Using a VPN in Online Gaming – What Are the Pros and Cons?

September 2, 2024 By Janne Smith No Comments 3 minutes

Online gaming is one of the most popular pastimes for gamers. Connecting with like-minded people, competing for titles, and meeting new friends is incredibly entertaining, especially for those who’ve played games for a long time.

However, any time spent online exposes gamers to danger. With cybercrime on the rise, it is no wonder that many people are looking for ways to stay safe. That is why, virtual private networks are a lot more widely used. That being said, VPNs have their pros and cons, that are worth exploring.

Note: Despite how alluring the myriad of online possibilities may seem, cyber threats are always there. And, even when gaming online, the black hats are always on a data theft hunt. For this, we recommend using a robust VPN, like FastsetVPN, to raise your guard against a potential cyber attack while being affordable.

The Pros

For those who don’t know, a Virtual Private Network (VPN) is software that encrypts the user’s internet connection. In doing so it masks their IP address, and therefore provide enhanced security and privacy. And that is, of course, the first benefit of using a VPN.

As we said before that cybercrimes are on the rise. However, VPNs protect gamers from the growing threat of cybercriminals. It also makes it more difficult for the user’s data to be tracked and their location to be found out.

Another pretty big benefit of using Virtual Private Networks is that they let users access websites that are region-restricted. For example, there may be an online casino in Iceland, that is only available to Icelanders. However, with a VPN, your IP will seem like it is in Iceland, allowing you to access the casino.

Finally, let’s talk about the benefit of reduced latency. Online gamers can use a VPN to connect to a server that is closer to the game’s main server. In doing so, they can improve the game’s speed and overall performance and thus have a much better time online.

The Cons

A VPN can do a lot of good. However, it also comes with some disadvantages. For example, we talked before about connecting to a server closer to the game’s main servers to increase the latency. However, what happens if you do the opposite?

Well, in that case, the game may perform poorly, and the playing speed reduces. Gamers understand that a game’s performance is one of the most important aspects of having a good experience when gaming online. So, this is quite a huge downside of using a VPN.

Another pretty big downside is that a lot of online games have policies against using virtual private networks. In case you are playing one of those, you may discover that you’ve lost some features. Worse yet, it might just be that the game doesn’t work when you are using a virtual private network.

Finally, a big con of VPNs is that they are usually quite pricey, and require a monthly subscription fee. However, there are a other few affordable VPN options that you may consider than free ones, since, the latter often compromise on the quality. And, may not have all the same features as the premium VPNs.

Last Thoughts

For many gamers, the benefits of a gaming VPN outweigh the cons. Which is why quite a lot of fans use them. However, there are certainly some downsides that gamers should be aware of. So, hopefully, this article has enlightened you on some of the pros and cons of online gaming and using VPNs.

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