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Gamers in Hawaii Can't Compete... Because of Latency (theoutline.com)

Sometimes it's very important to know that the servers of the web services you're using are situated somewhere in your neighbourhood. And it's not just because of privacy concerns. The Outline has a story this week in which it talks about gamers in Hawaii who're increasingly finding it difficult to compete in global tournaments because the games' servers are almost every time placed overseas. From the article: [...] The game's server is in Chicago. That means if you live in the Midwest, your computer can communicate with it almost instantaneously. If you're in L.A., it can take roughly 60 milliseconds. But if you're in Hawaii, it can take 120 milliseconds, with some players reporting as long as 200 milliseconds. And at the highest echelons of competitive video gaming, milliseconds matter. [...] In League and other eSports games, playing on a high ping is a big disadvantage. The goal of the game is to set up defenses to protect your base while pushing forward to capture the enemy's base, and there are typically lightning bolts and fireballs and slime-spitting dragons shooting across the screen. Playing on a high ping means players may not see all of the action that happens in a game. Latency can really screw things up for a young eSports scene, said Zack Johnson, who runs gg Circuit, a global tournament provider for gaming centers like PC Gamerz. Players on the mainland sometimes say they don't want to compete against Hawaii players, he said, because the high ping throws things off.

6 of 269 comments (clear)

  1. Swap?? by sycodon · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Holy fuck.

    Someone is in Hawaii and they elect to stay inside playing games???

    I tell you what...you come here and stay in my suburban home in the states with a high speed connection that will allow you to pwn everyone in the game, and I'll stay in your home in Hawaii, surf, scuba, hike, and lay out on the beach.

    --
    When Fascism comes to America, it will call itself Anti-Fascism, and tell you to give up your guns.
    1. Re:Swap?? by Holi · · Score: 5, Funny

      If you can't figure out what to do at night time with an island full of girls in bikini's maybe it would be best for you to stay on the computer.

      --
      Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
  2. Global ping times by PktLoss · · Score: 5, Informative

    If you're looking for a break down of what pings look like globally, we've got the data: http://wondernetwork.com/pings

    Or for Honolulu specifically: https://wondernetwork.com/ping... (101ms to Chicago)

  3. Re:So move to Chicago. by Stormy+Dragon · · Score: 5, Funny

    The current speed of light is clearly racist against indigenous Hawaiians. We need to expand federal net neutrality regulations to require telecommunications companies to use faster light on the cables connecting Hawaii to the mainland. /sarc

  4. Re:On the plus side... by frank_adrian314159 · · Score: 5, Funny

    I would take latency, sandy beaches, perfect weather and bikini clad women over snow and death by homicide.

    To be fair, Chicago hasn't had that much snow this season.

    --
    That is all.
  5. Re:#firstworldproblems by Oswald+McWeany · · Score: 5, Insightful

    True, although Hawaii may fare better than most islands and coastal areas. Most of Hawaii is well above even the scariest of sea level rises.

    Just about the entire state of Florida would be under water before 10% of Hawaii is underwater.

    --
    "That's the way to do it" - Punch