Game Server Helm Chart

A Helm chart for deploying an MMO game server architecture on Kubernetes.

Overview

This chart deploys a multi-zone game server setup using a containerized Bevy game server. Each zone runs as a separate deployment instance with its own service and HTTP routing configuration.

Prerequisites

• Kubernetes 1.19+
• Helm 3.0+
• Gateway API CRDs installed (for HTTPRoute support)
• Traefik Gateway or compatible gateway controller

Installation

# Add the chart repository (if applicable)
helm repo add <repo-name> <repo-url>

# Install the chart
helm install game-server ./game-server-chart

# Or with custom values
helm install game-server ./game-server-chart -f custom-values.yaml

Configuration

Default Values

Parameter	Description	Default
game-server.hostname	Hostname for external access	mmo.alanchiu.net
game-server.zones	List of game zones to deploy	[{id: "zone-0"}]
game-server.wsPort	WebSocket port	5000
game-server.httpPort	HTTP port for health checks	3000
game-server.deployment.name	Base name for deployments	mmo-game-server
game-server.deployment.requests.cpu	CPU resource requests	250m
game-server.deployment.requests.memory	Memory resource requests	256Mi
game-server.deployment.limits.cpu	CPU resource limits	1
game-server.deployment.limits.memory	Memory resource limits	1Gi
game-server.autoscaler.name	Base name for HPA resources	mmo-game-autoscaler
game-server.autoscaler.minReplicas	Minimum number of replicas	1
game-server.autoscaler.maxReplicas	Maximum number of replicas	3
game-server.service.name	Base name for services	mmo-game-server-lb
game-server.image.repository	Container image repository	alanyau1613/mmo-game-server
game-server.image.tag	Container image tag	latest
game-server.image.pullPolicy	Image pull policy	Always

Adding Multiple Zones

To deploy multiple game zones, modify the zones configuration:

game-server:
  zones:
    - id: zone-0
    - id: zone-1
    - id: zone-2

This will create separate deployments, services, and routes for each zone.

Architecture

The chart creates the following resources for each zone:

1. Deployment: Runs the game server container with zone-specific arguments and resource limits
2. Service: Exposes both WebSocket and HTTP ports for the zone
3. HTTPRoute: Routes traffic to the appropriate zone based on path prefix
4. HorizontalPodAutoscaler: Automatically scales pods based on CPU utilization (80% threshold)

Zone Routing

Each zone is accessible via a path prefix:

• Zone 0: https://mmo.alanchiu.net/zone-0
• Zone 1: https://mmo.alanchiu.net/zone-1

The HTTPRoute configuration automatically strips the zone prefix before forwarding to the backend service.

Resource Management

Each zone deployment includes:

• Resource Requests: 250m CPU and 256Mi memory per pod
• Resource Limits: 1 CPU core and 1Gi memory per pod
• Horizontal Pod Autoscaling: Scales from 1-3 replicas based on 80% CPU utilization

Health Checks

The deployment includes readiness probes that check the /healthz endpoint on the HTTP port. The container also implements graceful shutdown with a 60-second drain period.

Upgrading

helm upgrade game-server ./game-server-chart

Uninstalling

helm uninstall game-server

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

1. Pods not starting: Check that the container image is accessible and the image tag exists
2. Gateway not routing: Verify that the Traefik Gateway exists in the default namespace
3. Health check failures: Ensure the game server exposes the /healthz endpoint on the HTTP port

Viewing Logs

# View logs for a specific zone
kubectl logs -l app=game-server,zone=zone-0

# View all game server logs
kubectl logs -l app=game-server

Development

To modify this chart:

1. Update templates in the templates/ directory
2. Modify default values in values.yaml
3. Test changes with helm template or helm install --dry-run

License

[Add your license information here]