Published on July 6th, 2017 | by Guest

Top Three Features of the Discord App and Alternatives

Games are more enjoyable when they are played with a group of friends. This almost invariable truth remained valid even as children across the globe made the transition from the soccer field to the keyboard. Whether it is dribbling and passing in FIFA, going on a messy heist in Payday or going up the rank ladder in League of Legends, playing your favorite games with your friends makes the experience that much better.

Keeping in constant contact with all of them while playing is therefore a requirement. Text messaging simply won’t do in a fast-paced game. Naturally, the first option was to make use of a popular communications app that allowed making calls for free – Skype. However, the mix was not entirely successful. Skype was meant for 30-minute international video calls, not 5-hour conferences that must run in the background of something else. Frustration was mounting.

Enter Discord. Easy to use, the app incorporates features that are most needed by the gaming niche and provides the best reason to finally delete your Skype account.

Minimal CPU usage

Skype has a major downside for gamers – it has an impact on the CPU. Laying stress on the PC means lower in-game performance, which can either be a constant nuisance or can ruin the gaming experience entirely. The most common example comes in the form of drops in FPS (frames per second), which bears a sentence of a spiteful and unfair defeat in all online-based games.

Being specifically designed to be used by gamers, Discord does not interfere with other applications and does not take up processing power which could otherwise be used for games. The company is well aware of this competitive advantage and promotes it thoroughly.

Browser and mobile support

One of the best features of Discord is that it can be accessed through the browser or mobile app. While the first means that no installation is required, the second allows users to get up from the desk and walk around without disconnecting from the chat or interrupting the conversation.

The company made extensive use of its browser support, turning it into a major selling point. All that was needed was a single person to suggest using Discord instead of another communications app. The curious ones could immediately try out the browser version without committing to an installation. The “conversion” was already underway.

Server hosting

Discord’s most important feature, however, is that it gives users the ability to personally host a server for free. With an easy setup and a friendly user interface, Discord also offers multiple channels, something which Skype does not. One of the most unique features of discord is that it has a lot of 3rd party development support for making things like a Discord Bot.

This means that the user can sign in directly into the desired server and jump right into the fray of battle without spending minutes on end setting up a group call. Moreover, due to the multiple channels feature, switching between chats and servers is only a click away.

Connected to server hosting, security is another strong point of Discord. Info is automatically hidden and servers never go down or cause voices to go “robotic”, something that was not uncommon in Skype.

Click here for guides on how to make a Discord server

Alternatives to Skype and Discord

Aside from alternatives that do not really address the gaming niche, there are, at present, four main competitors on the online communications market – Skype, Ventrilo, TeamSpeak and Discord. If the majority of features from all of them are free, only Skype and Discord are entirely so.

Moreover, while Ventrilo is closer in design and purpose to Skype, TeamSpeak was also intended to be used by gamers, being the only other app in the list that includes an in-game overlay. However, it lacks a text chat, smart push notifications, browser support or a friends list.

Discord is the most successful mix of communications features. It incorporates some of the best features of Skype, such as browser and mobile support, friends list or smart notifications, and of the other communications services, with additions such as custom hotkeys, low latency, multiple channels and individual volume control.

Aside from being a new communications product, Discord is the image of a new generation of PC users. IT literate or tech savvy in general, the consumers speak the same language as the developers, sometimes even switching places with them. This phenomenon results in an exchange of information and feedback that is entirely new.

This generation is used to having multiple choices at their disposal – as such, Discord is entirely customizable, offering multiple choices in terms of channels, UI, text or voice chat, notifications, overlay, music bots and more. For that reason and others, the app is set on a path to grow extensively in the future. To keep growing faster users may look for the opportunity to buy Discord members.

Tags: alternatives, app, Discord, features, top