Network Latency and How to Reduce It

There are not many things that are worse than lag. The dreaded buffering symbol is enough to instill dread in any gamer or avid streamer. If you want to end lag once and for all, then there are a few things you can do to help yourself.

Latency and Ping Rate

Network latency is essentially how long it takes for data to travel from the source to the destination. The lower the latency you have, the better. If you are playing a game but have high latency, you may notice your character walk forward, but they won’t move for a few seconds. Ideally, you need to have a high-speed internet connection, with low latency. If you’re not sure if your current system is hitting the mark, a ping rate lower than 150 milliseconds is what you’re looking for. Of course, some games are less demanding than others, so the ping rate isn’t a blanket rule in regards to lag.

If you play Adventures Beyond Wonderland Live, you’ll know the game features a real dealer and is streamed in real time. You also have several features, including magic dice and wonder spins. With that being said, as the game is simple in construction, it can be played even with a high ping rate. Numerous other casino games fall into the same category too, but other titles, which include Microsoft Flight Simulator, require a much lower ping rate. The game can be played online and is very graphic-intensive, meaning you’ll experience severe delays if you don’t make sure your system is up to par.

The longer route the signal has to take to get to your system, and the more stops the signal has to make, the more delay you’ll have. One option would be, of course, to move closer to the router, but you can also try and play on a local server. Playing on a local server, or a server that is in the same country as you are will significantly reduce your ping rate, as you’ll be closer to it.

Using a VPN

If you suspect that it is your internet service provider who is throttling your connection, then one thing you can do is try and use a VPN to mask your location. This also encrypts the data you send and receive. If you use a VPN, it stops your ISP from being able to tell when you’re gaming. They’re less likely to slow down your connection as a result. VPNs require data to travel through several nodes, and this has the potential to increase latency.

Depending on your situation, you may find that you’re able to get faster speeds and a better overall performance than a throttled connection, however. Just make sure that you are going through a VPN that is similar to the location where you are. If you’re in the UK and choose a VPN location in Africa, you can imagine how high the ping rate would be travelling between the servers, so try and keep that in mind as it could make a huge difference to you overall.