PC gaming is more popular than it has ever been, with millions of people around the world playing thousands of different games at any given time. Unfortunately, however, PC gaming is not as simple as console gaming; consoles are made to be “plug in and play” machines that will work no matter what, whereas not all PCs and laptops can run the same games and there are various external factors which can influence how well they perform.

Your success with playing games on your computer will massively depend on your computer’s hardware, and this can leave many people feeling frustrated and annoyed that they cannot handle the latest games. Here, we look at the various ways you can optimize your computer and make it much faster and more suitable for gaming.

1. Update Your Graphics Drivers

Your computer’s graphics card undoubtedly is the most crucial component when it comes to running modern games. The fact is, games are getting increasingly more realistic, and it takes incredibly powerful, current and updated graphics cards and drivers to run the latest ones.

Graphics cards use drivers that update and control them, and if these drivers are outdated, your graphics card is going to be too and may struggle to run the latest games. Updating your drivers can provide an instant boost to your FPS and enable it to perform at its optimum, providing you with a much smoother gaming experience.

2. Upgrade to a Solid-State Drive

A Solid-State Drive (SSD) pretty much comes as standard with most modern desktops and laptops. However, not all of them have one, and if you have an older PC, you may still be working with an old, outdated and clunky Hard Disk Drive (HDD).

SSDs are much, much faster than mechanical HDDs, and while this will not provide a noticeable improvement to your actual gaming experience, it can reduce loading times to a fraction of what they would be on an HDD. Once you move to an SSD, there is no going back; the loading times are incredible as the drive does not rely on mechanical parts, which can get worn out and slow down with time.

While these can be quite expensive, you get what you pay for. They are well worth the investment, and upgrading from an HDD to an SSD will be like buying an entirely new machine!

3. Use a VPN

Playing online can come with several security problems. Sadly, there are people out there who don’t like to lose and will personally attack the machines of other players to force them offline. It happens a lot, and unfortunately, it is a well-known problem in the online gaming community.

Many serious gamers invest in and use a high-quality VPN and stay behind it while online to solve these issues. A VPN service such as the one recommended by iTechGyan.com. will provide you with increased levels of security while playing online for not just your gaming experience, but your identity. A reliable VPN will encrypt your web traffic and enable you to interact with other people online on public servers safely. With many online gaming services being provided by private individuals, it is always a good idea to protect your personal information and identity, as you never know who is behind a game server or who their friends are.

4. Check Your Network Speed

Gaming performance for your laptop is mostly determined by your hardware, drivers, and how your computer is configured. But if you are playing online games, there is one other element to consider: your internet connection speed.

Lag is the usual cause of trouble with online gaming. This can be due to problems with your internet connection, but often a slow connection between your laptop and the router is to blame. In most cases, your wireless network card will have the most up-to-date drivers, thanks to Windows Update, or whatever system updates your OS has downloaded.

If there’s no change after applying updates, consider upgrading to a new, high-speed Earthlink internet plan to improve your connection or even using a wired Ethernet connection to the router. You should also check to see if a dedicated gaming router can optimize gaming performance along with our tips on reducing lag in online gaming.

PC gaming is something which has rapidly increased in popularity throughout the last few years. Given that it is quite difficult and expensive to get started from the perspective of sourcing the right computer and optimizing it for your favorite games, it is vital to protect your gaming experience by taking measures to secure yourself, your identity, and your connection while having fun at the same time.