Acceptable Ping for Gaming | PureVPN

You may be thinking that speed is everything in gaming, but it isn’t the case. If you want to experience a powerful gaming experience that doesn’t come with lag, jitter, and buffering, then you need more than just a fast internet connection. 

So many things impact your gaming experience, ranging from connection speed, networking, the number of devices, and traffic loads from nearby customers. It does not matter if you have an internet plan giving you 6 Mbps. If all the other factors are not getting along very well, you will get as low as 1 to 3 Mbps. 

Let’s talk about ping timing and what’s acceptable for professional gamers. Remember, you don’t need the most expensive hardware but a low ping rate to have the best gaming experience.

In professional gaming settings – what is the ping rate?

When you talk about latency, we mean the time it takes for the system to respond to an action. In the gaming language, this means the time it takes for in-game actions like good movement or attacks to send to the server and then for the nice server to process that request. 

Ping rate means the delay in milliseconds that happen between a player’s computer or console and the game server. The ping rate is measured in milliseconds. And the lower the ping rate, the faster the connection for the gamers.

If we look at the etymology of the word “ping”, it goes back to World War II. It was first used as a technical term for the sonar signal sent by submarines to measure their distance from another vessel in the ocean. Later on, this term was used in computers.

What is the difference between high ping and low ping? 

As we already discussed, ping means the latency or delay between your gaming console or computer and the gaming server you are connected to. When you have a low ping, you get a more responsive connection. On the other hand, when there is a higher ping, it causes lag and delays in gameplay. 

Low Ping

Suppose you are playing a First person shooter game online with a ping of around 20 milliseconds. In this situation, when you press a button to shoot the action registers on a server, you get visual feedback on your screen without delay. Low ping gives you better accuracy, precise timing, and smooth gameplay.

High Ping 

Suppose you’re playing the same game online but now have a ping of around 200 ms. When you press the shoot button, you will experience a significant delay because the action is not registered instantly on the server. 

As a result, the game server takes a long time to process your command, and you experience a delay between your actions and the game’s response. All this is a disadvantage in the gaming setting.

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Drawbacks of high ping 

Due to the high ping, you might experience several issues while playing.

Input Delay

In a game setting, when you try to perform actions like jumping or shooting, there is a delay between your command and its execution. This delay makes it challenging to react quickly to in-game situations.

Rubberbanding

Sometimes when playing a game, you may notice that your character is back to a previous position. This is rubberbanding. And it occurs because your device receives delayed updates from the game server. This causes discrepancies between the local game state on your device and the server’s authoritative state.

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Disrupted gameplay

Interactions with other players are normal during gameplay. But a high ping can frustrate things like enemy encounters or team gameplay. With a high ping, aiming at opponents accurately and even predicting their movements becomes difficult.

Inconsistent gaming experience

With a High ping, there will always be inconsistent gameplay experiences. Naturally, it’s possible that your actions need to register on time, and the game’s response becomes choppy or sluggish. This inconsistency can make performing consistently well and enjoying a smooth gaming experience challenging.

Ideal ping rate for professional gaming

Png rate above 150 milliseconds (ms) is not perfect for professional gaming as it will generate noticeable lag and sluggish gameplay. The ideal ping rate falls under 50 ms and is perfect for professional gamers. 

Tips to reduce ping

As we already discussed, your ISP can be the reason for the high ping that can cause disruptive gameplay. The only way out is to use a VPN to get your desired low ping. Here is how it will help

Reroute Data

VPNs can lower ping by providing a more direct route between your device and the game server. Using a VPN could reduce latency if your ISP’s routing is inefficient. 

Reduce Throttling

Your ISP may be deliberately throttling your bandwidth for specific activities like gaming, streaming, or P2P sharing, which can cause high ping. 

PureVPN can help bypass throttling by encrypting your data. This makes it difficult for your ISP to detect the type of traffic you’re generating.

Access Closer Servers

If a game server is restricted to specific regions, PureVPN 6500+ servers.can help you connect to a server closer to a particular location, which will help you reduce ping. You are in Europe, but you want to enjoy your gameplay on an American server. PureVPN will help you connect to an American server with low latency. 

by masking your IP address and preventing attackers from targeting your connection.

How to run a ping test 

You can run a very straightforward test if you need more clarification about your ping rate. This test can be performed on any system with Windows 10.

1. First, make sure you launch the Windows search bar and type CMD. 
2. Once you type CMD into the search bar, click Open. This will well open a Command Prompt window with a black background, white text, and a flashing cursor.
3. Ensure you type ping followed by a space and your IP address or domain name. For example, you would enter “ping 192.168.1.1
4. Lastly, hit Enter on your keyboard and await the ping test results.

Conclusion

You will not benefit from high ping as a professional gamer because it will cause buffering and lags. You need a low ping that is as low as possible. Get yourself PureVPN to enhance your gameplay with low latency.

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