The Benefits of Private Game Servers
If you have played video games in the last five years, you likely know about private servers. These are servers owned or hosted by individuals who use them to play the games they want. In some cases, people will open up their private servers to play with others or monetize them to make passive income. Hosting your own gaming server has many benefits; here are the most notable.
You Get Faster Speeds
Several factors make private game servers much faster than other servers. First, you can choose a server from all over the world or build your own. When you have a choice of servers from all over the world, you can choose a quality server and provider and thus have a faster connection, lower lag, and a great gaming experience.
You can also build a personal server in your home or business, but you need to be aware of the process of doing so. Additionally, not all games will run on such a server, but most do. After all, it is just a connection from a server hosting a game to a computer playing the game.
Total Asset Control
A private game server also gives you total control over in-game assets. You can have all the special weapons, cars, clothes houses, and assets you want within the game. You can even give yourself as much in-game currency as you like and do anything with it.
It is important to remember that such total asset control gives you an advantage over other players if you open up your server to them. If you are going to do this, please refrain from giving yourself an undue advantage by giving yourself too many assets.
If you do this, you will annoy other players and they will leave and never return. While this might not be a concern for many people, it should be for you if you are using the game server to make money.
Eject Anyone
Every game server has trolls and griefers. Since you have total control over your server, you can remove anyone you like if they break the rules you have set out for players.
Many people who own and run private game servers also host forums where other players can post ban appeals. As the admin, you will have the power to look through these appeals and requests, look at the evidence, and ban some if they have broken some rules.
The good news is that the forum does not have to be hosted on the same server, as you can use a second server for that and for your marketing website.
Build a Reputation
There is still a very robust gaming community online despite the relative slowing down of esports. If you want to be known in these circles, you have to create a reputation. A private game server is one of the best ways to do this.
Once you have a few people hanging out on your server, consider hosting servers for other games and keeping all of them updated. Many private server owners open one server for one game and are unable to capitalize on other games that are popular at the time.
Monetizing Game Servers
The most significant benefit of owning a private game server is that you can monetize it. As we have mentioned severally, doing so involves opening up the server to other players so you can play together.
There are many ways to monetize a game server. Many people start by opening it up to players for free and then asking for a donation. Players are incentivized to donate to help you keep the server going. If you provide a great experience, they may donate much more than it takes to run the service, making it a great way of making money.
If you host the server yourself, you can contact companies that provide managed services to ensure the server is safe and secure for your players. They will monitor the server to protect it from malicious users and advise you how to keep everything running smoothly.
Some gamers also take sponsorships and advertisements. Sponsorships are promotions that help you expand into a range of gaming-related items. Sponsorships can be related to the games you host or not be related at all.
Lastly, you can charge for a premium membership. Doing this is much trickier than using the other options as you need a large group of gamers willing to play on your server, which means you must provide exceptional services. You should also provide exclusive content people cannot find elsewhere and features people will pay for.
Having and running a private game server is a great way to enjoy the games you love on a fast server. It is also a great way to make some income if you provide an excellent service to other players and find a way to monetize the server.