Considering adding this to the list for an upcoming LAN party, and FS2Open sounds intriguing, but I see reference to some existing 'multiplayer bugs'. So just a couple quick questions from people who have tried it out.

- FS2 supports 12 players, correct? We are going to have 10 people, so if it only does 8, that's a problem.
- Are the FS2Open multiplayer bugs severe enough to be concerned?
- If so, does the vanilla FS2 have solid 12-persn LAN play that we can fall back on?

Thanks in advance. Would love to devote some time to this classic.

Sorry you probably didn't get a timely enough answer to this.

Vanilla FS2 was very popular with multiplayer back in the day, so I'm guessing its performance should be on par. LAN will be the only supported mode, however, as the PXO servers are long gone.

FS2 Open is configured to connect to the open-source replacement for PXO, FS2NetD. Many of the multiplayer bugs referred to involve interaction with it, and things like connecting through firewalls to a FS2NetD game, etc. For a LAN game, the host detection should work fine in FS2 Open as well. It'd be the only way to play multiplayer with all the pretty graphical enhancements in the MediaVPs too.

Although not strictly enforced by the game, you'll need to ensure all installs are running the same versions of the MediaVPs and probably the same version of the game engine, or you're far more likely to run into interesting bugs. Mixing MediaVPs and retail, or different MVP versions, can lead to differences in hitboxes between ship models, etc, which can wreak havoc between the client and the host.