In this web content, the author shares their experience of setting up and playing Halo: Combat Evolved multiplayer using the System Link feature. They explain the process of connecting an original Xbox console to a computer via Ethernet cables and running an Xbox emulator on the computer. The author also mentions the need for specific files, such as a game disc, HDD image, BIOS ROM, MCPX ROM, and EEPROM. They highlight the use of pre-formatted HDD images and an open-source reimplementation of the MCPX ROM. The author then discusses observing and analyzing the network traffic between the consoles during gameplay. They mention the specific packets exchanged between the host and guest consoles, noting the repetitive patterns and frequent exchanges. The author also mentions the use of tcpdump to inspect the packet data. However, they note that the packets do not contain readable strings or static content. Overall, the author provides a detailed account of their exploration of the Halo multiplayer System Link setup and network communication.
https://hllmn.net/blog/2023-09-18_h1x-net/