3 Best VPNs for Online Gaming in 2017

Summary:  Gaming online is incredibly popular.  However, some games are geo-restricted, meaning you cannot access them unless you live in certain regions or you are suffering DDOS attacks. A VPN fixes these problems for you.

Best VPN For Gaming Is Express VPN

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There are countless games that you can play online, from simple flash games to the more complex that involve dozens or even hundreds of other people.

A problem that many people face is that some games are unavailable in their area.  This usually applies to release dates and downloadable content, or DLC.

Many people also use public Wi-Fi for gaming and this presents its own dangers, such as having your device compromised by malicious software and your personal details stolen.

Even playing online through a secured Wi-Fi connection at home can leave your data and details vulnerable to attack.

A VPN solves all these problems for you. It lets you download, install and play any game you want regardless of where you are in the world, while encrypting your data so that it cannot be stolen.

Why Use A VPN for Online Gaming?

Online gaming has embedded itself into daily life. You see ads for World of Warcraft and Call of Duty plastered everywhere. MMORPG player bases equal the population of small countries.

This popularity means that cybercriminals are taking notice. Most gamers have online accounts or profiles, and those accounts are not only valuable themselves but are linked to personal information.

The incentive attracts crime, and people are now seeing their Steam, Battle.net, Origin, and other accounts getting hacked for use by spammers and identity thieves. No account is off-limits.

You are particularly vulnerable when you are using a public network. Want to play a round of Hearthstone or League of Legends at the airport waiting for your flight? You’d be vulnerable.

Public networks are unprotected and thus waiting cybercriminals can easily set up a program where they intercept anything sent over the network. That includes your game account login information.

If compromised, you might possibly get your gamer tag back after an attack, but it might be with a scandalous Russian username and your entire friends list deleted. This is without mentioning financial losses.

A connection you make with a VPN is by the nature of the service encrypted. This means hackers can’t break into your connection and no one can know what you’re doing online.

A VPN will not only keep hackers out of your connection but trolls and harassers won’t be able to track you. Your IP address will be hidden so your life doesn’t become a gamer horror story.

Gamers will also find a VPN great for accessing worldwide content and servers. Regional boundaries won’t a problem for gamers far from home or who feel best in a different time zone.

Savvy gamers might even know of a couple of games available only in Asian markets that they want to try out. A VPN allows you that option, and many already take advantage of it.

Region-exclusive DLC and other patches for your favorite games no longer would no longer be an issue. You can appear as though you’re in that region with a VPN.

Online gamers in oppressive countries similarly won’t have to deal with content blocks or regional restrictions. A VPN allows tunneling past these so you can game wherever you want.

A VPN is the best way to secure your device and maintain your freedom while you game. Getting a quality VPN like ExpressVPN will allow you to do so with no drawbacks.

Top 3 VPN’s For Online Gaming

#1 Express VPN – #1 Pick For Online Gaming

Some VPN’s aren’t really suited to online gaming.  However, Express VPN is one that has been tailored to work flawlessly with games.

Many VPN’s actually reduce your internet speed because your connection has to be rerouted through a different server, but Express VPN is different.

It ensures that your rapid internet speed, which is crucial to the good performance of online gaming, is kept intact.

In addition to this, it also offers SSL security and 256-bit encryption, which protects your personal details.

This encryption scrambles the data that you both send and receive online so that anyone who tries to hack into your device while you are gaming will be prevented from doing so.

This is important for all online gamers, but especially those that connect to public or unsecured Wi-Fi.

What really helps Express VPN to be the best option on the market for a game friendly VPN is their customer service and reliability.

If you ever have any questions about their service or have any issues with the VPN and your games then they are very quick in getting back to you.

They have a dedicated customer service team that work 24/7 so any problems can be sorted out at all hours of the day and night, and usually in minutes.

Express VPN also has servers worldwide so you can always find one to connect to.

They are incredibly reliable unlike some other VPN’s, so you won’t find your VPN connection going offline right in the middle of a game.

For protecting your personal details, offering fast internet speeds with reliable servers for online gaming, look no further than Express VPN..

 

#2 IPVANISH

Another option for getting through to your favorite online games is IPVanish.

While not quite as loaded with features as Express VPN, IPVanish has a reasonably fast connection that should make gaming pretty smooth and seamless on any of their servers.

Like Express VPN, they also allow up to two simultaneous connections, you multiple players can use it under one account, with no additional fees.

However, there is a catch. If you game on anything running iOS, such as an iPad or iPhone, IPVanish won’t work on your device.

Their software is only compatible with Windows, Mac, Android, and Linux, and won’t work on mobile Apple devices.

In addition, IPVanish’s customer support is a bit slower than Express VPN’s.

While their team is available 24/7 via live chat and e-mail, e-mails tend to take a few hours to get a response at the very least, and often it’s overnight before you hear back from them.

IPVanish offers their customers a 7 day money back guarantee, so if you try their service and decide it’s not for you, you can at least get a refund.

All in all though, for online gaming Express VPN is the best option available.

IPVanish can be found at this website.

 

#3 Hide My Ass

While HideMyAss has really strong encryption like Express VPN, the difference here is that theirs seems to really impact the speed of your connection.

HideMyAss is a terribly slow VPN, making it less than ideal for gameplay that requires a fast connection to be enjoyable.

Though their software is compatible with all operating systems, it’s not nearly as well designed and easy to use as Express VPN’s, so some users may have trouble getting it figured out at first.

The trouble with that is, if you need help, you’re probably going to be waiting a while.

Even though HideMyAss’s support is 24/7, e-mails take forever to get a response, and their live chat and phone support has you on hold for a few minutes before you can get the assistance you need.

It may seem like no big deal, but when you’re having connection problems right in the middle of the game, you need help, and you need it fast.

With their connection instability and slow customer support, HideMyAss just isn’t the ideal software to use for online gamers.

The best part about these guys is really their 30 day money back guarantee – at least you can get a refund when things don’t work out.

I would save myself the trouble though, and just use what works – Express VPN.

HideMyAss is here.

 

Conclusion

Online gaming is not only played by teenagers or young adults.  Older generations are now realizing the entertainment value of playing games online.

To best protect yourself and enhance your gaming experience by being able to access content from all over the world, you need to use a VPN.

With Express VPN you get:

  • Rapid internet connection to avoid lag or interruptions
  • Secure connection to keep your personal details safe
  • Choice of servers from around the world that are always available
  • Dedicated customer service team that work 24/7

Online Games We have Tested A VPN For

Bryan is a proud, career U.S. Air Force officer with over 20 years experience in IT, cyber security, and acquisitions.

2 Comments
  1. Reply jacktar@protonmail.com'
    Jack
    May 3, 2017 at 11:48 pm

    Though a VPN IS important is it not just as important to know which country that vpn Company that controls it IS Located in? Why, consider why your using it and whom or who u want to have access to. IF, the USA’s NSA, FBI , SS, researching through or even having access whenever they deem needed is OK with you, then not another thought about this issue. But if it IS important think about legal forced backdoors and access via legally to any of your activity the controlling Company’s location IS important. Ask yourselves where Windscribe vpn is located and who’s operating it in { what country=location }.

  2. Reply sincorreo32@gmail.com'
    daniel
    May 31, 2017 at 2:50 am

    expressvpn is nice, however their problem is they seem to use datacenter IPs, so those IPs get blocked quicker, instead there are other services that use residential service provided IPs, like exavpn, it’s harder for them to block a residential or business ISP

    also, they are located in USA, exavpn i think is from france

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