Red Alert 3.03 Patch

Red Alert 3.03 Patch

This patch vastly improves network play and is a must for any LAN game to play smoothly.

Four Player Internet version release notes

Overview of Changes to the Internet Game Setup Process.

1. Internet games no longer need the separate Westwood Online Chat program for the game setup phase. All the Internet chatting and game setup functionality is now integrated into the Red Alert program, enabling smoother, quicker Internet game matching.

2. To play a multiplayer Internet game of Red Alert, Counterstrike, or Aftermath, launch the game, then select "Multiplayer" from the main menu. Then from the Multiplayer game menu, select "Internet". At this point you'll be presented with a login dialog that allows you to enter your Westwood Online nickname and password. (If you have not previously saved a nickname/password, you will be given the opportunity to jump from here directly into the registration process).

3. Navigation between channels in Westwood Online has been altered somewhat, making it easier for users that are not yet familiar with the system. Most notably, the concept of game "lobbies" has been added. These are chat channels that only users of Red Alert may enter. It is in these channels that games are created and joined. To prevent excessive crowding, there are several Red Alert lobbies, each with a distinct name. In order to host a new Red Alert game, or to join one that is starting, you must first enter a Red Alert lobby. Press the "New" button to start a new game. Note that pressing "New" when you are not in a Red Alert lobby will result in the creation of a chat channel, not a game channel. You can join a game that is being started by highlighting the game you wish to join and pressing the "Join" button, or simply by double-clicking on the game.

4. When you initially log in to Westwood Online using Red Alert, you are automatically placed into a Red Alert lobby.

5. There is a new Westwood Online option, associated with these new lobbies. Ordinarily, the game channels that you see listed are all games that are currently being created, regardless of what lobby they were created in. If this list gets too long, or if you are looking for a game that you know has been created in the lobby that you are in, turn on the "Show local lobby games only" option. When this option is on, only those games created in the lobby you are in show up on the channels list.

6. Selecting "...

" from a channel list moves you "up" within the Westwood Online channels layout. Selecting any other option moves you "down" within the system. At the very top of the tree you will find three main channel categories:

i. Official Chat: Here you'll find chat channels that are officially sanctioned by Westwood. Users cannot create new chat channels in this area.*

ii. User Chat: Located here are chat channels created by users. You can create your own chat channel by pressing the "New" button while in this part of Westwood Online.

iii. Game Channels: Choose this option if you want to access the Red Alert lobbies, where you will find Red Alert games being set up. Also under "Game Channels" you can see other Westwood games that are being set up, such as Command & Conquer and Dune 2000 games.

7. If you have only used the Westwood Chat client application to start Red Alert games, and you do not use it for launching other games (such as Command & Conquer, or Monopoly), you may uninstall it without side effects. None of its components are necessary now for launching Red Alert Internet games. The Westwood Chat client application appears on your Add/Remove Programs list as "Westwood Chat" or as "Westwood Online" depending which version you have installed on your system. Note: The new "Shared Internet Components" are required for Red Alert (as well as other new Westwood Internet-playable games), so don't uninstall these.