(Note- password will probably have to be one that is themed for the game, as you may have to drop out and have someone else replace you, and you don't want them knowing your real passwords.) I also suggest each player enters a password in at the begginning of his or her turn to stamp out cheating, and send it to a 'password keeper'- the person who set it up or a third party not likely to disappear. What settings is up to you, but I suggest you all agree on which version of Kingdoms you are playing- a crusade save will crash an Americas game.

He then highlights all the factions being played, and fiddles with the settings.

Player one sets up the campaign by going to multiplayer, then 'hotseat campaign'.

Utilizing Kingdoms' 'hottest', if you'll pardon the pun, feature, you wage epic war against a friend using no more than a corresponding version of Kingdoms, e-mail, and a bit of nifty file placement. Go play, and don't forget to drop in on our parties! Here is a list concerning multiplayer errors. Click on the name, not the little + sign. Find SEGA, then the M2TW files (Vanilla). Open 'HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE', then down to 'SOFTWARE'. In the little box type 'regedit', and you'll find the Registry Editor pops up. Go to Start, then to the little 'Run' function at the side.

Still not working? It's entirely possible that you put the CD key in wrong when you installed.

If your computer doesn't freeze up due to connecting up, or if your favourate gerbil doesn't nip one of the wires, you'll be online! Finally, hit the 'Online play' bar at the top- yes, the one with the knotwork decoration. Enter the nickname, pass and e-mail (And, if you don't want to ever again, hit the 'Remember me' button).

From the Main Menu, hit 'Multiplayer', then at the right there is the option for 'Online play'.

Gamespy doesn't have any viruses or spyware, so you'll be OK. Also, if you've an overbearing firewall, you may wish to disable it. You will use the 'Preferred Nickname', Password and e-mail address to log into online play in M2TW, so if anything else don't forget these 3 things.

Pop on over to and register an account.

Oh, and installing GamespyArcade is a waste of time- the game works perfectly well online without it. DO NOT USE CAPS LOCK FOR THIS! This thread explains that there's a gamespy bug. That means typing letters in capitals, and putting in '0' not 'o', or 'O'. When it asks for this, you must make sure that you enter the code found at the bottom of the back of the manual you get with M2TW exactly. Easy, you might think but this is where many people go wrong at a certain hurdle- the insert CD-Key section. It seems simple to log in, but for some it can be a nightmare to get working. This is the classic TW multi experience of playing pitched battles against other players. Not sure how to get it working? Try this handy guide, based on your fellow forumer's experiences.

Medieval 2 total war hotseat