Video Games Party

There are few things as fun as a LAN party, and running it out of your own place, or your friends, means you get to set the rules. Beer? OK. No camping? Sure!

The downside of a LAN party is you could easily spend as much time getting everybody hooked up and games installed as you do actually playing the game. The best way to avoid this is PREPARE. This is a partial list of what you need to do:

• Find a location.  You need physical space for all the people, chairs, computers and monitors. Maybe everyone will bring a laptop, but nobody wants to game with a computer on their LAP. You also need plenty of power and supportive (or distant) neighbors.
• Establish your crew. Who is coming to the party? What type of equipment will they bring and what games do they own?
• Figure out power.  Some older houses just don’t have the wiring to support 10kW on just a couple circuits. Each circuit in your house (and in many houses, every outlet in a room is on a single circuit, and sometimes the room next to it) can probably power 10 laptops. But only 2 desktops so know what people are planning to bring.
• Networking. That’s the whole point, right? Now, if you are really LAN gaming and aren’t playing over the internet, things are easier. But, wifi may not be good enough with that many clients. You want an ethernet switch. If internet gaming, you probably need at least 1-2 Mbits symmetrical bandwidth for each player. With 10 players, that means 10Mbit UPLOAD (which is usually the slower side). If you are planning your first party, start small with 4-5 people. You may want to buy a pack of ethernet cables as most people won’t bring their own.
• Choose your games. Do this before the game night and make sure everyone has installed and updated their games BEFORE the party night.
• Host Computer.  Some games require one of the computers to host the game. Often best if that is not also being used by a player. Acquire and set up this computer beforehand.
• Seating. Don’t forget chairs for everyone.
• Be a good host.  Stock the fridge, have some good movies ready to watch. Some people will want to sit out some rounds and do other things.

Hosting a LAN party is a lot of work and there can be a lot of expense. But if you are the kind of person that can pull it off, your friends will love you.