multiplayer gaming on a pc?

[joshthor]

i am gonna move out in a little bit with a couple of friends and i was thinking about making a media center pc, so we could rip our dvds onto the hdd, pull em up at any time without looking for them, and using any type of media. however, i was looking at prices for parts and it doesnt seem worth it. however, we also game alot, so i was wondering this (cause i think this would make it worth it)

console gaming you can have split screen, is there anyway to make a console like multiplayer for a pc? say we have like...4 wired usb xbox 360 remotes, could we use em all the same way you use it on an xbox?

[quaxo]

Only if a game supports it, which on PC, I can't think of any that would. I know some turn based games (the Civilization series, the Heroes of Mights and Magic series, etc.) support what's called a hotseat game. Since the game is turn based, the players can takes turn at the controls.

Most other computer games, such as shooters, simulations, etc. don't support this, because they're not programmed to play multiplayer that way. They're designed for each player to have a copy of the game and play over a LAN or the Internet.

[BC_Programmer]

each player to have a copy of the game and play over a LAN or the Internet.

which I find much better- with games like goldeneye 007 N64 (last good console FPS IMHO), multiplayer was one-sided, since if one person had memorized the level and another was new to the game, the veteran player could always see where the newbie player was, and thus find & kill them. PC gaming over a LAN or internet is more "realistic" I suppose, and much more exciting (as long as the ping is good).