WARDOGS caps ping at 175: Bulkhead starts region controls against cheaters

On 21 October 2026, BULKHEAD announced on X that it will control player regions in WARDOGS more tightly. As a first step, the maximum ping allowed on a server is lowered to 175 within a few hours. The studio says this is to protect its largest player groups from an influx from regions it considers more prone to cheating. As of 23 October 2026.

What was announced

• A maximum ping of 175 on servers, rolled out from the evening of 21 October.
• An actual region lock is being prepared on the backend. The studio says it is more than flipping a switch and gives no date.
• The statement does not name the regions concerned. The studio has not published cheating figures either.

In essence, the studio says that letting all regions mix freely has not worked out as it had hoped.

What CEO Joe Brammer added

According to GamingBolt, Brammer acknowledged on 22 October that the measure disadvantages a share of players to protect the larger group. He called it a temporary solution and said the team is working on options for players worldwide. As early as 13 October, games.gg reports, he had said the studio would enforce regional ping limits instead of a region lock for now, which would ease the problem but not fully fix it.

How this fits the Season 2 ping limits

Season 2 already introduced region-based ping limits for official servers on 15 October. At the time, the studio stressed that the initial values were deliberately lenient. Players who stay above the limit for a sustained period are kicked and cannot rejoin the same server until the next map transition. According to the patch notes, community server admins can set their own limits, including for cross-region play. The studio did not explicitly say whether the new 175 cap also affects community servers.

Community criticism

In Steam discussions and on social media, players mainly criticise that they can no longer play with friends on other continents. Some say they will request refunds, others want better anti-cheat rather than region restrictions. Part of the community, on the other hand, considers 175 still too high.

What you can do

If you have been kicked more often or can no longer reach certain servers since 21 October, our troubleshooting article on ping kicks explains how to check your ping, filter for suitable servers and what options remain for playing with friends in other regions.