What are LAN parties and why you should/shouldn't have one

Some weeks ago, I attended a LAN party after about 10 years of absence for one reason or another. While I was regaling a friend with stories of long nights and the baleful calls of “WHO’S EATING UP THE BANDWIDTH?!”, I noticed my friend had a vague smile and a blank look. After some careful prodding, I realised they had no idea what a LAN party was, so here we are. Before online gaming, widespread lightning-fast internet and millions of hosted servers, if a nerd or group of like-minded enthusiasts wanted to play together, we held a LAN party!

Short for Local Area Network, what the LAN in LAN party means is literally having everyone in the same network with every computer connected to each other. Now, one may wonder why we did this and the answer is simple enough; back in the LAN era, the internet connections weren’t exactly strong and the technology to host multiple users at once hadn’t quite reached the required levels yet. Sure, we could play some games, like Half-Life Deathmatch or the original Team Fortress, but even then having more than a few connections at once was tough… not to mention you had to hog your household's phone lines. So, in order to play together, we needed to be connected and playing the same thing.

Though the origin of these parties is of necessity, the introduction of newer technology and easier remote multiplayer should have wiped them out completely, but still, it survives. Year-round gamers gather at large events, in rented spaces, or simply in their buddy's basement, and I can definitely see why. The difference between chatting with your friends while playing at home to being there, seeing their reactions, being able to stand up and walk over to them, and simply existing in the shared space has a magic all its own.

So, having had a 10-year break and dipping back in head first, do I or do I not recommend trying it and why? Let’s break it down into some Bads, Goods, and Questionables!

The Bad - You’ll Sleep Weird for Weeks

First things first, let’s get this out in the open: LAN parties are exhausting! Being in my early thirties, I thought I still had the energy to game all night long with the best of them… I was wrong. Though I could stay up late into the night, eventually my body needed sleep, which proved to be a harder task than you’d imagine being bone tired. Since the events often take you away from home, you’ll have an unfamiliar bed to sleep in, in addition to the possibility that the others decide to keep on gaming, filling the halls with shouts of rage and victory. LAN parties often have the habit of being very irregular with food, featuring sudden orders of pizza, eating more junk food in an hour than you usually do in a week, and drinking so much caffeine that you start feeling colours. So, to put it bluntly, you’ll be feeling the aftermath.

The Bad - You’ll Never Agree on a Game

With the constant progress of time and technological advancement, the world of videogames is absolutely full of titles to choose from! While this should be considered a good thing, it does make picking a game to play one of the biggest challenges a LAN party can face. One person wants to save Super Earth in HELLDIVERS 2, another demands a few rounds of League of Legends, and a final small voice asks if someone would like to play some custom Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos maps. This is less of a problem in larger events, as everyone does their own thing, but if you’re trying to have a nice day with the buddies, you may end up with unhappy gamers or a much-reduced wallet.

The Bad - The Heat is On

As anyone playing demanding games for hours on end can attest, computers tend to get hot, heating up the surrounding room to a toasty (and tropical) climate. Now imagine a dozen computers or more in an enclosed space, surrounded by condensing drinks and unwashed gamers and you can get the picture. Being a native Finn, the idea of a sauna is pretty common to me and I still dread the LAN sweats. If you aren’t prepared, you can and will be dehydrated quickly! Never mind smelling worse than a marathon runner who forgot their deodorant.

The Bad - The Perfect Crew

The final bad point I’ll mention is something I struggled with myself while sitting in the dark trying not to blind myself with my monitor: other people. While this does touch upon the second Bad I mentioned, this is slightly different as it revolves more around how people interact. Having to spend a night or more in the same company of people can be demanding, especially when tired, cranky, and possibly hungry or dehydrated. Unless your group has a handle on organising the event or you’re all very comfortable with each other, there may be hurt feelings and harsh words said. Then again, we adults surely can do the sensible thing and go to sleep/eat/take a break when we start feeling unwell… right?

So far LANs are sounding kinda rough, right? Well, yes. There’s a lot to consider in one, but most of these are also factors you can plan for! A good LAN party takes into account the needs of the participants, be it in the form of scheduled lunch breaks or a place to crash or calm down when it all gets to be a bit much. On that note, here are some other Goods to consider before you swear off of the accursed LAN forever.

The Good - The Perfect Night

So, thus far what I’ve described must sound like some kind of disaster. Low lights, bright monitors, sweaty nerds, and unhealthy dining. However, that's only one side of the coin as a successful LAN party can be an amazing experience and has been for me many a time. There is something about sharing a space with others who enjoy your passion that just makes the experience so magical! You may notice someone playing your favourite game, someone may comment on your killer strats, and you may even find yourself enjoying that hobby that's kinda lost its lustre over the years. We all know going for a jog and taking part in a marathon are very different things after all. If the event is handled well, if you’re in good company, and you take some measures not to destroy your health, you may end up having one of the better night(s) of your recent life!

The Good - Everything is Cool When You’re Part of the Team

A big part of the previous point is the feeling of camaraderie in a LAN party. Sometimes it may be every nerd for themselves, other times it may be one side of the hall against the other and in the best cases (in my mind) are when every last set of eyes in that room is focused on a common goal! Every victory is shared, as is every defeat. Also, if someone’s being an ass, they’ll have a room full of empty cans flying their way if they’re not careful… depending on the company, of course. I usually throw marshmallows.

The Good - Treasures new and old

Continuing the trend of continuation, another fun thing I’ve noticed about LANs is how they wind up getting you hooked into games you never thought you’d even touch! The power of peer pressure is real, so when most of the room wants to play Battlefield or Dale & Dawson Stationery Supplies, you may find yourself installing a copy and getting ready to boot it up. Sure, you may never play that game again in your life, but it may also become your next big obsession! The same happened to me with both Warcraft III and Dragon Age: Origins, both games I recall with fondness, funnily enough.

The Good - The Freedom

The final point I want to bring forward, though there is more to name, is possibly one of the most important: freedom. Gaming is, to many of us, a passion and a hobby, but as life usually does, it often finds a way to get in the way of our relaxation and fun. Be it school, work, responsibilities, or pets, something usually rips us out of our warm cocoon of escapism to face the world anew. But at a LAN party? That all goes out the window! You play what you want for as long as you like… as long as you remember to eat, drink, and sleep whenever necessary. It’s a relatively small thing, but being able to cut loose and simply enjoy should not be underestimated!

The Questionable - Who, where, how long

If you’ve read this far, you’re probably either thinking this sounds stupid or this sounds great. If it's the former, I totally get it! It’s definitely not for everyone and I can respect not being interested. However, if you find yourself in the latter, I do have some pointers on the golden questions of who, where, and how long.

The who is both difficult and easy, to be honest, as the answer is most often “you”. As with any event, it will never happen if no one organises it! Being the organiser can be a pain, especially if you’re the one paying for the space/electricity and so on. However, even if you are the one running the show, remember that you don’t have to carry the burden! Sharing with your co-LAN-patriots can make the event feel more co-operative and, honestly, if they share the costs, they’re less likely to make a mess. I love my friends, but… yeah.

The where is much simpler: anywhere with room, electricity and probably a network connection, depending on the type of LAN you’re planning. If you have a basement, that works great! Just make sure there’s enough space, airflow, and a place to crash and cool off. Some hotels may have meeting rooms to rent out as well and some summer cottages are very well equipped, so you’re not going to be lacking in choice. However, always remember to take into account food, shopping, and emergencies when planning a trip. You do NOT want to be an hour away from the store when you realise the water isn’t running.

How long is very much up to the people taking part, though a night or two is a safe minimum. Lugging PCs around isn’t easy, so it needs to be worth the trouble of packing up and putting together the darn things. If your group is unsure of how it will go or you have no plans on what you’ll be playing, there’s no shame in keeping it short! If it ends up being great, you can do it again soon. However, if you’re planning an epic real-time Civilisation V tournament on top of some high-level raiding in WoW, you may want to make it a long weekend at least.

And that's about all I can say based on my latest experience. Would I do it again? Definitely. Would I go tomorrow? Not on your life; I like to be awake. If you do decide to host or join a LAN party based on this, I hope you have a great time! If you decide that you’re staying as far away as possible, more power to you. Going outside is overrated anyway. Happy LANing!