Creating Your Server
Online gaming has come a long way since the early days of dial-up connections and Xbox Live. We are living in the golden age of online gaming, where nearly anyone can create and run their own server.
There are a huge number of benefits to running your own server. You can control who is allowed to play and what game modes you run. You can decide which mods are used and build your own community of like-minded gamers. While anyone can create their own server these days, it takes a lot of hard work and dedication to create a top tier server. This guide aims to help you create the best gaming server possible.
Acquiring A Server
Before you can think about what game you want to play or who to invite to your new server, you first need to create the server infrastructure. And that means actually having a server. There are two ways you can go about this.
The first is to buy a physical server and run it from your home. This is ideal if you don’t plan on running your server 24/7 and will only use it for private games with your friends. But if you are running your server 24/7 then you will rack up a high electricity bill. Plus, a good quality server is expensive.
The other option is to rent a server. We recommend looking for a virtual private server, often called a vps. A good vps will allow you to keep your server running 24/7 as well as providing an added layer of security and extra features such as user management. We recommend you find a VPS service with 24 hour support to ensure you can get it up and running whenever you encounter an issue.
You need to make sure you have taken into account how many players you plan to have on your server at any given time. More players will increase the stress on the server and could lead to lag if it isn’t designed to support that many people. If this is happening you might need to consider upgrading your server package.
Finding Good Moderators
The key to running a successful server is having a solid team of moderators supporting you. The sad truth about online gaming is that you are going to encounter trolls or players who will cause trouble. Players will get into arguments with each other. And you can’t always be online to put out the fires.
Which is where your moderators come into play. These are players who have the power to settle disputes and, if necessary, remove and ban people from the server. But just as there are bad players out there, there are also bad moderators. Some people go crazy with a little bit of power. And nothing kills a server faster than bad moderators.
You need to employ people you can trust. The best option will be your friends. But they also won’t be online 24.7. So you will need to find other members of your gaming community to step up. The best way to find a good moderator is to create a discord and spend time getting to know your players until you find someone you can trust.
Creating A Great Discord Server
As we mentioned before, having a Discord server associated with your gaming server is a fantastic idea. Not only to help you find good moderators, but to give your players a place to interact with one another outside of the game.
Discord has become one of the most popular gaming support apps on the planet. There are Discord servers for nearly every fandom or gaming community on the planet. Discord can be used to organize community events, provide a great private voice chat lobby for your players, and allows your players to come to you with any issues.
Community Events
Community events are a great way to make your server stand out from the rest. It will encourage players to keep coming back to your server and is a fantastic way to foster a sense of togetherness.
Community events can be as simple as contest nights to see which player can get the highest score. Or you can run team battle nights, allowing your community to split off and battle it out amongst themselves. If you really want to step it up you could offer prizes such as Twitch subscriptions or gift cards for various game platforms. Seasonal events are another great way to get your players in the festive mood. If you are playing a creative game like Minecraft you could run building contests to see who can create the most festive creation.
