want to sell slots. But getting kicked as the commander by someone who is new to the game, well, no thanks.
Other then those three servers, I have not seen this issue. There are plenty of servers to choose from, so just choose a different one (and I understand that servers and bandwidth are not free, so often server admins are just trying to reimburse rather then make money).
It kicks after 22 but note that lets say that at 20 3 people connect. The last person to get into the game even if they were in reality the 21st person will be kicked. (so have a fast computer).
Also you can get kicked in game if a reserved slot player or admin joins. For example if I join and the server is 22/23 someone will get kicked to make room. It is just that this is very rare as personally I will actually wait for a slot to open to minimize the kicks in the server and b/c I am watching the server traffic nearly 24/7 anyways lol.
You do realize your server is one of the worst servers in NS2, with a solid tick rate of 6-19, and the only people that play there are completely oblivious to the fact that they are lagging beyond comprehension.
One of the few times I got into the Tactical Gamer server I noticed a steady stream of "X is being kicked because of Reserved Slots". It wasn't uncommon to see a dozen+ people kicked over the course of a single match.
The proper solution requires some changes on UWE's end, but I think the best current solution is to password the server when its public slots are full.
While it is frequent for people (unknown to the server and shown as ? in game) to get kicked because of reserve slots on the Tactical Gamer servers, there is some background logic that decides who is protected. The two longest connected unknown players will never get kicked for any reserve slot holder.
If the community goals are in line with your gaming views (and they _definitely_ aren't for everyone) then you can visit the natural selection forums at tacticalgamer.com and freely gain a much more protected spot on the servers (and a ~semi~reserved slot) if you simply enter your NS2 ID into a thread that states that you have read the rules and understand the goals of the TG community. These players will have a P rather than a ? preceding their name. There is also logic that dictates that the two longest P connections will not be kicked.
If you have some spare cash and want to pay for a supporting membership (which will apply to all the other TG hosted game servers) then you will always have a reserved slot assuming the prior two protected categories have extra players. ? players will be bumped until there are only two, then P players will be bumped. When there are only two ? players and two P players then even if you pay you will be dropped upon joining.
The only time I'm aware of that doesn't follow this logic is if there is a captains game in progress then everybody has kick protection since captains games are basically like a PUG or scrim where two people pick teams and each team plays both sides, but these only happen when a large number of regulars are on a server.
Now I didn't intend for this to be an ad for TG but it kinda reads like one so I'll give my primary reason for tossing some cash at them. I had played quite a bit of NS1 at TG but was pretty broke at the time and only ever played as a P. I really liked the communication and teamwork I found there, and even if they did seem to have some draconian views about some things, overall it was awesome to be playing games with likeminded folks rather than any eclectic mix.
Back at NS2release I was really pumped for the game and rented a server which was called Scarytown (Penny Arcade) so I could play it with friends from there. Long story short ... at the end of 3 months it wasn't worth paying for because it was basically 'just another pub'. In those three months I paid more than a year at TG cost so I just skipped taking the family out to eat for one night and got a yearly pass. IMO the 22 cents a day I paid is more than worth it to be able to hop into a game with (assuming the server has a decent amount of regulars) competent and communicative players at a moments notice.
Place only has 1 or 2 slots left out of 24 then you'll get transfered to another server
Course this requires that a place runs multiple servers to pull this off
You may not be able to blacklist a place, but you should be able to have a lengthy favorites list
It doesn't take much to get into the good graces of the owners / admins if you are a regular
Spend a little time at a place and you'll likely be able to get on the list of usernames that gets ignored for slot checks
The good graces of any admin who does this is not a place i want to be.
lol.... paying to play on a first person shooter server..... that's a new one. I can't believe people actually pay for a reserved slot when there are servers that have just as good of a community of players and there are no reserved slots.
Paying for an admin'd server is pretty common in large communities. Especially with a reserved slot mod too. If I was really really into NS2 then i'd pay for a community server I call "home".
Donating to a server you support and paying to get rid of a redirect are two opposite ends of the spectrum. I actually used to donate to servers such as KKG until they implemented stupid sht like this. I am hoping that the "Official Reserve Slot" implementation gets released in the big biodome/female marine update.
NS1's most popular server - G4B2S - was "full" when it had 23/24 players, due to a reserved slot. IIRC, you couldn't even join the server because of the reserved slot. You had to wait until it was 22/24 or less. I've never owned a server and don't really know the options available to owners, but if this could be on NS2, that'd be a nice fix.
douchebagatronCustom member titleJoin Date: 2003-12-20Member: 24581Members, Constellation, Reinforced - Shadow
I even find reserved slots infuriating. If I have a friend playing then I can't use auto-connect. if someone joins at the same time as me I waste time loading just to get kicked.
To the people giving insults how about posting a solution instead of hot air? Maybe someone could mod that in or take advice - tactical gamer is already working with one modder and has acted very maturely.
you want a solution? make the reserved slotters download a mod to connect to your servers. all these mods exist to punish pubbers and give people who pay 5 dollars a sense of high-and-mightiness, but none consider that it's detrimental to the growth of the community. New players will have a poor experience and it's going to ruin things in the long run. A proper solution would involve a client mod for reserved slotters to connect to their respective servers, and doing so could even be done to present a better all around experience for reserved slotters (more information about their server, quicker access from the menu). instead a quick and dirty solution was done that mimics old hacky solutions.
dePARAJoin Date: 2011-04-29Member: 96321Members, Squad Five Blue
edited August 2013
I prefer quality over quantity. Many serveradmins forget this aspect.
Examples:
A always full server that drops down to 5 ticks isnt a good server.
A filled server by automatism (bots, redirects, ...) isnt a good server.
But many admins prefer to be number one on gametracker at all cost instead of hosting for the best possible gameexperience.
You can impress new players with the gametracker rank, but every veteran would leave your server dropping below 20 ticks for example.
To the OP:
There is a simple solution for your "problem", dont play on servers you dont like.
Comments
Yea, those are the same ones that were sending me all over the place a few nights ago...
Simply don't join the servers if you don't like the idea of being kicked if someone joined. We informed people on join. Personal insults to the server owners is unacceptable though, as I said, servers are not free. To the people giving insults how about posting a solution instead of hot air? Maybe someone could mod that in or take advice - tactical gamer is already working with one modder and has acted very maturely.
That is how it is supposed to work but for some reason a lot of server admins for this game disagree and convinced the people that make admin mods to make it work a bit differently from how you have seen reserved slots in other games.
The complaint is not that people get kicked from servers that use reserved slots. The complaint is that there is no way to know from within the server browser which servers will kick you. There's no distinguishing between servers with reserved slots and servers that are completely public, and there's way to know that a server which appears to have available slots is in fact closed to the public because the non-reserved slots are full.
This means that people will waste time connecting to a server WHICH THEY CAN'T JOIN, loading the map, and then getting kicked. If the server browser were better, servers whose public slots are full would not appear to be the same as servers that have open public slots, and nobody would waste time trying to connect to servers that they can't join.
@typodamon's browser mod is a great step in the right direction.
The proper solution requires some changes on UWE's end, but I think the best current solution is to password the server when its public slots are full.
You do realize your server is one of the worst servers in NS2, with a solid tick rate of 6-19, and the only people that play there are completely oblivious to the fact that they are lagging beyond comprehension.
While it is frequent for people (unknown to the server and shown as ? in game) to get kicked because of reserve slots on the Tactical Gamer servers, there is some background logic that decides who is protected. The two longest connected unknown players will never get kicked for any reserve slot holder.
If the community goals are in line with your gaming views (and they _definitely_ aren't for everyone) then you can visit the natural selection forums at tacticalgamer.com and freely gain a much more protected spot on the servers (and a ~semi~reserved slot) if you simply enter your NS2 ID into a thread that states that you have read the rules and understand the goals of the TG community. These players will have a P rather than a ? preceding their name. There is also logic that dictates that the two longest P connections will not be kicked.
If you have some spare cash and want to pay for a supporting membership (which will apply to all the other TG hosted game servers) then you will always have a reserved slot assuming the prior two protected categories have extra players. ? players will be bumped until there are only two, then P players will be bumped. When there are only two ? players and two P players then even if you pay you will be dropped upon joining.
The only time I'm aware of that doesn't follow this logic is if there is a captains game in progress then everybody has kick protection since captains games are basically like a PUG or scrim where two people pick teams and each team plays both sides, but these only happen when a large number of regulars are on a server.
Now I didn't intend for this to be an ad for TG but it kinda reads like one so I'll give my primary reason for tossing some cash at them. I had played quite a bit of NS1 at TG but was pretty broke at the time and only ever played as a P. I really liked the communication and teamwork I found there, and even if they did seem to have some draconian views about some things, overall it was awesome to be playing games with likeminded folks rather than any eclectic mix.
Back at NS2release I was really pumped for the game and rented a server which was called Scarytown (Penny Arcade) so I could play it with friends from there. Long story short ... at the end of 3 months it wasn't worth paying for because it was basically 'just another pub'. In those three months I paid more than a year at TG cost so I just skipped taking the family out to eat for one night and got a yearly pass. IMO the 22 cents a day I paid is more than worth it to be able to hop into a game with (assuming the server has a decent amount of regulars) competent and communicative players at a moments notice.
The good graces of any admin who does this is not a place i want to be.
In other words: how do you know if a non-favorited server is "blacklisted" or simply a new one?
"Preparing to precache, please wait..."
Reserved slots are great if implemented correctly. The current version you are using is more of a nuisance than anything.
you want a solution? make the reserved slotters download a mod to connect to your servers. all these mods exist to punish pubbers and give people who pay 5 dollars a sense of high-and-mightiness, but none consider that it's detrimental to the growth of the community. New players will have a poor experience and it's going to ruin things in the long run. A proper solution would involve a client mod for reserved slotters to connect to their respective servers, and doing so could even be done to present a better all around experience for reserved slotters (more information about their server, quicker access from the menu). instead a quick and dirty solution was done that mimics old hacky solutions.
Examples:
A always full server that drops down to 5 ticks isnt a good server.
A filled server by automatism (bots, redirects, ...) isnt a good server.
But many admins prefer to be number one on gametracker at all cost instead of hosting for the best possible gameexperience.
You can impress new players with the gametracker rank, but every veteran would leave your server dropping below 20 ticks for example.
To the OP:
There is a simple solution for your "problem", dont play on servers you dont like.