The 56k'ers Survival Guide To PlayStation 2 Online Special @ Gaming Target

Written by Adam Woolcott on September 11, 2002

Special: Getting your lowly dial-up to work with the PS2 is so easy, even someone on broadband could figure it out.

56k'ers Ц you know you're out there. I know you're out there. Despite a handful of loud-mouthed broadband users who in the past have referred to 56k users as Уthe peasants of the InternetФ, dial-up connections are still the dominant majority of users on the big bad Internet. I'm sure you have your reasons Ц can't afford it, not in your area, think it's too difficult to set up, you're a slave to AOL and bow to their throne of wretchedness on a daily basis, etc. Yet, even if you're surfing on a good old analog connection, you own a PS2 and are interested in going online, which begs the question Уwhat can I play, and how do I set it up?Ф Thankfully, we have plenty of answers, as well as some helpful hints for making online gaming on 56k enjoyable Ц if not as enjoyable as broadband, as well as a rundown of the many games that you can play on your still-living and thriving narrowband connection. The fact is you won't get the top online enjoyment without fat pipes, but if you have to make do, the dial-up portion of PlayStation 2 online will be enough to keep you going for at least a couple years.

Setting Up Your Dial-Up With The Network Adaptor
While setting up cable or DSL is as easy as hitting Уdetect settings automaticallyФ and then praying for the best, dial-up does involve more steps, but not that many. First, make sure your Network Adaptor is secure in the back of your PS2, and get some telephone cord and plug it in. It's kinda hard to go online without those 2 things. Plus, be sure to have at least 150k of memory card space, since it saves your registration data and network settings for happy traveling if you go to a friend's house with your information.

When you let the NA software know that you're using a dial-up connection, it offers many choices for default ISP's to further the ease of the process. As long as you're using a major ISP like Earthlink, AT&T WorldNet, or AOL, configuring the settings is fairly easy, as long as you know the particulars of your account. For instance, if you're on AT&T, you'll need to pull up an Уaccount.txtФ document that has your true log-on and password Ц your email and email password aren't what they're looking for. From there, it's as simple as giving them 2 telephone numbers to call, with one of them serving as a backup, and then putting in the proper username & password (with domain name, be it worldnet.att.net, aol.com, earthlink.net, or whatever you use). If it's correct, the modem on the NA should have no problem whatsoever connecting to the Internet. If you're using a less popular ISP, like a local ISP or a telephone company ISP like Qwest, Bell Atlantic, etc, it might involve a couple more steps, but should still be just as easy.

Once your connection is properly established, you'll never have to mess with it again, since all the online games will find the information on your memory card and dial up with it. The only exception is Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3, which makes you set your own settings up within the game Ц probably due to the release of the game almost a year before the Network Adaptor was unleashed.

What Games Available NOW Can I Play Online With 56k?
The list of games that you can play online is small for either broadband or 56k, but that's because of the newness of the whole thing. Still, there are a handful of games that you can play online enjoyably. Unfortunately, SOCOM: US Navy SEALs is broadband only, so don't go buying that game for online mode if you only have 56k. There IS a workaround that computer savvy people could use to lag the hell out of SOCOM (already happening), as well as any broadband game, for that matter. I'm not gonna tell you though, because you won't get an enjoyable game, plus the game is made for broadband and should be played broadband only. And that's that, Jack.

Madden NFL 2003 - This is probably the biggest 56k online game Ц since it's a football game, there's not really that much activity that would cause problems with lag on a dial-up. Yes, there can be some lag, but from the games I've played on my dial-up, the lag was split-seconds in difference from a game against a computer or human opponent offline. Madden 2003's online mode is well done, with plenty of stat tracking, and especially letting you know how many disconnects an opponent has. A handy dot rating system lets you see your connection level as well as the levels of others. 5 and 4 are excellent (I had a 4 dot on my dial-up that connects at 28.8 on my 56k modem), 3 is average, and 2 & 1 run the risk of major lag and disconnections. As a rule, don't host a game yourself Ц the host of a game carries the load of the connection, thus a 56k would lag bad. Thus, find a broadband player to have challenge you Ц the load is better and the lag is much, much less noticeable. I'm not sure of a 56k vs. 56k matchup, but it's probably not too bad given the exact connections, but actual results will always vary based on speed, location, and traffic.

NFL 2K3 - Madden's competitor is great online and offline Ц though Madden online is slightly more tuned. NFL 2K3 has zero keyboard support as opposed to Madden, so in-game chatter is completely non-existent. I've personally not tried NFL 2K3 online (I own the Xbox version anyway), but given Sega's success with good online play and speed on the Dreamcast, I'd expect the same thing with 2K3 on PlayStation 2. The same rules surely apply for playing Madden online, so the procedure of letting a broadband user challenge you is a good idea.

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 - Tony Hawk 3 was the first game to support online play, since the NA was supposed to come out last fall. Since it was delayed until this summer, THPS 3's online play was pretty much left alone, except for the many who bought a 3rd party adapter just to play it (the working adapters were in the manual, so it wasn't that hard). Tony's online play is pretty decent, and plenty varied. Dial-up users may host games, but only 3 players can participate, as opposed to 4 when a broadband player hosts. You can play King of The Hill, Trick Attack, and Graffiti mode online Ц all excellent multiplayer modes. Lag is actually nearly zero, but sometimes the game does drop you out for some strange reason. Tony Hawk 4 will certainly have more online options, but THPS 3 will hold you over Ц just remember that you have to set up your connection again through the game. It's just as easy as setting it up with the NA. Tony 3 is actually a Greatest Hit now, so for $20 you can get a great online game as well as a great offline game (but still not as good as Aggressive Inline!).

Frequency Online - Frequency Online is actually free Ц it's included with the NA startup disc. However, owning the original is necessary for unlocking the whole version of Frequency Online Ц swapping discs during the game (which is of course the reason for the new wonky reset process) will let you play more songs online against up to 4 other people. Lag is minor to non-existent, due to the lack of tons of data going through your phone line. The beat of a song and 22 football players killing each other are 2 different things.

NFL GameDay 2003 - In typical Sony weirdness, GameDay 2003 has 2 different things saying 2 different things. The box for GameDay 2003 says broadband only, but the advertisements that ran all weekend on ESPN.com say it can be played both ways. When I recently received the game, I checked out for sure Ц errЕat least tried. GameDay does let you connect with dial-up, as well as arrange a username and password Ц but that's where I ended. When trying to connect to the server the game gave me a message claiming a possible firewall problem Ц funny, since I had a direct connection to my PlayStation 2 from the NA to the phone line, with no firewall even around. I'll have to test it to see what it does on my new cable connection (muahaha, I'm a double agent! ErrЕyeah), but dial-up IS possible. It won't be as good as broadband's 16 player games (wow), but you can. Plus GameDay features chatting all through the game, instead of just when the game is paused like Madden. And get this Ц GameDay is actually a decent enough game this year that it's worth playing online. A miracle if there ever was one.

Twisted Metal Black: Online - This is a game that everyone should have Ц since it's free and all. Buying your NA before the end of 2002 will give you a coupon that can be sent in for a free copy of TMB: Online. It's a very bare-bones, online only game, but it's free! This is where dial-up does take a hit; only 2 players can go in a dial-up game while 16 can go head to head on broadband. Sony thankfully divided the severs into dial-up and broadband, to minimize lag and keep the games organized. Still, for a free online game, it's not bad at all for deathmatching against a friend over your phone line.

Okay, It Sounds Like There's Plenty Of Games To Play. Now Ц How Much Does It All Cost?
Nothing! Outside of buying the game, the fee to play online is completely free. For the time being, only MMORPG's like the upcoming Final Fantasy XI and Everquest Online Adventures will charge a fee, so all the games will be free to play online for some time. It's possible that a small fee may come into play starting next fall, but it's all up to the publisher of the game. But for now, bask in the fact that you can connect and play Madden, Tony Hawk, and especially in the case of Twisted Metal Online for nothing more than the cost of the full game.

Now I Ask Ц Is It All Worth The Trouble?
Certainly. While you may run into some arrogant broadband users that need a good ass-kicking who might give you a hard time for being on dial-up, playing games online isn't bad at all with your narrowband connection. Making sure to let the broadband player start the game will help the load significantly, so just let that take its course and be done with it. Plus, make sure your ISP is reliable and doesn't drop you for weird reasons (such as AOL's fun habits), so you don't get a bad disconnect rate in Madden or GameDay (I've never had a disconnect problem in the past). While more and more broadband-only games are sure to come, developers know that 56k is still the dominant way to connect to the Internet, thus games will be supporting narrowband connections until this is no longer the case Ц much to the chagrin of the small base of high-and-mighty broadband users. Just remember Ц if a BB user gives you shit, it's a matter of saying Уyou're just afraid of me kicking your assФ and you should be able to coerce one of them into a game.

Just make sure you win.