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Game Server Hosting Company - Jdawgg's Index to Great Providers! - Articles
Posted by: Jdawgg on 02-06-2005 @ 22:56 - Source: Jdawgg |
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This News Item has been viewed 1,964 times
Well I've had a lot of experience with game servers and game server providers. From the top of the alphabet with Art of War Central to the bottom with Xgameservers, I've researched them all. In my travels, I have encountered some great potentials, some nice people, and some excellent negotiators. On the other hand, I have also ran into bad pings, terrible service, and even worse support. Here is my guide to all clans looking for a good game server provider!
I'll start in chronological order, from which company I encountered first.
Prey Grounds
I wont lie - Prey Grounds Hosting is a good company. They have been around for a while, almost 3 years now, they know the ropes in the industry. My first encounter with them was with the hosting of the Happy Penguin Classic server, a very popular RTCW server running a 64-player 24/7 Depot rotation. With excellent pings and excellent uptime, it seemed like the logical choice. However, it must have been the games. The unfortunate part with Prey Grounds was, firstly, their limited server locations. Predominantly West and Mid-West United States, their servers are not so appealing to players on the East Coast or in the UK. Second was the great fluctuation in server pings. Their Call of Duty solutions were not only a little more pricey (yet still much lower than competitors) but also more laggy. Lastly, their game scope was pretty narrow, offering only 12 different games (plus some expansions) they weren't as "big" as other companies I researched. But with 32-player servers priced as low as $64/mo, the adage "you get what you pay for" applies.
Art of War Central
Art of War Central was big on dedicated hosting. Right off the bat, their dedicated solutions were more iffy than spiffy. With steep prices, low server spec, and lots of flashy extras to catch the eye, it looked a lot like a gimmick. "Hey, we can get 1000 GB of transfer and 100% server uptime!" .... "Oh wait, running on a single P4 clocked at 2.4 GHz." To make it worse, they claimed you could host multiple servers with more than 32 players on each and still get good performance under a 2.4 GHz Pentium and 1024 MB of RAM... Still keeping a positive attitude, I wandered over to their game server section. I found 32-man hosting for $100/mo and thought "wow, that's a great deal." With multiple data centers and great prices, I decided to go with them. It was a great server. I ran at a very respectable 40 ping even while server was full, and my UK buddies ran at respectable 120 pings. We all enjoyed it very much. But good things come to an end, and when we tried out a different game (even in the same data center) everything went down hill. Mostly the decrease in server performance that drove our business elsewhere. Would I recommend AoWC? Yep. Good company - some weird policies and sometimes flaky support team, but overall it was a decent experience with a bad ending.
Xgameservers
Xgameservers caught my eye with great pings. Had a very wide scope with data center locations (all over the United States) and decent pings in all of them. Especially the East Coast servers, pinging at 18 was a very nice positive towards attracting my business. Hosting all the popular games (Half-Life 1 and 2, CoD, RTCW) along with almost every other multiplayer game imaginable, they also had a wide scope with game selection. The first noticeable downside was the support. I e-mailed them only to get a response 4 days later which didn't even answer the simple question of "Is your max player slots of 32 for your game servers final, or can we negotiate a price?" So keeping as positive of an attitude I could with the disrespectful response, I e-mailed again repeating the question and inquiring about the allocated web space they bundled with their deals. After 5 days of no response, I gave up. Sorry Xgameservers - maybe I hit you up at a busy time, or maybe my e-mails just got lost in cyberspace... I can't say if I'd recommend them. They looked good, but looks can be deceiving.
GDN Networks
Don't even think about this company as a game server provider... Google it if you want more details.
ServerXtreme
An underdog, ServerXtreme really amazes me. I am not sure how they are still in business (just because of how hard business has been to them) but they do a great job. ServerXtreme could be complimented for superb support, and great prices. A wide selection of games (including less popular game server titles like Neverwinter Nights). My first bit of skepticism entered my mind when I saw 32-player servers for under $90/mo. I thought back to Prey Ground Hosting and how their cheap servers sometimes meant cheap performance. I was floored when I saw their performance was top notch. To date I am still very impressed with this little-known company, and would highly suggest your business go to ServerXtreme. A+ in service, support, and pings! An all around great game server provider with loads of features, loads of packages and plans, and loads of wow I am rambling so I'll move on!
ET Game Hosting
No, they do not only host Enemy Territory servers. However, ET Game Hosting still doesn't offer very many games. With the narrowest of scopes out of the game companies I have discussed, not to mention the steepest prices, this is not quite the company I would choose if I were a new clan. However, there is a silver lining to it. The adage "You get what you pay for" really does apply. The prices are extraordinarily steep in contrast to companies like VSK, UraniumGamers, and Prey Grounds, but ET Game Hosting makes up in performance and support. They are also a great support to their underlying communities. ET Game Hosting is responsible for RTCWFiles.com's wonderful TeamSpeak server - hosted free of charge for all of you to enjoy! A very professional company and group of tech gurus to coordinate business with you makes this one of the most pleasant business relationships you'll find. Well worth the cost if you want the least headache and least worries and a reliable server.
VSK Gaming Servers
VSK Gaming Servers has a very attractive data center. Don't be fooled - just because they are in a building called "The National Bandwidth Exchange Building" doesn't necessarily mean the best pings. I tested out their servers right away to see what kind of ping I had, and it was 67 - 80 pretty constant. It isn't the worst of pings, and there wasn't really lag, but it was a higher ping than other companies offered. With great prices, but not the best, and with slightly unstable customer service, VSK was a little on the iffy side. I gave them a call on their toll free number, however, and someone actually answered the phone and gave me all the information I needed to know. The problem I saw with VSK was their conflicting data they were providing me with my server inquiries. I was told that in order to host a game server, I would NEED their dual CPU solution... Not exactly my choice being priced as high as it was. It didn't help when the fact that the game doesn't support dual CPU so it would be running off one anyway came up they shunned us as being incompetent consumers... However, if you want to go with game server rentals (and not dedicated) they offer good prices for most games, as well as a very large list of games to choose from. With better-than-average support most of the time and excellent server uptime, they are a reliable host for new clans. Their web hosting deals are very delightful too!
UraniumGamers
Okay, UraniumGamers would not be my recommended choice - I'll lay that on the table right now. UG started off as a great candidate. With slightly higher than average prices, we were a little unsure whether or not we wanted to do business with them. However, I got to talking with Todd, the owner of UraniumGamers, and he and I negotiated a price down to a more reasonable level. I was very impressed with the demonstration server he put us in as well as the price negotiation he permitted. His service was outstanding too - always on, always ready to help. He even set up our server BEFORE we made the payment, threatening our families if we didn't pay (only kidding). He seemed like a great guy running a great business... But then... *horror music flares* ... Everything blew up - almost literally. After the first 3 weeks of great service, support, and pings, our server started lagging. Horrible lag spikes, horrible overall performance - it was terrible. We contacted him, and he (in true Todd fashion) hopped right in our server to debug it. With every lag spike (about 3 times per round) he would make up some excuse why he didn't witness it. One time he simply said "Sorry, I wasn't paying attention..." We were very upset with him. He continued to deny it was a problem on his end. Let me preface the following with this: Days before the lag started, Todd asked us to move our server to a different data center to clear up some room for Counter-Strike Source servers. We declined (since we were there first) and he said he understood. Then the lag started. As soon as he "admitted" it was a problem with his server, he said "Here's what I'll do for you... I'll move you to a different data center and all your problems will go away!" This was conveniently in time to make room for his CS:S servers, which would draw in more profit being in the faster data center. The experience devolved into him becoming increasingly disrespectful, unprofessional, and immature. From offensive e-mails to offensive forum posts, Todd turned into a monster. Lastly, we learned why Todd can claim UraniumGamers to have a 100% positive record - because Todd DELETES any negative feedback in his testimonial forums! If there is an unhappy customer, he either claims the problem was solved (when really the customer left his hosting) or he will delete the posts altogether. We witnessed 9 counts of this first-hand, and talked to many other clans and individuals who ended up the same way. Do NOT choose UraniumGamers as a server host. High prices, false fronts to a company, and eventual destruction of your server makes for a great deal of frustration and anger that you just don't need.
And finally, the #1 game server hosting company is....
ECG Network
East Coast Gaming Network is a great game server company through and through. Their prices are on par with average industry prices. Their game selection is thorough. They list their server IP's for you to go test actual client servers rather than buttered-up demo servers like UraniumGamers provides. ECG, with over 140 customers, is one of the largest companies out there. ECG also negotiated prices well, making for a professional and flexible hosting solution. ECG Network offered several East Coast locations, all pinging at the same high-speed response. Even people in Dallas TX were pinging at 45 which is amazing. Players in the UK ping at 95 - 100 pings consistently. There is absolutely no latency whatsoever and the server uptime has been 100% in the weeks we've been hosting with them. They did not offer web soltuions, but worked with us to find a good hosting solutin for our website. They didn't have the widest scope of games to choose from, but had all of the popular demand titles like the Call of Duty series, Half-Life series, Battlefield series, Wolfenstein series, Unreal Tournament series, and Medal of Honor series (note: not all games were listed). We had our server up within 24 hours with our TeamSpeak included. The server control system ECG Network uses is also extremely user friendly. With the ability to edit the config files in a nice interface rather than having to re-upload them each time made for changing map rotations a sinch. Their nice "browse" button allowed us to easily browse for and upload any custom files we wanted without having to download, purchase, and/or learn any FTP software clients. With the ability to switch from a game to its expansion with the click of the button, it makse for a very pleasant and flexible hosting package. Abilities to mod the server in any way we see fit also made for excellent freedom and satisfaction with our investment.
ECG Network has by far impressed me the most. I would recommend ECG Network to anyone interested in a gaming server whether it be a clan or an individual. Their server sizes and prices are very flexible, so if you don't think they can accomidate your needs - guess again. All you have to do is ask. The biggest threat to online gaming, however, is UraniumGamers. Avoid UG at all cost - there is no reason to waste your money on a company run by a dishonest and disrespectful individual who lacks so much self-confidence he has to delete any negative feedback posted in his forums... It sickens me to think that a person like that is still tricking people into doing business with him.
Notes:
All game servers listed here, with the exception of GDN and UraniumGamers, are companies that you would be able to trust. Some are better than others, and all have their weaknesses, but each would suffice depending on your needs and your level of patience and flexibility. For instance, if you don't mind waiting weeks for a response, Xgameservers would be the place for you. Or if you didn't mind the fluxuating pings, Prey Grounds would be a friendly and simple solution for you. However, if you want good prices, great pings, and even better service, ECG Network is the best place for all of you! The only flaw I could dig up on ECG Network would be their narrow scope of data centers. Then again, their company name IS "East Coast Gaming Network" so I cannot really bash them for having data centers along the East Coast of the USA!!!
Disclaimer: All views expressed here are findings of Jdawgg. They are 100% opinion based on facts and reality. There is no prapaganda here - take the advice or leave it. It is your choice to read and take my findings seriously or not. These reviews were writted as objectively as possible, however, given they are mostly first-hand accounts there is going to be a level of subjectiveness. Nevertheless, my accounts are honest and true, regardless of any personal experiences I encountered during my research. Any references to "We" or "Our" I am referring to my group of online gurus.
All findings were experienced between the years of 2003 - 2005.
E-mail Me with comments!
Regards,
Jdawgg - RTCW Files Site Administrator
 02-07-2005 @ 19:27 - FilesNetwork resumes normal and FASTER operation!
 02-06-2005 @ 20:46 - Welcome to Two New File Posters!
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The following comments are owned by the user that posted them. RTCW & ET Files is not responsible for their content.
Total comments: 6 | Last comment: 03-24-2005 at 04:14
CrazyEddie
Joined: February 6th, 2005
Posts: 16 | Grab some ice and sink those fingers in, your pinkies are a little over worked after that one!
Move over Stephen King 
Oh and have a  cause you da  |
Jdawgg
From: 
Joined: October 10th, 2002
Posts: 233 |  What can I say, I like to type! |
Guest (dsl-217-155-80-86.zen.co.uk)
Joined: December 31st, 1969
Posts: | I think youneed to re-evaluate your post on VSK Gaming Servers. The net has loads of some well aimed truths about VSK Gaming Servers. You give them way too much credit. In fact, if you want to throw money away and be abused by a very rude idiot, then by all means go to VSK Gaming Servers. And pay no attention to the forums. Only the good comments are left intact. Anything negative gets deleted and the users banned. |
PsychoSnowMan
Joined: November 3rd, 2002
Posts: 173 | Nice work, looks like a good review of game hosting sites. |
Guest (64-142-87-148.dsl.static.sonic.net)
Joined: December 31st, 1969
Posts: | I also, have heard the same thing from many people / sources about VSK's bad rude attitude.
With any negative postings or comments on the VSK forums deleted and any customers complaining or saying negative things about the services threatened with lawsuits.
Hardly the Best Game Server Company in the World that their banner ads describe. |
EvilJohn
From: (Alabama)
Joined: January 30th, 2004
Posts: 2 | 3 GSP's later. http://www. escapedturkey.com Hands down the best value out there |
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