Am I doomed?

bad0cat · December 22, 2000, 02:37

Greetings fellow CTP II'ers

I have a problem. When a friend and I try to set up a multiplayer game I just get "Unable to Join Lobby" message until I beat the keyboard and spit on the screen. I am running version 1.1 I have SoutWestern Bell DSL. My friend uses some local service out of Houston (his works fine). Here's what the Activision web site says about my problem:
==========================
Problem
I can't join the lobby in multiplayer because of an "Unable to join lobby" message.

Solution
Call to Power 2 may be incompatible with some high-speed internet connections. Those Internet Service Providers, which require you to dial-in and establish a connection in order to access the internet, and use PPPOE (Point-to-Point Protocol Over Ethernet), may be unable to play Call to Power 2 over the internet. If you receive the message "Unable to join lobby" when selecting any server from the Internet Server List, Call to Power 2 may not support internet play through your Internet Service Provider. LAN play over TCP/IP and IPX should not be affected by this.
======================================

Translation : YOU ARE SCREWED AHAHAHAHA YOU PAID US MONEY AHAHAHAHAAH ! ! !

So... am I doomed?

1) Is there a way to "trick" the computer into starting a tcp/ip game even though we aren't on the same LAN? (unlikely)

2) Is there some way to work around this that I don't know about? (please God?)

3) Is Activision planning on fixing this in an upcoming patch? (very very very unlikely - this is Activision we're talking about, afterall)

Any help you can offer would be much appreciated.
Thanks.

-bad0cat

Swissy · December 22, 2000, 12:23

Sounds funny to me. I have a high spped internet connection and play CTP1 fine. I see not reson why they would have changed the internet connection functions from CTP1 to CTP2. Yes I do get the occasional "cannot join the lobby" message. Refreshing my compunter or, if necessary, rebooting takes care of that. I think that most of my problems are caused by the way my ISP connects to the internet, through UU-net which around Chicago is regularly maxed out.

If you have TCP/IP protocol bound to your network adapter which has your PPPoE protocol bound to it, you should be fine. PPPoE is not so much a way to connect to the internet but a way to connect to the ISP server at the CO which acts as your gateway.

Could you give me more details about your set-up.

bad0cat · December 22, 2000, 16:43

Rebooting and shutting down all unnecesary background applications is the first thing I tried - didn't work.

Here is a more detailed description of exactly what the problem is:

I open CTP II, go to multiplayer, the list of servers comes up - only two show up (us1 and us2). I select a server (I have tried both of course) and select a profile - then I click "next." The Dialog box "Entering Lobby" comes up and stays on the screen for about 10 seconds or so, then I get a message "Unable to Enter Lobby." If I click "back" and try connecting again the game will lock up (it goes to the lobby screen but no other players are displayed, my profile is not displayed, text I type does not appear in the chat box, and the "back" button doesnt work).

I'm home from school over Christmas and using my parents computer - here's everything I can tell you about the setup that applies:

Compaq (yuck) :/
PIII 550mhz
96mb PC100
Kingston EtheRx 10/100 Fast Ethernet Adapter(KNE110TX)
Network TeleSystems P.P.P.o.E. Adapter(NTSP3)*
Texas Instruments OHCI IEEE 1394 Host Controller *

* I'm not really familiar with how this setup works - the phone line plugs into the Bus Controller and then the Bus Controller plugs into the Ethernet Adapter

The DSL service is provided by South Wester Bell.

Someone on another thread who had a similar problem said that he fixed his by replacing a corrupt "servers.dat" file, could this work for me? A corrupt servers.dat file would explain why I'm only getting 2 servers.

Swissy · December 22, 2000, 20:16

Corrupt servers.dat files was a problem I had in CTP1. The server.dat file contains the information needed by the game to find the servers. The server.dat file comes from Activision with activision.us1 and us2, these are the servers you see. Those two servers have the info for the other servers and the game picks it up when you first dectect the servers. Unfortunately Activision has a constant problem with keeping that function running on the server all the time. This is what Activison Tech Support emailed me earlier this year when I had the problem. They recommendation was to delete the servers.dat, but the problem with that is if the us1 & us2 are not preforming correctly you get the same crap back. I solved my problem by getting a working server.dat file from another player who had alot of servers and could get into a lobby.

As for your set-up the Host Controller is a modem of sorts. You have NTSP3, so I am guessing you have Enternet to set-up your connection. Enternet is a memory hog, but since NTS is owned by Efficent who is partially owned by SBC, your ISP, you won't get any help from them(SBC). I have Ameritech(another SBC company). I dumped Enternet for RASPPPOE, but unless you are familar with drivers, protocols and such, I'd advise going to a site like dslreports.com and hit their SBC forum for advice from someone who has a similar set-up.

bad0cat · December 23, 2000, 22:10

HALA - FREAKIN - LUYA ! ! !

Success! I got a servers.dat file from a friend and I finally have mplayer ability again. Thanks!

TheReverend · December 24, 2000, 15:34

I had this same problem: a corrupted servers.dat file which kept me from playing MP until I found help (not from Activision) on this board.

The weird thing was that I had JUST installed the game and the patch, and hadn't even played the game once... yet somehow my servers.dat file got messed up. Replacing it with my girlfriend's uncorrupted file did the trick.

This seems like a pretty common problem, and one Activision should absolutely address, since:

1) it has been around since CTP1

2) their own tech help seems to know about this (and the workaround) already

3) this relatively common problem completely keeps someone from being able to play MP, and if they don't know enough to check Apolyton for help, they're pretty much screwed

Merry Christmas! @8-D

-The Rev. Brendan Powell Smith

vandal · January 2, 2001, 16:19

i have the same problem but im workin on a 56k modem so the speed obviously has nothin to do with it. how the hell do i get in a lobby ?