What Does 5G Mean for Online Games?

From the latest phones to artificial intelligence, technology is constantly advancing.

19:10 19 June 2019

One of the biggest changes in recent years has been with internet connectivity. After the introduction of 3G and 4G, 5G connectivity is the latest trend that’s being introduced in multiple countries across the world.

As one of the world’s leaders for 5G deployment, South Korea has already seen a million 5G subscribers in the first 69 days of the technology being available. As it becomes more widespread, 5G connectivity will improve the experience of mobile users across the world – and mobile gaming is no exception…

What exactly is 5G?

5G refers to the ‘fifth generation’ of mobile internet. As you would expect, it’s meant to be much faster than the current 3G or 4G networks. How? In short, it will make the most of different radio frequencies on the spectrum to allow quicker connection.

Rather than sticking to the standard frequency, 5G will take advantage of higher frequencies with shorter wavelengths. With a lower range, these wavelengths require more phone masts, positioned a lot closer together to transmit and receive the signals.

More devices will be able to access the internet through mobile devices at the same time, without compromising on speed. To put that into more familiar terms, it’s like having more train tracks leading to the same station. Rather than having multiple trains queueing, they will be able to travel and arrive promptly at the same time.

Importantly, 5G is just for mobile networks. The technology does not affect broadband or broadband speed. What it does do, however, is bridge the gap between the connection speed, and in turn the experience, on mobile devices and desktop computers.

Who will it help?

The potential benefits of 5G are pretty wide-ranging. As well as simply making it faster for mobile users to browse the internet, 5G could be used for mobile devices like drones. Now used for everything from search and rescue to military activity, drones will be better equipped to communicate with one another and bases on the ground.

Looking more to the future, 5G will be important in the development of autonomous ‘driverless’ vehicles. How? To operate without a driver, autonomous vehicles need constant data from live traffic and maps. They also need to be connected to one another if they are being used in a fleet. 5G will make this more practical by eliminating any delays.

Online games with 5G

This faster connection will also benefit online games through mobile devices. We’ve all been frustrated by a break in connection when playing online games. In many cases, it leads to a lost match or just a loss of progress on your game. 5G aims to eliminate this issue, for a better gaming experience.

Over time, this will facilitate more innovative live casino games or a more immersive experience on strategy games, for instance. With the capacity to transfer more data at high speeds, developers can be more ambitious with the games they create. That includes the advent of VR gaming, which has so far been held back by mobile connection.

Not too far in the future, we could see immersive VR games taking off on mobile, without the need for a constant broadband connection – not to mention a better experience all around for the games we know and love.