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About

Welcome to NodeTunnel’s documentation website.

NodeTunnel is a free and open-source Godot plugin that focuses on making "host/join" multiplayer feel simple, even when players are behind NATs or restrictive networks.

NodeTunnel does all this while still being compatible with Godot's high-level multiplayer API. Switching only takes ~15 lines of code, regardless of how large your project is.

Why NodeTunnel exists

Godot’s high-level multiplayer is great once players can connect — the hard part is getting that connection working for real players without:

  • NAT traversal headaches
  • Port forwarding
  • Expensive dedicated servers

NodeTunnel’s goal is to remove those setup barriers by routing traffic through a relay server so peers can communicate regardless of network setup. If you can see this website, NodeTunnel will work for you!

How it works

NodeTunnel’s basic flow looks like this:

  1. Connect to a relay server
  2. Host a room and receive a room ID (example: CRRJS)
  3. One player hosts, the other joins using the room ID
  4. From there, you use normal Godot multiplayer (RPCs, authority, spawners, etc.)

In other words: the relay forwards packets between players so they can connect even when they can’t directly reach each other.

Who it's for

NodeTunnel isn't for everyone. There are some drawbacks to a relay architecture. NodeTunnel is best suited for smaller, co-operative/party games. Competitive shooters, MMOs, etc. are not a good fit for NodeTunnel.

  • No authoritative server, so cheaters are difficult to prevent.
  • Since packets have to be routed through a relay server, latency will be affected.
  • HTML/web builds are not currently supported. Android/iOS are not officially tested, however, some have been able to get them to work.

Project status

NodeTunnel is currently in the beta phase. Development is moving pretty quick, and bug reports have been fairly minimal so far. Regardless, expect breaking API changes and potential bugs. NodeTunnel is not recommended for large-scale projects at this time.

Free public relays

curtjs, the creator of NodeTunnel, has hosted 2 free-to-use relay servers.

US East:

  • Host: us_east.nodetunnel.io:8080

EU Central:

  • Host: eu_central.nodetunnel.io:8080

During the beta phase, client compatibility will change abruptly. Do not rely on these servers until NodeTunnel is in the release phase.

License and community

NodeTunnel is released under the MIT License.

For downloads, help, bug reports, and more, please use the helpful links below:

To keep nodetunnel free for everyone, please consider donating. All contributions are greatly appreciated.