Server Status
If you are dealing with a sudden influx of lag when playing Overwatch 2, it's worth checking the server status before we make any changes to settings. If there are server issues on the game's end, then your connection will be negatively affected.
Unfortunately, server issues can only be resolved by the game developers. On the bright side, you know it's the server issue causing your lag rather than an issue with your network. You can check the server status of Overwatch 2 with these links:
Overwatch 2 Server Status
Blizzard Support Twitter
If the server status is all good, we can move on to some tips to optimize your network and improve your connection.
Using a Wired Connection
If you are experiencing lag spikes and stutters, it could be due to packet loss, which is a common issue when gaming over a WiFi connection. This is due to the signals that the router sends to your PC/console facing interference or being weakened. Things such as the signals having to travel through walls and doors will impact your connection quality. Also, if the signals have to travel a long distance to your PC/console, then the signal strength will be reduced.
A wired (Ethernet) connection is always best when gaming online. This ensures a stable connection that won't be interfered with.
Stability is the most important thing when it comes to having a good connection in-game. Gaming does not need a huge amount of bandwidth, so the speed of your connection isn't that important. You can learn more about why internet speed doesn't matter for gaming here.
In some homes, the distance between your router and PC/console is the reason why an Ethernet cable isn't an option. If that is the case, you could consider Powerline Adapters. This piece of tech carries an Ethernet connection through your home's existing electrical wiring. This allows for an Ethernet connection to be established across rooms/floors in a house.
Open NAT Type
The matchmaking process in Overwatch 2 is based on three factors: your skill level (SBMM), your wait time to find a game, and your location.
- If you are restricted by NAT type, you may end up waiting a long time to find a game.
- If the game is struggling to find a nearby lobby at your skill level and you’ve been waiting a long time for a match, your location becomes less important.
- If this occurs, you may find yourself connected to a game server that is located far away, resulting in a high ping and potential lag during gameplay.
Being connected to a faraway server or host will cause a large increase in ping. The further the data has to travel, the longer it will take, and this is why your inputs may feel delayed and your ping is much higher in some games.
If you're a DumaOS user, you don't need to open your NAT type as UPnP (Universal Plug and Play) will automatically do this for you.
Check out our write-up on Open NAT type and Port Forwarding here.
Below are the required ports for Overwatch 2 for each console:
PC:
- TCP: 1119, 3724, 6113
- UDP: 3478-3479, 5060, 5062, 6250, 12000-64000
PlayStation:
- TCP: 1119, 1935, 3478-3480, 3724, 6113
- UDP: 3074, 3478-3479, 5060, 5062, 6250, 12000-64000
Xbox:
- TCP: 1119, 3074, 3724, 6113
- UDP: 88, 500, 3074, 3478-3479, 3544, 4500, 5060, 5062, 6250, 12000-64000
Nintendo Switch:
- TCP: 1119, 3724, 6113, 6667, 12400, 28910, 29900-29901, 29920
- UDP: 1-65535
Optimizing Overwatch 2 Gameplay: Harnessing the Power of DumaOS Features
DumaOS is a set of powerful features that completely crush lag. It can be a powerful tool for Overwatch 2 players who are serious about their gameplay or want to avoid the frustrations of lag. If you fall into either of these categories, you'll definitely want to explore what this operating system can do to enhance your connection and improve your gaming experience.
Geo-Filter is the first feature that will help eliminate high ping when gaming online. Geo-Filter creates a filter radius around your home location. The DumaOS software will take proactive measures to prevent your connection to game servers that are located outside of your specified radius. This means you will only connect to local and lower ping servers every single game.
Ping Heatmap is another feature in DumaOS that supports Geo-Filter. Select Overwatch 2 from the drop-down list in Ping Heatmap to see the server locations and the ping you will have in-game if you were to connect to them. With this information, you can make your Geo-Filter radius as accurate as possible for the best servers.
Eliminate Network Congestion with DumaOS QoS for Seamless Gaming
When gaming on a busy network, it's common for your ping in-game to be inconsistent, which will result in stuttering gameplay—not ideal in a competitive match. DumaOS can solve this issue as well with its powerful QoS (Quality of Service) feature.
QoS allows you to prioritize your gaming traffic. This means other activities like streaming or downloading on your network won't ruin your gaming session. Using Bandwidth Allocation, you can drag more bandwidth towards Gaming, ensuring the traffic will always be at the front of the queue. You can also prioritize whole devices on your network, so any activity on your PC/console will come before mobile or smart TV traffic.
Gaming only requires a small amount of bandwidth for smooth gameplay, as long as the connection is stable and consistent. Activities such as streaming and downloading use a huge amount of your available bandwidth. This will often cause your gaming traffic to suffer because of congestion on your network. Using Congestion Control, we can reserve some of the available bandwidth on your network. This will then act as a fast lane specifically for gaming traffic. This means even when your network is busy, nothing will slow your gaming traffic down.
Thanks for Reading
If you would like to learn more about DumaOS 4 and how to get your hands on it, check out our website here.
As a special thank you for reading the whole blog, here's a discount code for the brand new Netduma R3 gaming router. The R3 comes with DumaOS 4 installed, so you can use all of the features mentioned in the blog and more to optimise your connection.
Use code: OW2VID
for 10% off your Netduma R3 purchase