When comparing Ventrilo vs Steam Chat, the Slant community recommends Steam Chat for most people. In the question“What is the best voice chat for gaming?” Steam Chat is ranked 6th while Ventrilo is ranked 9th. The most important reason people chose Steam Chat is:
Now you can create and send links that will invite people directly into your group chat. Email, message, or text the link for them to join from the Steam Client or a web browser.
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Pros
Pro it works
Pro Stability
Very stable even if you own a low-end computer.
Pro Easily text chat
On top of the VOIP communication the app focuses on there is also an integrated text chat tool that is a great option for when the user doesn't have a mic handy or just doesn't feel like talking.
Pro Light on resources
For those that may have an under-powered system or just want to make sure most resources are pushed to the game instead of their VOIP client Ventrilo is a good choice as it is light on resources.
Pro Useful online tutorial
Upon opening the app for the first time the user is presented with an online tutorial that covers how to register the app as wel as how to start using it. This greatly reduces the barrier to entry.
Pro Easily one click invite
Now you can create and send links that will invite people directly into your group chat. Email, message, or text the link for them to join from the Steam Client or a web browser.
Pro Supports mobile clients
Steam has a fully-featured mobile client support for Android and iOS, which makes it very easy to check in on the app and communicate while on the go.
Pro Gets installed with Steam
When you are using someone else's computer for playing games Steam is normally installed
Pro Modernized chat
Every chat on Steam is now multi-media friendly. Getting your point across is easier than ever, now that everyone can see your GIFs inline rather than a list of links. Paste a picture from the clipboard and upload it directly to the chat.
Pro Add friends easily to chat
Want to bring someone into a conversation? Just drag and drop your friends from the Friends List to send them an invite.
Pro Can be used in browser
All of these features have been built to work not only in the Steam client, but also on the web. So you can continue conversations when you have access to a web browser but you're not logged in to the Steam client.
Pro Servers
Put up a server instantly, add channels and invite!
Pro Group friends by game & party
Your in-game friends are now grouped by the game they're playing, making it easier to join them, or to see which games are popular among friends. And see who's playing together. You can watch friends enter into a match and then emerge when their game is over. Be ready to dive in with them or to play when they're done.
Cons
Con Hasn't been updated in years
Barely works in compatibility with newer operating machines and the instructions for setup are somewhat outdated
Con Requires a server to use
In order to use Ventrilo's VOIP tool one must rent their own server which costs around $50 a year which will afford one communication with 10-20 people.
Con Lacks a Linux client
Despite a native Android client, there is no client for the Linux OS. Though there are some third party options such as Mangler.
Con Horrible latency issues
Due to the latency chat can be delayed on both sides of the conversation making for a very disjointed feeling that can be troublesome when second to second communication is necessary for coordination.
Con Unstable
Better interface than the former Steam chat, but UI does not mean anything if voice chat does not work. If you won't use if for voice chat, especially for gaming, then it is good (like streaming etc.) but its voice chat is a bug nest.