Can't play online multiplayer PC games at university

Hey guys! I know this might not be such a big deal to some and you always get those who say 'you should be studying', but in my spare time I enjoy gaming and as the title suggests, I've got an issue with this whilst at university. I have tried to play multiple games and I've noticed that only some work. For example, I was able to play Red Dead story mode (as it's not online) but I can't play the multiplayer option. I have noticed this with other online games and just assumed my university has blocked any games as people have suggested. However, I am able to run things such as Neverwinter and multiplayer Minecraft servers so I'm unsure why certain games don't work. In addition, people are able to play multiplayer games on other platforms such as Xbox and Play Station, it just seems to be PC with a problem. People have suggested things such as VPNs, however my university state clearly that they have the right to ban you from using the WiFi if you're caught with one so I've been too afraid to try.
Surely I can't be the only person who has endured this, has anyone else had this problem and is there any way to get past it? :smile:

Reply 1

Mrepic Foulger

Banning you from vpns is actually ridiculous

Reply 2

JellyFox

Original post by Mrepic Foulger

Banning you from vpns is actually ridiculous

I haven't actually tried one yet so I don't know if it would work. However, any website or webpage containing 'VPN' is inaccessible using their WiFi but I go home every weekend so would I be able to just download it at home and use it at university?

Reply 3

sly_southafrican

My flatmates have played CS:GO and Overwatch online on PCs multiple times. We don't seem to have that problem

Reply 4

Mrepic Foulger

Original post by JellyFox

Yes that should work.

Reply 5

JellyFox

Original post by Mrepic Foulger

Yes that should work.

I'm guessing this is my only hope. The recurring issue seems to be that I can log in to most games, however when I do some sort of connection error always occurs. I did actually contact Rockstar about it and they said its a common issue in universities and hotels etc as they block ports or something?

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anyone solve this problem???????

Reply 8

gimmy ahmed

anyone solve this problem????

Reply 9

Appirition

The WiFi ultimately goes out to the Internet using the uni's Internet connection which will have a firewall to help manage the connection performance and also to help protect every device on their networks from malware, viruses, etc.
Think of the firewall as a sieve with hundreds of holes. Each hole has a number. This is the port number. Some of the holes (ports) are blocked intentionally by the people who manage the firewall. You, as a student, cannot change anything on the firewall, so you cannot unblock any of the blocked ports.
If you're using a laptop that has the ability to have a mobile sim card installed in it, you could get a sim card, then you won't be using the uni's Internet connection, but it does mean you're paying for your own Internet connection and usage. If you can't put a sim card in your laptop you can get a USB sim card dongle (make sure it is unlocked or not locked to a specific network, and make sure it is 4G, not just 3G).
Alternatively, you could turn on connection sharing on your phone, then connect your laptop to your phone (usually via WiFi or Bluetooth - your phone will tell you which), but again you're paying for the data usage via your phone sim card. If you go down this route, make sure you check how much data is included with your phone sim contract, and regularly check how much you have used because laptops use a LOT data more than phones.