When it comes to online gaming, lag — the result of slow internet speeds or distance from the game server (dedicated or P2P) — is the root of all evil.
Who shot first — a diagram of your average in game chat
From a UX perspective, lag makes it difficult for players to move their characters smoothly and respond quickly to in-game events.
From a fairness perspective lag just plain ticks players off. Game netcode often tries to strike the balance between improving the in-game experience of players with higher ping — through lag compensation and other techniques — and maintaining the perception of fairness (the good ol’ who-shot-first problem). This is particularly important in competitive and high-stakes games where players expect to be treated fairly and to have the same chances of winning as their opponents. It’s a difficult task however, and it can make or break a game.
To address these issues, Tashi Network Transport (Unity TNT) has implemented a fair ordering consensus algorithm through its proprietary Tashi Consensus Engine (TCE). The TCE ensures that all players see the same events in the same order, regardless of their internet speed or latency. This eliminates the need for lag compensation and other arbitrary refereeing, making the game fairer and more enjoyable for all players.
The TCE operates by using a distributed ledger system to maintain an accurate and consistent record of all game events. Each event is verified by the majority of nodes in the network, ensuring that there is no single point of failure. This means that even if one node fails or is compromised, the TCE will still be able to maintain its integrity and provide a fair ordering of game events.
Tashi’s fairness goes beyond fair ordering and extends into game events that cannot be falsified by anyone - even by game developers or publishers. This is because the TCE operates on a decentralized network that is controlled by the players themselves, making it almost impossible for any single entity to manipulate the game in their favor. This ensures that all players have an equal chance of winning and that their in-game achievements are indisputable.
Indisputable and cryptographically provable game results have various implications for competitive and high-stakes games, where victories have real-world rewards and losses have real-world consequences. Web3 games can trusltessly support in-game economies and real payouts, while gamers can trust that even Web2 games/tournaments can’t fudge the numbers on their central server.
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