Do $ony servers check IP's when playing online ??

[ahmadka2]

hi guys........i am researching these days for playing online.....somewhere along my research, i was told that when u log in to a server, $ony checks ur IP, to make sure u r playing within ur region....is this true ??

cuz i am in asia (pakistan)....and if this is true, my online gaming days are over....even with the machine ID changer...

[ahmadka2]

um....any info on this ?

[jenko]

well i hered that winning eleven jap would only work from jap ip's

[broodje]

that would be kinda stupid, coz IP's do change all the time, u could end up with any IP.

its complete bullshit, why would sony care from where ur playing?
U only need PAL game on a PAL machine and NTSC game on an NTSC machine.

[dlanor]

that would be kinda stupid, coz IP's do change all the time, u could end up with any IP.

Not really. Each DHCP server used by ISPs only has a small subset of the total amount of possible IP addresses at its disposal. And the address ranges used by each ISP are strictly regulated. If that were not the case the global Internet would have failed long ago.

DNS servers and routers (not your own, but those on the Internet) can also be used to identify and trace any IP-based traffic. That capability is built into some of the basic protocols.

As always, some people use countermeasures against such operations, but if you are not working 'behind' an anonymity server or using some packet 'spoofing', then you can be traced, your physical location pinpointed, and in most cases your ISP user account can also be identified. (That last will require cooperation by your ISP operators.)

its complete bullshit, why would sony care from where ur playing?

In many cases they wouldn't, but I can assure you that they will be very interested if they find two different users trying to log in with similar DNAS codes, or other evidence of piracy.

And you have to remember that it's not just a question of what Sony wants, as there are many other companies involved. (Mainly the game publishers.) In the case of server-based games there is often a usage fee involved, even if that is baked into the total game price. Having have paid that fee to a provider of a server in europe (for example) doesn't necessarily entitle you to use similar servers elsewhere. That depends on the deals between the game publishers and the server providers (can be the same company, but isn't always).

U only need PAL game on a PAL machine and NTSC game on an NTSC machine.

Theoretically, yes. As long as the game fits your console type it could be used to log in to servers around the globe. But only if the software and the servers allow it.

I don't know for sure if any game servers do lock out users based on their region (I don't play online games myself), but I do know that it would be possible to do so.

Best regards: dlanor

[ahmadka2]

but it cant be possible.....cuz there r numerous people i have come across who have used the paradox machine ID tool to change their region successfully....and then r able to play games of different networks....if IPs of the same region are only allowed, then how cud these people log into different regions successfully ???

[jenko]

they dont check the regions but they can still see you ip.

ps: it wos only a rumour that we9 jap workred only on jap ip's

[ahmadka2]

they dont check the regions but they can still see you ip.

ps: it wos only a rumour that we9 jap workred only on jap ip's

um...i dont get what u mean.....are u supporting my idea or against it ?

[dlanor]

but it cant be possible.....

You are confusing the "possible" with what is actually being done.
Believe me, lots of things are possible even if they don't do those things yet.

My post only dealt with what it is possible to do, not what game servers actually use at present. I don't play online games anyway, so I have no idea what they're currently doing.

cuz there r numerous people i have come across who have used the paradox machine ID tool to change their region successfully....and then r able to play games of different networks....if IPs of the same region are only allowed, then how cud these people log into different regions successfully ???

If that is the case, then it only proves that those particular servers don't use IP-based region discrimination.

But it proves nothing about what they CAN do in future, or what other servers may be doing already. The possibility exists, so we need to be aware of it, in preparation for the time if/when it becomes a problem.

Best regards: dlanor

[broodje]

Thx for the insight Dlanor