Fortnite Ping Issues (Server Related Issues - high ping one match, low ping the next)

[CullenFN]

Fortnite Ping Issues (High Ping one match, low ping the next)

Hi,  I play Fortnite on a PC and I am trying to fix high ping in matches. I recently upgraded my internet to 200mbps and it is much better but some issues aren’t fixed. The issue is that when I queue into a match I may have 30-35 ping one match and next match I may queue and join a match with a constant 55-65 ping. From what I have heard, there are 2 servers for NAE (I play on NA East servers). One server in Ohio, and the other in Virginia. I currently live in New York State so I am thinking that one game I am queuing on Ohio servers and the next I may queue on Virginia servers. I assume that when I queue into the Ohio servers that’s when I have the 55-65 ping because Ohio is farther from New York and when I queue into Virginia Servers that’s when I have 30-35 ping, as Virginia is closer. I am trying to make sure that I queue into Virginia Servers every or most games and I heard that this is possible with a gaming router but, I was wondering if this was possible with software or something else. So basically I would need to know if there is software or something that is free or can be purchased  cheaper than a gaming router. And for my understanding it would almost direct the network traffic to Virginia servers while playing Fortnite. That is just a guess. So if anyone can help me that would be greatly appreciated because it’s hard playing 30 ping one match and then twice the ping the next match. 

P.S or if there is a way besides this to make my ping more consistent in different matches. I don’t get how streamers and also just casual players play consistent ping in every match. Do they only queue using the same server? Again, any help is greatly appreciated as I really have no idea what to do nor do I have no idea if what I am saying makes sense.

Additional Details:
I play over an Ethernet Cord
I have up to date network drivers 
If any other details are needed just tell me

[kirashi]

48 minutes ago, CullenFN said:

I may have 30-35 ping one match and next match I may queue and join a match with a constant 55-65 ping.

A fluctuation between matches (not during) of 20-30ms ping isn't going to change much, unless you've also got a competitive gaming setup, inlcuding super high-end hardware and a 240MHz monitor, for example. Many game servers are actually running on micro-sized Virtual Machines provided by Digital Ocean, Vultr, Google Compute Cloud, or Amazon Web Services, spread across multiple data centres. The game client is responsible for picking whatever server happens to provide the "best" route between your home/ISP and any peering internet backbone providers before reaching the data centre running the server. You're spot on that you've got a chance to end up on whatever server the game client believes is "best" every time you queue for a match.

 

What can you do about it? Not a whole lot. There are gaming routers, online "game boosting" services, and other such fluff on the market, all which claim to improve your ping times, but none of which can actually guarantee this, so please don't waste your money on them unless you absolutely understand what they can and cannot actually improve. To be clear, I'm not trying to dismiss this, but what you're experiencing is absolutely normal based on how the internet works, so unless you're willing to move or pay thousands for a direct fibre line between your home and the game servers, assuming this is feasible, your best bet is to keep using a wired ethernet connection and choose the game server regions closest to your physical location.

 

Aside from that, your only other option would be to contact both your ISP and Epic Games to ask them to work closer together, however, I already know what they're going to tell you, so it's probably best not to waste your time going down that avenue.

[CullenFN]

1 hour ago, kirashi said:

A fluctuation between matches (not during) of 20-30ms ping isn't going to change much, unless you've also got a competitive gaming setup, inlcuding super high-end hardware and a 240MHz monitor, for example. Many game servers are actually running on micro-sized Virtual Machines provided by Digital Ocean, Vultr, Google Compute Cloud, or Amazon Web Services, spread across multiple data centres. The game client is responsible for picking whatever server happens to provide the "best" route between your home/ISP and any peering internet backbone providers before reaching the data centre running the server. You're spot on that you've got a chance to end up on whatever server the game client believes is "best" every time you queue for a match.

 

What can you do about it? Not a whole lot. There are gaming routers, online "game boosting" services, and other such fluff on the market, all which claim to improve your ping times, but none of which can actually guarantee this, so please don't waste your money on them unless you absolutely understand what they can and cannot actually improve. To be clear, I'm not trying to dismiss this, but what you're experiencing is absolutely normal based on how the internet works, so unless you're willing to move or pay thousands for a direct fibre line between your home and the game servers, assuming this is feasible, your best bet is to keep using a wired ethernet connection and choose the game server regions closest to your physical location.

 

Aside from that, your only other option would be to contact both your ISP and Epic Games to ask them to work closer together, however, I already know what they're going to tell you, so it's probably best not to waste your time going down that avenue.

Ok thanks. I really appreciate it.