This is a review of the online play module for Netrunner.

If you are completely new to the game, you might want to read one of the other reviews first (e.g. http://www.boardgamegeek.com/thread/160618), because I don't describe the game as such, just the elements specific to online play.

The website www.runners-net.com launched in July 2006, when the game was already dead concerning the sales at the shops.
It contains everything you need for playing the game online: a user forum to discuss questions, a chat channel to find opponents, a complete online rulebook and of course there are download links to the two files that you need: mws094f.exe and NR_MWSPack.zip.

mws094f.exe
This is the installer file for installing Magic Workstation on your computer. It works on Windows (tested on XP and 2000, should also run with any other Windows version) and somebody even got it to run on Linux (probably with Redhat).
At first sight, it might feel strange to use a magic-specific program for playing Netrunner, but Magic Workstation is just a generic program that allows you to play any card game online, provided there exists a game pack for it. This gamepack (NR_MWSPack.zip) also contains the look and feel of the surface, so the style really looks netrunnery. Here you can see an image of the user screen. The only drawbacks are that your trash will be called "Graveyard" in the game log and as bits, you use your life points; but you can live with that.

NR_MWSPack.zip
This is the game pack for Netrunner, created by the player Malhavoc, who also runs www.runners-net.com.

Installation
You double-click the file mws094f.exe, starting an install shield wizard that installs Magic workstation to your computer.
Then you unpack NR_MWSPack.zip to the installation directory (and optionally switch the theme from Magic to Netrunner).
It takes about ten minutes, if everything works smoothly.
As you know, new software sometimes doesn't install smoothly, so if you encounter any problems, you can look at a detailed description here:
http://www.uni-koblenz.de/~ffko/Netrunner/howto.htm
or here:
http://www.uni-koblenz.de/~ffko/Netrunner/troubleshooting.ht...
or here:
http://www.uni-koblenz.de/~ffko/Netrunner/troubleshooting.ht...
If you want to play Sealed deck, you can additionally install a small program that generates virtual starters and boosters (called Netseal).

Running the program
After installation, you have Magic Workstation (deck building module) and MWS Online Play (playing module) installed. You also have some preconstructed decks in your deck folder. When you start MWS Online Play, you can first play a solo game to get accustomed to the menus and the shortcuts. Most of it is self-explanatory and after your first game, you will know that F12 gains you 1 bit and Ctrl+d draws a card.
To start a game, you give your IP to your opponent, so the connection is peer to peer, no server is needed.
Further instructions are in the file NETRUNNER README .txt contained in the game pack.

Drawbacks of online play vs real life play
- You don't see your opponents face (unless you use a webcam). This 'social aspect' deterres a lot of board game players from online gaming. In real life play,
you can try to read from your opponent's face whether he just drew an agenda from R&D or not.
- You don't directly speak to your opponent (unless you use Skype or some other voice over IP tool). If there is a rules question, it is hard to explain the rules by typing.
This is especially a problem when playing with new players.
- If your internet connection crashes, the program rarely crashes after the reconnect. But in over 100 online games in the past two years, I never had a crash unless the internet connection had crashed before.
- Misclicks can lead to games being spoiled (Ctrl+s doesn't save the game, but shuffles your deck :-)
- There is no four player mode ("The Big Sellout" is a Netrunner format for 4 players, this is not possible with Magic Workstation)
- There is no observer mode for a third player who wants to watch
- You can become addicted. Usually, there isn't always another opponent online, so there doesn't exist the possibility to play whenever you want. With World of Warcraft, this is different (I heard of somebody who became rich in WoW, but was deeply in debts in real life, because he neglected his job...).

Advantages of online play over real life play
- You can play at all (in real life, you will have troubles finding cards and/or an opponent for this game).
- It is free, you don't have to pay. If you pay 20 $ for registering Magic Workstation, you can choose the avatar or background image for MWS, but that is not necessary.
- For playing a tournament or a league, you need at least four players, which is difficult in real life. On Runner's Net, there were nine tournaments so far (Sealed, Unlimited Revised, 1/15).
- Magic Workstation logs almost everything. In a real life game, after a long run with many ICEs, you sometimes forget how many actions Runner still has left in his turn. This can spoil the game, because one action more or less can decide about win or loose. This can't happen in an online game; you just scroll up and read what you did this turn.
- It cannot happen that you reveal cards accidentally when shuffeling your deck or when they fall down from your hand because your opponent accessed a card from HQ. This can spoil the game in a real life game.
- The complete card pool is available for everybody, you don't have to buy tons of cards for building a decent constructed deck.
- Cards from all the Virtual Expansions are available. These are especially "Chrysalid Matrix" by Skipper Pickle and "Dangerous Allies" by Neal F. Guye. These new cards are especially cool for players who have played the game for a long time, they give New Blood to the game.
- Rules questions can directly be answered by the online rule book or by the bot Afreet in the chat channel. The command '!info card name' gives all rulings and errata to the named card.
- Playing online fits well to the story behind the game; your runs are really runs through the internet to your remote opponent (and the "Remote Detonator" is really remote :-)

If you love Netrunner, you will love to play it online.