ALL.Net

From Sega Retro

ALL.Net, which stands for Amusement Linkage Live Network is an arcade network "standard" created by Sega, Sammy and Namco in 2004. It is based on the earlier VF.Net system used by Virtua Fighter 4 in 2001.

ALL.Net allows arcade games to connect to the internet, and is primarily used for software updates, online multiplayer, allowing the user to register and save data, and for national leaderboards. Initially the service was only available in Japan, but after a test-run in Hong Kong in 2008, the service has was extended to other parts of Asia in 2010, not only including Hong Kong, but South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and mainland China.

Despite its aims, ALL.Net is not quite standardised across Japan. It competes with technologies such as Taito's NESYS and Konami's e-AMUSEMENT systems. It is available for Sega Europa-R, Sega Lindbergh, Sega RingEdge and Sega RingWide arcade hardware.

Variants of the service include ALL.Net P-Ras (which adds extra charges) and ALL.Net P-Ras MULTI (which is currently only compatible with RingEdge 2 hardware).