Virtual private networks (VPNs) are excellent tools for improving your privacy and anonymity online. Instead of connecting directly from your device to a website, a VPN instead allows you to send an encrypted request to the VPN server, which then interacts with the internet for you. A VPN then sends the result of your request back to you, also encrypted. It also keeps your IP address hidden; this way enabling you to route your connection through a country of your choosing and take advantage of online services only available in that country.

People use VPNs for different reasons: bypassing censorship, accessing streaming websites and services, and protecting their online privacy in general.

However, a growing number of individuals are turning towards VPNs as a means of improving their gaming experience. The growing demand is clearly visible in the rise in the number of VPN providers that are offering their services specifically for gamers. These VPNs can help improve a gamer’s experience in a number of ways, let’s take a look at them.

How a VPN Can Improve Your Gaming Experience

In some cases, a VPN may help increase connection speeds, which is extremely important for online gamers. In such instances where a user’s ISP throttles certain types of web traffic, a VPN comes especially handy. It will ensure that no one, not even your ISP can see what websites you visit; they will only see that you are using a VPN service. This means that your ISP can’t tell when you are streaming or accessing content that would normally be blocked or throttled.

If you are having trouble playing a particular game when traveling, chances are it is geo-blocked. In this situation, a VPN makes it look like your internet connection is originating from another geographic location, this way allowing you to access the content you want.

Similarly, circumventing geo-blocking can help you to purchase and download games that are not available in your region. In some cases, using a VPN can even make it feasible to obtain games earlier than would otherwise be possible.

Tech companies of all types are increasingly asking for more and more data from us, collecting it, and in some cases, sharing it indiscriminately. This includes games developers who have been caught in the past requiring players to install proprietary software which has surreptitiously harvested the user’s data. With a VPN, you will at least ensure that any communications you make with remote servers will be secure.

A VPN will affect all your outgoing communications, not just those from the program you’re currently running. This means that any apps or programs running in the background, will also send their data through the VPN server and benefit from the encryption and security it provides.

Finally, a VPN can provide you with protection against distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks that can crash systems and interfere with your online experience. These attacks are sometimes launched against gamers by targeting their individual IP addresses. A VPN will keep your IP address masked, preventing you from being attacked.

DDoS attacks are executed by sending an enormous number of requests to a particular address in order to overwhelm their system and make sure that it can no longer process any other requests. For gamers, this means one thing -- no game until the problem is solved.

Myths About Gaming VPNs

There are a great many misapprehensions about the impact that a VPN can have on a gamer’s experience. Some people believe that a VPN will slow down a player’s connection, which will lead to lag and a poor experience. In reality, any detrimental effect on speed will be minimal. VPNs which are configured specifically for gamers will be even less susceptible to lag or slowdowns.

Some people are also under a wrong impression that a VPN will enhance the frame rate they are able to achieve in a game. In fact, this is decided by the power of the graphical rendering hardware in the computer itself, not by the specifications of remote servers or the quality of the player’s internet connection. If your system is struggling to run a game at full speed, a VPN isn’t going to give you a power boost.

On the other hand, if you are experiencing in-game slowdowns that aren’t related to the power of your rig but are instead caused by a slow connection, a VPN may help you in some circumstances.

Choosing a VPN

Whether you need a VPN for gaming or general security, you will definitely want to choose a reliable one. Forget free VPN services - while claiming to be free of charge, they make their money in other ways. Namely, by serving you ads or selling your data to third-parties.

Also, when deciding between different VPN providers, make sure that the one you pick doesn’t limit your speed or bandwidth. Also, the more servers the provider has, the better for both - your VPN connection speeds and the overall performance. Servers in many countries is also a plus, as the wider selection gives you the freedom to switch between locations and unlock more media content, including games.

Remember, that while protecting your game, at the same time a VPN will also be securing all your internet communications. Therefore, reliable encryption is also very important. Some VPNs even allow rerouting user’s traffic through more than one of their servers, ensuring maximum security and anonymity for gamers and regular internet users.