Preview:
[New UPDATE Submitted 2.4]: New Steam Party Subsystem & More..
Open your Steam's Friend List and invite players to join your party straight from the Main Menu.
The default implementation of Steam uses lobbies but requires players to load into a map onto a shared server. Steam Beacons provides an easy solution to connect, chat, & replicate data to Party members all from the Main Menu. The Party Host controls looking for games, connects all members to a game server, then after the game is completed returns all of the party members back together.
Steam Beacons is designed and actively used in a real Steam released game, works well, and will get required lifetime updates. The system is easy to setup and easy to extend for custom game implementation. It uses Steam Sockets and P2P networking on the Steam Backend to easily connect to player's pcs.
Features Include:
-Configurable Party Size
-Global Chat
-Player to Player Whispering
-Easy Data replication between players
-Steam Friends list Popup
-Steam Invites
Can Steam Beacons be adapted for other online services?
Yes it can, but it is not supported out of the box.
Technical Details
List of Features:
-SteamBeacons for Steam P2P Communication
-Configurable Party Size
-Global Chat
-Player to Player Whispering
-Easy Data replication between players
-Steam Friends list Popup
-Steam Invites
Network Replicated: Yes
Supported Development Platforms: Win64
Supported Target Build Platforms: Win64
Support Links:
Example Projects:
Important/Additional Notes:
Projects must have the following plugins enabled before enabling the Steam Party Plugin
Enable OnlineFramework Plugin
Enable OnlineSteam Plugin