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View Full Version : Need a Suggestion for Good Webcam for Remote Gaming



bcby02
2015-03-09, 12:00 PM
So I'm planning to run a new campaign soon, and my table is sort of at a deficit of people. We have three of our core group, myself included, and a few other players that dont show up every week or even that often, That is its own problem. Now one of our players moved away but we all miss him at the table and he is always saying how he wants to game with us still.

We tried moving the group to an online format using Roll20. That was fine, but the general consensus for the group was that it wasn't "the same." And they much preferred gaming in person over gaming online. We took a few months off for various reasons and about a month ago started gaming again at a local gaming store, in person with our reduced group and a few new people. We all agree that it is more fun than doing the whole thing online but we still want to include our missing friend.

So the idea being tossed around is that we can set up a laptop with a webcam and have him online while the rest of us game in person. Our current DM doesn't want to do that because he feels it would be too much trouble and too much of a distraction to the table. I feel like if it's done right, it woun't be too much trouble once we get it set up right. As it will soon be my turn to DM I want to try this out in order to include our missing friend.

So finally getting to my question; has anyone else ever tried something like this? What are the challenges and unforseen consequences that I can maybe plan for? And most importantly any suggestions on a good camera to use for this?

My plan is to have my friend connect to a laptop using remote desktop, team viewer or something like that, and be able to remotely control the camera to change angles and zoom whewrever he needs it to go. I particularly like the idea of him getting a good view of the table so he can see the map and minis placement and I also want him to be able to see the people at the table as though he's in the room. So, an articulated camera is a plus; one that can be moved and controled through the laptop connection.

Good audio is probably even more important. If we have to start repeating everything we say 3 or 4 times then the camera will become a distraction as my current dm is worried about. We can easily set up some speakers for his voice to come through clearly. And i want him to be able to make his own adjustments to the view as it would become a distraction if hes always asking us to adjust it for him.

Money is not too much of a problem but I would like to keep the cost of the camera under $200. I found a lot of secuirty cameras and home monitoring systems that may work but many of them seem stationary nd the ones I found that can move and zoom are very expensive and likely meant for a whole building wide system. I'm looking for simple articulated webcam with decent audio and video that can be remotly controlled or locally controlled through a laptop for $200 or less. I have found there are just too many options out there and I have never really purchased a product like this before so I was hoping to benefit from somone elses experience and expertise on this. Thank you in advance for the replies guys.

Mutazoia
2015-03-10, 11:01 PM
The remote security cameras are going to be your best, least expensive bet for what you are trying to accomplish. You'll want to look at something like this one (http://www.amazon.com/Bell-Howell-InView-Wireless-C-IP110PTZ/dp/B00O8KFLCA/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1426045530&sr=1-1&keywords=pan+tilt+zoom+webcam) that not only has the tilt/pan/zoom functions but will has high resolution/HD capabilities so your remote player can see details clearly when zoomed in.

You may also want to invest in an external mic as well, as some camera mics are a bit lacking, especially if you are going to put them at one end of a table and expect your remote player to hear the DM at the other end while playing in a game store (back ground noise can be a pain in these situations). A good "speaker phone" style mic would be good. Logitech makes a "conference cam" with a built in speaker phone that would be great for this, but the camera functions all appear to be controlled by a physical remote, not by software, so your remote player wouldn't be able to choose what he's looking at.