I expect this doc to change over time as BombSquad evolves, so please check back here often..

NOTE: Some of the information here may be out of date. For the latest BombSquad information check out ballistica.net.

BombSquad is a server/client architecture, which means that during a network game all player input is sent to the party host and then the results are sent back to all clients. For this to perform well, the server needs to have as lag-free of a network connection as possible.  If you’re trying to host a public party over a wifi connection on a mobile device, you’re gonna have a bad time.  Or actually you might not have a bad time since you are the host and nothing will appear laggy to you, but everyone connecting to you most likely will be a sad panda.

Dedicated Servers:

The best solution is to host a party on a dedicated server with a fast wired internet connection.  Here’s how to set one up:

1. Go to ballistica.net/downloads and download the latest BombSquad_Server package for Linux, Mac, Windows, or Raspberry Pi.
2. If you’re behind a firewall, open UDP port 43210 and/or forward it to your machine.
3. On Linux you’ll need to install Python 3.10 if you don’t have it.
4. Decompress the BombSquad_Server archive, cd into it, edit any settings you want in the bombsquad_server script, and then run ./bombsquad_server (linux or mac) or launch_bombsquad_server.bat (windows).  See the bombsquad_server script itself or the included README.txt for more details.
5. After a few seconds the server should tell you whether you appear to be accessible from the internet or not (if you have correctly opened/forwarded port 43210).   If you are accessible you should be able to launch the game on any platform and see your server in the ‘public parties’ list.

Enjoy!