VPN for gaming

The digital age has transformed the gaming industry. It’s easier to buy titles, download critical patches, or play with friends from different parts of the globe in a world that’s made smaller by the Internet. You can even start your games faster, with gaming platforms like Steam, PSN, or Xbox Live also functioning as digital rights management (DRM) tools for publishers. In other words, you no longer need to insert a disc to authenticate your purchase if you bought the game digitally and are logged into a gaming platform.

Although the Internet has been a boon for video games in multiple ways, the relationship isn’t without its share of speedbumps. Some games are as reliant on a steady Internet connection as a wizard is on a supply of mana in a role-playing game. Players know that even with a fast video card, processor, RAM, and storage drive, a bad connection can quickly bottleneck a gaming session.

The shift to cyberspace also raises many security concerns. Hackers, trolls, and other bad actors look for opportunities to breach a gamer’s privacy. With so much confidential data to protect, a suitable Virtual Private Network (VPN) can protect your online privacy and be a part of the solution.

Tell a gamer that you’ll nerf their Internet and be prepared for a look that’s equal parts shock and horror. Yet many gamers use a VPN while gaming even though it can slow down their Internet. Such gamers use gaming VPNs for the following reasons:

• The advantages of using a premium VPN can outweigh the cons. It’s like customizing your helmet and shield with the scales of a dragon in an RPG. Sure, your armor gets a little heavier, but your defenses are stronger against lurking threats.
• Modern Internet connections are so fast that the performance hit from a top VPN can be negligible. It's similar to using winter tires in a racing game to speed through the snowy roads safely. A fast VPN connection using a VPN protocol built for speed (like WireGuard) means that the performance slowdown can be very minimal, if noticeable at all. 

Learning how a VPN works is the first step towards understanding the benefits of using gaming VPNs for your machine. To keep it brief, a VPN is a private network between your device and a VPN server. A VPN encrypts your data for security and privacy. It also assigns you a virtual IP address.

An IP address is something like a digital fingerprint that identifies any device you connect to the Internet with. When a VPN assigns a virtual IP address, it masks your real one. When you connect to gaming websites, platforms, forums, chat groups, or servers, the world sees your virtual IP address instead of your real one. For example, if you use a VPN server from the United States while playing from Germany, you’ll connect with an American IP address instead of a European one. Masking your IP address has several advantages.

1. A VPN can protect gamers from trolls

While many gamers talk a little smack, some take it too far. With your IP address, the right tools, and a little detective work, a troll may gain your sensitive information in order to dox you. In an extreme practice called swatting, a gamer may file a false police report against another gamer’s address that requires an emergency response, resulting in tragic consequences. Even celebrities aren’t immune to the dangerous prank. Tom Cruise, Justin Bieber, Ashton Kutcher, Simon Cowell are all targets of the hoax.

A troll with some technical skill can also utilize your IP address to try and frame you for a crime. While an IP address alone is usually not enough for a conviction, it can result in undue stress. A VPN can also protect you from a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack. A DDoS attack, of course, is a cyberattack that takes your computer offline by attacking your network.

2. A VPN can protect gamers from cybercriminals

Hackers can use your IP address to commit several cybercrimes:

• Hackers can use your IP address to learn more about you and develop a compelling social engineering attack that tricks you into sharing your login credentials to your gaming, email, or financial accounts.
• A scammer may use your IP address to launch an IP address scam that convinces you to hand over controls of your computer to a con artist. For example, someone might send you a malicious link via email or popup claiming your Call of Duty account is compromised. They may offer your actual IP address to make the con appear more authentic.

3. A VPN shields gamers on the go

Gamers that use their device or laptop to play at the shopping mall, park, airport, or café on public WiFi networks are more vulnerable to online attacks because such networks are usually unsecured. A VPN can make it safer to game on public WiFi with its encryption and privacy tools.

4. A VPN can free gamers from restrictions

It can be challenging to play some games from certain locations if the gaming platform or the region restricts access. A VPN can make it easier for gamers to purchase titles from more platforms or play what they want from different locations.

Some people feel that VPN and gaming don’t go together because the technology slows down the Internet. But a VPN with multiple servers and a cutting-edge VPN protocol can make the performance hit almost negligible. Simply compare your download and upload speeds before and after activating your VPN to see if it’s the best VPN for gaming.

Free VPNs often don’t have the resources or technology to provide a fast and reliable connection. Many free VPNs are also known for spying on users and selling their bandwidth. Subscribing to a quality, reputable, and reliable VPN service can enable you to enjoy gaming and privacy at the same time.

Most gaming platforms will not ban you from using a VPN. However, gaming platforms do identify troublemakers through their IP addresses. You may want to use a gaming VPN to connect to a server if a platform banned your IP address by accident or if your ISP assigned you a notorious IP address.

Sometimes, a VPN may reduce some of your latency if your VPN server is exceptionally close to the gaming server. But the opposite can happen too. You may notice more lag if your VPN server is further from your gaming server.