Amazon GameLift Servers launches UDP ping beacons to measure Real-Time Network Latency for Multiplayer Games

We're excited to announce the general availability of UDP ping beacons for Amazon GameLift Servers, a new feature that helps game developers measure real-time network latency between game clients and game servers hosted on Amazon GameLift Servers. With UDP Ping beacons, you can now accurately measure latency for UDP (User Datagram Protocol) packet payloads across all AWS Regions and Local Zones where Amazon GameLift Servers is available.

Why UDP ping beacons matter

Most multiplayer games use UDP as their primary packet transmission protocol due to its performance benefits for real-time gaming. Understanding and optimizing network latency is crucial for delivering the best possible player experience. UDP ping beacons provide a consistent and reliable way to measure actual UDP packet latency between players and game servers, helping you make better decisions about player-to-server matching and game session placement.

How UDP ping beacons work

Amazon GameLift Servers has deployed UDP echo servers ("beacons") in every Amazon GameLift Servers hosting location, including Local Zones. These beacons respond to UDP ping requests from game clients, allowing you to measure round-trip latency to each location. Here's how it works:

1. Your game client sends UDP packets (up to 300 bytes) to the beacon endpoint for a specific Region or Local Zone.
2. The beacon returns the exact same packet back to the client.
3. By measuring the round-trip time, you can calculate the network latency between the client and that location.

The beacon endpoints are now available through the ListLocations API, making it easy to programmatically access the endpoints for all available locations.

Getting Started

To start using UDP ping beacons, simply:

1. Get the beacon endpoint for your desired location using the ListLocations API.
2. Send UDP packets to the endpoint on port 7770.
3. Measure the round-trip time to calculate average latency.
4. Use the latency data to optimize your game session placement.

UDP Ping beacons are available in all AWS Regions and Local Zones supported by Amazon GameLift Servers, except AWS China.

For detailed implementation guidance and best practices, refer to our technical documentation on UDP ping beacons.

We're excited to see how game developers will use UDP ping beacons to create better multiplayer experiences for their players. Let us know what you build!

Thank you,

Sachin Gupta | Sr. PM-Technical, Amazon GameLift Servers