Published on June 27th, 2021 | by Bibhuranjan

Should You Use VPN For Gaming?

As a gamer, you can play a game on a device either with or without the Internet. To a large extent, it depends on the nature of a game. While you can play some games in offline mode, others necessitate you to be online for an uninterrupted gaming session.

When playing a game for which you must connect your device to the Internet, using a VPN is imperative to secure your device. If it is a laptop, you can either use a premium or free VPN for a laptop. Likewise, you can use any other compatible VPN software program while playing a game on other devices.

Is It Good To Use VPN For Gaming?

The answer to this question is yes, and there are several reasons for it.

To begin with, connecting your device to the Internet puts it at the risk of snooping. Hackers and cybercriminals eye at every opportunity to intercept user data and get into other users’ devices.

Whether you browse or download a file or play a game on your device, all these activities need an active internet connection. And as long as your device is connected to the Internet, cybercriminals and hackers would leave no stone unturned to hack your device or launch a cyber attack by knowing its location through its IP address.

Therefore, you need a secure network that can mask or conceal the IP address of your device. A VPN is the best bet for it. When you are on a VPN, the outgoing and incoming passes through another server or computer before landing on your device. As a result, the IP address of that server becomes visible when the output sent through your devices gets into the intended server. This keeps the IP address of your device hidden from prying eyes.

In addition, it also benefits you in several other ways. For instance, it addresses bandwidth throttling, making or breaking the deal for your overall gaming experience. Plus, you also get to access the games that are blocked or restricted in your location. Thus, the benefits of a VPN add to the fact that it is a must for gamers.

Benefits of Using VPN For Gaming

Protecting the data and identity of your devices is a must while playing an online game. Fortunately, there are effective ways to protect your privacy and your device from data interception or cyber-attacks in gaming sessions. Using a VPN is one of them. It benefits users in the following ways:

Prevents You From DDoS Attacks

A DDoS or denial-of-service attack disrupts the usual traffic on a general server by overwhelming it with excessive Internet traffic. It is akin to a traffic jam or congestion on a highway.

A DDoS attack prevents the movement of data to and out of a device. If you play an online game on such a congested network, it can bring your game into a grinding halt all of a sudden. This explains why it is essential to know about the ways to prevent DDoS attacks.

A VPN routes the outgoing data from a device into a server and reroutes it to the final server. As a result, cybercriminals who look for ways to intrude into others’ devices do not get to know the IP address. And not being able to track the actual IP address means no risk of the location of a device and its user being tracked by cybercriminals.

Avoids Bandwidth Throttling

Your internet service provider (ISP) keeps an eye on your online activities, especially those consuming massive data. They generally do so to regulate network traffic. Upon detecting a huge consumption of bandwidth due to online gaming, they may slow down the speed of the internet on your public network. This activity is called bandwidth throttling, and a slow internet speed is one way to detect bandwidth throttling.

By using a VPN, you can keep high-bandwidth consuming activities hidden from your ISP. This way, you can enhance your online gaming experience without worrying about the slow internet speed.

Allows You To Play Safely On Public Wi-Fi

The interception of data is considered one of the major risk factors that lead to hacking devices. A public Wi-Fi network is highly vulnerable to data interception. To minimize this risk, a VPN offers a private tunnel. The data passing through it is encrypted to deter cybercriminals from engaging in any data interception activity.

Gives Access To Geo-blocked Games

Sometimes you might want to play games on the Internet that are restricted or banned in your location. A VPN assigns a different IP address by rerouting the data from your device before sending it to the final server. This IP address becomes visible on the final server when the data reaches it. As a result, your device can access all games without any geo-location-related restrictions.

Reduces Lag & Ping Time

Ping time completes the puzzle between a game server and a player’s client through a round trip on a network and is usually measured in milliseconds (ms). Therefore, a lower ping translates into lower latency and lesser lag on the part of a gamer.

Data packets from an internet service provider take a partial route to reach the game server from a payer’s client-server. On the other hand, a VPN takes a more direct route, which helps it reduce the ping time and improve the online gaming experience of gamers in gaming sessions.

Conclusion

Taking the above benefits of VPN into consideration, it becomes clear why you should use it in gaming sessions. If you are playing online games without a VPN, you stand a chance to gain a lot by signing up for one. Try it for once, and you will thank yourself for the rich gaming experience resulting from it.

Photo by Fredrick Tendong on Unsplash

Tags: cybersecurity, gaming, online privacy, VPN

About the Author

Bibhuranjan Editorial Officer, technofaq.org I'm an avid tech enthusiast at heart. I like to mug up on new and exciting developments on science and tech and have a deep love for PC gaming. Other hobbies include writing blog posts, music and DIY projects.