Mark Frohnmayer and Tim Gift wrote arguably one of the most influencer multiplayer networking paper in game development industry as developers on TRIBES at Dynamix – available in full here.

Even if dated, it highlights best practices that any game studio, big or small, can add to their multiplayer to help improve its online architecture. Let’s “peek” into their insights.

Let’s look at TRIBES rocking, pun intended, multiplayer networking model.  

Rethinking Data Priorities

The TRIBES networking model stepped back from chasing raw bandwidth. It instead asked which updates truly mattered and when they needed to arrive. By assigning urgency and reliability tiers to every piece of game state, it shifted focus from flooding the pipe to delivering the right data at the right moment.

That shift redefined efficiency in real-time play. Developers no longer treated all packets equally but tailored delivery to each data type’s demands, ensuring critical inputs raced ahead while less vital updates waited their turn.

When Speed Met Reliability

At its foundation lay a lean UDP-based connection manager that merely reported success or failure. Automatic retries were stripped away, leaving higher layers to decide whether and how to recover from loss.

This separation of concerns empowered specialized handlers to enforce only the guarantees each stream required. It was a deliberate move away from one-size-fits-all protocols toward a more surgically precise system.

The result was a network backbone that stayed out of the way until something needed attention—and then gave that data the treatment it deserved.

Modular Stream Managers

Five distinct stream managers sat atop the connection layer, each with its own job and order in the packet. Events, ghosts, moves, datablocks, and strings all had dedicated lanes to prevent interference.

They filled packets in a fixed sequence so that urgent inputs could never be crowded out by bulk data. This choreography turned the network into a well-rehearsed ensemble rather than a chaotic free-for-all.

Prediction and Synchronization

Clients and servers marched forward in fixed 32 ms ticks. Between arrivals, clients interpolated ghosted objects to create smooth motion even when updates lagged behind.

Player inputs rode on three consecutive packets to maximize delivery chances. On the client side, prediction algorithms fired ahead of fresh data, while the server validated each move and reconciled differences upon arrival.

This dual approach kept gameplay feeling immediate, with reconciliation artifacts hidden from everyone but the affected player.

Bandwidth Efficiency and Scaling

Static assets—map geometry, vehicle blueprints, and the like—traveled only once on the “Datablock” stream and then stayed cached. It meant routine transfers stayed minimal, freeing up room for real-time updates.

Ghosts mirrored object state by sending only changed bits, avoiding stale snapshots that wasted cycles and bytes. With each packet carrying only fresh information, the system sidestepped the trap of re-sending what everyone already knew.

This layered design proved adaptable, whether running over dial-up or modern broadband, and laid the groundwork for large outdoor maps with many simultaneous players.

Legacy of TRIBES Networking

When Starsiege TRIBES launched in 1998, its networking framework powered sprawling battles and helped define the era’s online shooters. Later, TRIBES II refined headers, compressed strings, and tweaked retransmissions for even leaner performance.

Developers of the time experimented with dynamic packet rates, threaded I/O, and early voice integration—all building on the core lesson that data should travel under rules designed for its unique role.

Decades on, the TRIBES model remains a testament to the power of separating concerns and tailoring delivery strategies to the true needs of real-time multiplayer.

---

This article is based on and cites the original article by Mark Frohnmayer and Tim Gift, published on gamedevs.org. All rights in the original content are owned by their respective owners.