Photon Self Hosted Server: A Complete Guide for Devs

Hello Dev, welcome to our comprehensive guide on Photon Self Hosted Server. The Photon Self Hosted Server is designed to help game developers create and manage real-time multiplayer games. In this article, we will cover everything you need to know about the Photon Self Hosted Server, from what it is, how it works, and how to set it up. So, let’s dive in.

What is Photon Self Hosted Server?

The Photon Self Hosted Server is a powerful real-time multiplayer game server developed by Exit Games. The server is designed to help game developers create and manage real-time multiplayer games. The Photon Self Hosted Server offers a robust and scalable infrastructure that allows you to build and deploy your game to millions of players around the world.

One of the main advantages of using the Photon Self Hosted Server is that it provides a low latency, high availability network infrastructure, which is critical for delivering a seamless and engaging multiplayer gaming experience.

How Does Photon Self Hosted Server Work?

The Photon Self Hosted Server is based on the Photon Networking Engine, which provides a set of APIs for implementing real-time multiplayer game logic. The server works by maintaining a single authoritative game state that is synchronized across all clients in real-time.

When a player makes a move, the client sends a message to the server, which updates the authoritative game state and then sends the updated state back to all clients. This process ensures that all clients are always synchronized and have an up-to-date view of the game state.

What Are the Benefits of Using Photon Self Hosted Server?

Setting Up Photon Self Hosted Server

Step 1: Download and Install Photon Self Hosted Server

The first step in setting up Photon Self Hosted Server is to download and install the server software. The server software is available for Windows and Linux operating systems, and you can download it from the Exit Games website.

Step 2: Configure Photon Self Hosted Server

Once you have downloaded and installed the server software, the next step is to configure the server. The server configuration file is located in the server’s installation directory, and you can edit it using a text editor.

The configuration file contains various settings that you can use to customize the server’s behavior, such as the maximum number of concurrent players, the server’s port number, and the server’s log level. You can also configure the server to use a database to store game data, which is useful for managing large-scale games with millions of concurrent players.

Step 3: Start Photon Self Hosted Server

After you have configured the server, the last step is to start the server. You can start the server from the command line by running the server executable file, which is located in the server’s installation directory.

Once the server is running, you can start building your real-time multiplayer game using the Photon Networking Engine APIs. The Photon Networking Engine provides a set of robust and flexible APIs for implementing real-time multiplayer game logic, including matchmaking, lobby management, and game state synchronization.

Frequently Asked Questions

What programming languages does Photon Self Hosted Server support?

The Photon Networking Engine APIs support a wide range of programming languages, including C#, Java, and JavaScript. This makes it easy for game developers to implement real-time multiplayer game logic using their preferred programming language.

Is Photon Self Hosted Server free?

Photon Self Hosted Server has a pricing model that is based on the number of concurrent players. The pricing starts at $95/month for up to 100 concurrent players and goes up to $295/month for up to 1,000 concurrent players. If you need to support more than 1,000 concurrent players, you can contact Exit Games for a custom quote.

Can I use Photon Self Hosted Server for mobile games?

Yes, you can use Photon Self Hosted Server for mobile games. The server provides a low latency, high availability network infrastructure that is critical for delivering a seamless and engaging multiplayer gaming experience on mobile devices.

Can I use Photon Self Hosted Server for PC games?

Yes, you can use Photon Self Hosted Server for PC games. The server provides a low latency, high availability network infrastructure that is critical for delivering a seamless and engaging multiplayer gaming experience on PC devices.

Is Photon Self Hosted Server secure?

Yes, Photon Self Hosted Server provides a secure network infrastructure that protects your game from cheating and hacking. The server uses industry-standard encryption and authentication mechanisms to ensure that all game data is transmitted securely over the network.

Conclusion

Photon Self Hosted Server is a powerful real-time multiplayer game server that provides a low latency, high availability network infrastructure for building and deploying real-time multiplayer games. In this article, we have covered everything you need to know about Photon Self Hosted Server, from what it is, how it works, and how to set it up. We hope this guide has been helpful, and we wish you the best of luck in building your real-time multiplayer game using Photon Self Hosted Server.