Dungeon Siege 2 multiplayer: questions and answers

Does Dungeon Siege 2 multiplayer still work after GameSpy shut down?

Yes. Dungeon Siege II's online play (the game list, the chat lobbies called portals, accounts and the online party vault) ran on GameSpy's services, which shut down on 31 May 2014. DS2 Revival runs a replacement server, use1.dsii.uk, that speaks the same protocols, plus small plugins for the game. With the plugins installed, Multiplayer → Internet or GameSpy works again and games can be hosted and joined. See who is online now.

How do I play Dungeon Siege 2 online on the Steam version?

The Steam release of Dungeon Siege II (v2.3) greys out the Multiplayer button: the game disables it in its own code every time the main menu opens, so a hosts-file or DNS change cannot bring it back. The DS2Multiplayer plugin in the DS2 Revival package turns it back on.

1. Download the DS2 Revival package.
2. Extract it into your Dungeon Siege 2 folder, next to DungeonSiege2.exe (in Steam: right-click the game → Manage → Browse local files).
3. Start the game from Steam as usual and click Multiplayer.

The plugin also points the game at the server and gives Steam copies, which have no CD key, an online identity of their own. Nothing of the game is modified. All steps: install guide.

Is it free? Do I need an account?

It is free. In Internet mode you only pick a nickname. GameSpy mode needs an account, which you create in the game with New Account; your parties are then stored in the online party vault on this server, so you can continue them on any PC. The game's login protocol makes the server keep passwords as they are, so use a password you do not use anywhere else.

Do I need to forward ports to host a game?

No. When a joiner cannot reach your game directly, DS2Multiplayer relays the connection through the server automatically. Double-click Firewall setup.cmd once on the hosting PC so Windows lets players in. Forwarding UDP 2302 to the hosting PC is optional: players then connect directly instead of through the relay. Everyone in an online game needs DS2Multiplayer. Firewall and ports.

Does LAN multiplayer work?

Yes. Multiplayer → Local Network plays over your LAN without any server. On the Steam version the Multiplayer button, and with it LAN play, needs DS2Multiplayer. The plugin also fixes the "'X' is already being used by another player" error on PCs with extra network adapters (Hyper-V, WSL, Docker, VPNs). LAN play needs DirectPlay as well (next question).

Why does the game close when I host or join on Windows 10 or 11?

Dungeon Siege II plays online and over LAN through DirectPlay, a Windows feature that is off by default on Windows 10 and 11. Without it the game simply closes when you host or join. DS2Multiplayer checks for it when you open Multiplayer and offers Windows' own installer. To install it yourself: Control Panel → Programs → Turn Windows features on or off → Legacy Components → DirectPlay.

How many players can play together? Is there an 8-player mode?

The normal online modes are 4 players with one hero each, 3 players with two heroes and 1 player with four. The game also ships "Old School Mode" (8 players with one hero each) and "Couples Mode++" (6 players with two heroes each) but hides them online. With DS2Multiplayer they can be picked when hosting; only the host needs the plugin for this. Sessions with more than 4 players have had little testing so far.

My game already has a working Multiplayer menu. Can I use just the server?

Yes. If your game's Multiplayer menu already works without the plugins (for example a disc copy with its own CD key), add the lines from the hosts-file section of the install guide to the Windows hosts file. You then get only the server: no relay (the host must forward UDP 2302), no CD-key identity for Steam copies and none of the game fixes.

How does this relate to OpenSpy and other multiplayer mods?

OpenSpy is a community-run replacement for GameSpy's online services, used through its own version.dll. DS2 Revival is a separate server and plugin set made for Dungeon Siege II and Broken World. The DS2 Revival package is not meant to be combined with mods that replace DungeonSiege2.exe or version.dll, such as Dungeon Siege II Remastered or OpenSpy's version.dll: use one approach or the other. Each server has its own lobbies and game list, so play on the same one as your friends.

Can I play online with mods installed?

It depends on what the mod changes. We tested every combination with two games on one server (October 2026):

• Looks only (textures, models, sounds, the menu logo): play freely. Only you see your mod; the other players see their own game, and nothing goes out of sync.
• Gameplay (item stats, monsters, spells, skills, AI, formulas, scripts, interface layouts): every player must have exactly the same mod as the host. The game checks this itself and refuses the join if anything differs.
• Maps: every player needs the same map, in the same version. The game does not check this, so get the map from the same place as the host.
• DS2 Revival's own options (widescreen, borderless window, HUD scale, camera field of view and zoom, graphics settings) are local to your PC. Different settings on each machine are fine.

What does "Content Mismatch - The game you are trying to join has been modified" mean?

Your game data and the host's differ: one of you has a gameplay mod the other doesn't, or a different version of it. The message always says the host's game was modified, even when the extra mod is on your side. Compare your Mods folders (and any changed files in Resources) with the host's and make them match. If the host presses START and you see "This game is using a mod that you currently do not have installed", it is the same check a second time. Texture and model packs never cause either message.

Can I get around the mod check, or play with different gameplay mods?

Don't. We tried, by forcing the check to pass: the game then runs, but each player's game uses its own numbers. In our test the same dagger hit for 501-602 on one screen and 4-7 on the other. Fights, loot and quests go out of sync from there.

What happens if a player is missing the host's map, or has a different version of it?

Missing map: the joining player's game crashes right after loading, while the host plays on alone. Different version: both games load, but each player sees their own version of the world. Trees, rocks and monsters may exist on one screen and not the other, and heroes can get blocked by objects that only the host can see. Until we add a map check, make sure everyone has the same map files.

Does the DS2 Revival mod loader (the Mods folder) affect multiplayer?

Not by itself. With an empty Mods folder you can play with anyone, with or without the loader. What matters is what is inside the folder; the rules above apply. Planned: the game list will show which mods the host uses, so you get "install X" instead of the game's own message, and a map check before you join.

Does Dungeon Siege II: Broken World multiplayer work?

Yes. Broken World plays online through the same server and the same plugins, and its games are marked as Broken World on the status page. DS2Multiplayer also fixes a bug that made Broken World joiners crash on READY. Broken World keeps its own party vault; heroes made in the Steam game can be brought over with Multiplayer → GameSpy → Convert Hero (DS2BrokenWorld fixes the "Failed to transfer vaulted character file" error that rejected them). You need your own copy of Broken World v2.30.0.4277; it is not included and is no longer sold.

How do I run Broken World with the Steam version of Dungeon Siege 2?

The Steam version does not include the expansion, and Broken World normally needs a registry patch to find the base game. With DS2BrokenWorld no registry patch is needed:

1. Copy the expansion's files into a folder named Broken World inside your Dungeon Siege 2 folder.
2. Copy version.dll and the scripts folder's .asi files into that folder as well.
3. Start the game from Steam. It starts Broken World; hold Shift while it starts for the original game.

Details: Broken World in the install guide.

Why does Broken World run at a low frame rate, and how do I fix it?

Broken World's copy-protection code, which every available build still contains, runs the CPUID processor instruction thousands of times per frame. Whenever Windows runs its hypervisor, every one of those instructions is intercepted and slow (about 405 ns each on the test PC, against tens of nanoseconds without it). Memory Integrity starts the hypervisor, but so do Hyper-V, WSL2, Docker Desktop, Virtual Machine Platform, Windows Sandbox and Credential Guard. That is why "turn off Memory Integrity" fixed the frame rate for some players and not for others.

DS2BrokenWorld fixes it without changing any Windows setting (FastCpuid=1, on by default): those instructions get the answer the processor gives anyway, read once at start-up. In the same scene, uncapped, the test PC went from about 60 fps to about 350 fps, the same as the base game; a player's 165 Hz screen went from about 45 fps to its 160+ cap. The measurements.

Does Dungeon Siege 2 support widescreen, ultrawide and borderless windows?

With DS2Widescreen, yes. The game runs in a borderless window at your desktop resolution, ultrawide included (3440×1440 tested). The world renders at native resolution; the original 800×600 menus are scaled to fit at their correct aspect ratio, with black bars. A failed graphics reset after alt-tab or with an overlay ("Video initialization failure! ... GetBackBuffer") is retried instead of ending the game. Prefer a normal window or the game's own fullscreen? Set Mode=window or Mode=off in DS2Widescreen.ini.

Why does the frame rate stop at 75?

That is the game's own frame cap for windowed play. DS2Widescreen raises it to your monitor's refresh rate ([Display] MaxFps=refresh); MaxFps=0 removes the cap.

Why does typing lag in other programs, or the mouse stutter, while the game runs?

The game installs a system-wide keyboard hook and never removes it, so Windows passes every keystroke of every program through the game, and typing anywhere stalls whenever a game frame is slow. It also resets the cursor twice on every mouse event, which causes stutter with a modern mouse. DS2Fixes removes both (NoGlobalKeyboardHook=1, QuietCursor=1).

Does it change my game files? How do I remove it?

No game file is changed. The fixes are .asi plugins, loaded by the Ultimate ASI Loader (version.dll), that patch the game in memory while it runs. Each patch is applied only to the game build it was written for and only if the code at that spot is exactly what was analysed; otherwise it is skipped and logged. Steam's "Verify integrity of game files" does not remove the plugins, and your saves stay compatible with the unmodified game. To uninstall, delete version.dll and the scripts folder.

Which versions of the game does it work with?

The plugins know the Steam release's DungeonSiege2.exe (v2.3) and Broken World v2.30.0.4277, on Windows 10 and 11. Any other exe runs unchanged and scripts\DS2Multiplayer.log says "unknown DungeonSiege2.exe build". A copy whose Multiplayer menu already works can still use this server through the hosts file.

Is the source code available? Is there a Siege Editor 2 fix?

Yes. The plugins' source code is on Codeberg: DS2-Revival. A SHA-256 checksum of the package is published next to the download (DS2Revival.zip.sha256). A companion project, SE2-Revival, runs GPG's Siege Editor 2 (Dungeon Siege II Tool Kit 1.1) with the Steam release and, for the first time, with Broken World; the tool kit itself is not included.

Who runs the server, and what if it is down?

The server is run by the DS2 Revival project, which is not affiliated with Gas Powered Games, Microsoft, Square Enix or GameSpy. Online play depends on it being up: the live status page shows every service, and the Server setting in scripts\DS2Multiplayer.ini lets you use another compatible server. LAN play does not use the server.