Questions about networking and multiplayer games.
Really how hard is it to add multiplayer to a game? Does the time depend on how the game works, or how big the game is? I don’t think that this really fits in with the other questions, so any answer is appreciated!
That relly depend how your game is organized :
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Multiplayer means that multiple players can be connected and synchronized with each other (duh) so you’ll have to make a player for each of them connected.
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Godot makes it simple to know which player you control using [Node.is_multiplayer_authority()] and that’s to know if the current peer (device connected to the current game’s network) is your own computer (this player is you / this is you ? kind of question)
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Minecraft (as an example) started as a Single Player game, but switched in 1.7.10 to a multiplayer game with a great Player structure, even when you play on single player today, you play in a multiplayer server that you pc host. You can be Server and Client at the same time.
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Last but not least, to Create a multiplayer game. it’s so easy, you don’t handle the networking with your own hands (but you could) because Godot handles Networking fabulously* with Nodes that you can put in your scene/prefab to synchronize property’s of Nodes amongs players (like all player’s position synchronized) as to connect or leave a game is as simple as a single line of code. (even if it needs a bit more to handle connection and leaving).
So to ADD Multiplayer to a game, you would need to re-organize your game if you hold player value like Global values, or that your game is centered around the player. Other than that, if a player could be or is already counted as a entity / node, it would be easy to turn your already existing single player game into a multiplayer game.
If you’re talking about local co-op. That basicly the same, with some difference but it would depend if your game is centered on the aspect of Co-op (like mandatory to play because it depends on them) or if it’s just to play with 2 player.