Online gaming has been around since the very birth of the internet. In fact, one of the very first activities human beings performed after inventing the internet was playing online games on it. In simple terms, online gaming almost feels like an essential part of the online experience.
But despite the passion, early internet connections were not equipped to handle the type of high-performance online multiplayer games we play today.
The modern boom in online multi-player gaming was made possible only after the vast-scale introduction of advanced personal computers that could run these games without burning up.
Similarly, the introduction of lightning-fast broadband services has also played an important role in supporting this boom.
Today, internet service providers (ISPs) like Spectrum are beaming speeds reaching up to 300 MBPS directly to American homes, and users can access this highspeed service merely by picking up their phones and calling Spectrum’s Phone Number.
As a result of these technological advancements, the online gaming industry has ballooned, raking in upwards of 23.5 Billion USD during the last year alone. And evidence suggests that these revenues are all set to skyrocket in the near future. According to legitimate projections, the online gaming industry is expected to rake in a little less than 33 Billion USD by the end of 2027, growing by almost 22 percent each year.
Let’s take a look at the popularity of online gaming from another vantage point. Currently, there are almost 1 Billion online gamers in the world and the figure is expected to hit a whopping 3 Billion by the end of 2025.
If you are one of these 1 Billion people playing games online, you probably understand the importance of reliable connectivity in making or breaking your gaming experience.
So, here is a look at some important tips for choosing an internet connection that meets all your online multi-player gaming needs.
1.) LOW LATENCY OR LOW PING
In very simple terms, latency refers to the amount of time your internet data or signal takes to travel from your device to the server and back. Normally, the terms ping and latency are normally used interchangeably they are not. Ping is in fact the signal that a system sends out while latency is the time the ping takes to come back to the sender.
So, how does its latency impact your gaming experience? Well, it’s simple, when you click a button on the console while gaming, your system sends out a ping, the longer the ping takes to come back to your system the longer the delay in your character performing the task you want it to perform.
If your system’s latency is 30 Milliseconds, your character will jump 30 Milliseconds after your click the jump button, it’s that simple.
In short, if you shoot at your opponent using a high latency connection there is a greater chance of them getting away.
Internet connections with a latency of over 60 MS are probably not best for online gaming.
2.) A HIGH-BANDWIDTH OR INTERNET SPEED
This is perhaps the most obvious pointer on the list. But since it’s the most essential element we must take a cursory look at it.
Bandwidth is measured as the amount of data an internet connection can transfer in a given amount of time. So, a connection with a download speed of 300 MBPS 300 Megabytes of Data in one second.
Online gaming generally requires minimum download speeds of about 25 MBPS. But it is not advisable to play right on the borderline. Because some high-performance games may require higher speeds, or other devices on your network may be using a big chunk of the bandwidth, leaving almost nothing behind for you.
So, we advise download speeds of at least 100 MBPS for a seamless gaming experience.
3.) INTERNET CONTINUITY
Losing a connection to the internet while playing an online game can be extremely frustrating. Internet continuity depends on a lot of factors including the robustness of your ISP’s infrastructure, the routers/modems your ISP provides, the type of internet technology, and even the weather.
So, before getting an internet connection make sure you read a hefty bit of customer reviews on the continuity of the service instead of solely relying on the figures published by the service provider.
4.) DATA USAGE LIMITS OR CAPS
Let’s start out by stating a simple fact, playing online multiplayer games is not a very data-intensive activity. When compared to other activities like streaming or video calling, gaming consumes relatively less amount of your internet data, but this does not mean that you can be careless.
Games normally require constant updates and patch downloads. And while playing online games does not consume huge chunks of data, downloads do.
So, make sure that your package has caps of at least 100 GB or more so that you do not end up eating through your package by the middle of the month.
WRAPPING UP
Online Multiplayer gaming is an extremely popular phenomenon with millions around the world spending thousands of hours every year on these games. Online multiplayer games require an adequate internet connection to function properly.
So, players are advised to keep in the mind the important factors mentioned in this write-up before choosing an internet service provider.