Hello. I’m making a GPS game similar to games like Pokemon GO, Ingress, and Orna. I’ve just begun learning about the multiplayer networking stuff, though, and boy is it a lot!
I’ve seen PUN be recommended a lot, but I also see that it’s in “Legacy” mode and that this new Fusion thing is out. Should I be using Fusion? Or should I use the older PUN 2?
If it makes a difference, my game isn’t really that advanced as far as multiplayer stuff goes. It’s turn-based combat, and only a few players can be in the same battle at a time. There’s no physics to worry about, and not even any movement.
PUN is battle tested at this point and solid. It is probably a better safe bet for the moment if you are wanting to get your game out in the near future.
However, if you are looking for a more long term solution Fusion is probably the better bet, though there will likely be some issues at the start.
The other thing to consider is if you using 3rd party packages that have integrations. PUN is extremely popular for integration but Fusion is too new and still in development - many developers are waiting until it is officially released and there is a demonstrated user base before they invest time in creating integrations.
Hey,
We started to use Fusion months ago but it’s still not very stable. So we decided to switch to Unity Netcode and it works WAY better. The lack of documentation and support makes it hard to use in a complex project. If you want to just test it, it’s fine, but if you want something that works, use PUN or even better Unity Netcode for GameObjects (with the Photon Realtime transport if you need online game).
From our side (Photonians) we’d recommend to have a look at Fusion. It may be a bit rough still but the point is that the results are much better than what you’d get out of PUN. We are working on it’s usability and docs. The Fusion Host Mode Basics tutorial should get you started.
Any additional questions are usually quickly discussed on our Discord server. Join the Photon Discord via the “Profile” page in your Photon Dashboard.
That said: PUN 2 is a safe bet by now. It’s not going to change much but it’s also not going away. Also, a lot of projects are using it very successfully. It might be a good, simple entry to networking.
It depends a bit on what you aim for. Not knowing much about the project, I’d possibly start with Fusion Shared Mode and make use of Networked Properties and RPCs.
I’m making a social deduction game (a werewolf game like “Agrou”). rooms are 7 players and 12 players , also I need voice chat for sure. Which networking solution is recommended for my game?
(I’m researching for PUN at the moment, for hosting I think photon realtime cloud hosting is okay right? If I’m wrong correct me please)
If people can also walk around, I think I would go with Fusion, which also supports Photon Voice.
Voice for 12 players could be a bit much. That would be up for testing, I think.
Thank you @tobiass
while players are in the matchmaking scene they can walk around, but when the game begin they sit still and speak, point to each other and effect other player’s abilities. Still should I go with Fusion?
What if I lower players count to 9 or 10 players? (7 players is also possible)
I would still recommend Fusion, as it is the better API and also supports Unity better.
That said, PUN 2 will be able to support that kind of gameplay, too.
You may want to experiment with the may player count, when you got a prototype.
Hi Tobias, I’m a long time user of PUN2. I started briefly looking at Fusion, but I can’t figure out if it is also a relay server based system like PUN. I like the relay approach. Does Fusion work in this way too, or will a player actually truly be the host, which might be bad for connectivity issues?
Fusion in Shared Mode is cloud room based just like PUN2. (this is different from a relay as the cloud room does more than simply pass messages along).
You can run Fusion in Host / Server Mode specifically if you want a server/client architecture.