MATERIAL PALETTES FOR OPTIMAL FUNCTION
Along with designs that further the room’s functions in gaming and learning, the layout of effective and engaging sports hubs at academic facilities must align with specific departmental goals and instructor teaching methods. For example, the faculty may prefer incorporating stationary or mobile writing surfaces. Other considerations are the inclusion of casual social and observation areas that are typically favored by esports club members, along with architectural solutions that provide varsity teams with the necessary visual separation between rows of competing teams.
In the same way that conventional academic sports arenas are designed for athletic success and fan enjoyment, esports venues must optimize gaming and viewer participation plus player training.
For the University of New Haven’s esports arena in the Bergami Center, the room’s architectural elements support the strategic placement and height of multiple monitors to allow for proper ergonomics and user comfort throughout many hours of student play and study. Designed to the needs of a diverse group of bachelor’s and master’s degree candidates, the furnishings reflect the university population, including accessibility and universal-design considerations.
Creativity also is supported through design expression. At Quinnipiac University’s hub, a dramatic, 3D ceiling finished in faux felt and designed with teal green faceted blades adds visual interest and provides essential acoustic performance, measured by noise reduction coefficient, or NRC. The new ceiling also creates a more intimate atmosphere, obscuring the sloped ceiling plane and overhead mechanical systems. The esports facility’s blue and gray walls complement the carpet’s color scheme and patterning, meant to suggest electronic circuitry. Adding to the chamber’s digital vibe and end-use flexibility are dimmable linear LED pendants and wall-mounted fixtures that provide a soft glow, enhancing monitor viewing and the gaming experience.
The interior design instills a high-tech aesthetic that aligns with esports gaming and competitive play, as well as the university’s other academic settings. An important point seen in this case study is that standard academic furniture typically can’t provide adequate comfort for esports participants. For this reason, it’s critical to review the selected furniture’s ergonomic properties to consider their health and wellness benefits for the long hours some players spend sitting during competitions. Optimal specifications will mitigate physical discomfort and act as an ally for student success.
ADAPTABLE TECHNICAL SYSTEMS
Prime among the architectural considerations for effective esports centers are a range of technical aspects, including capacity, adaptability and gameplay requirements. Many of the new esports centers are retrofit projects within existing, ideally located campus buildings, which can present a range of renovation challenges. Evaluating how much time and budget is required for these aspects at the project onset helps determine the best way to move forward.
To that end, project teams establish early communications with key collaborators, including the organization’s IT team, as well as telecom and MEP consultants, to ensure the room’s proper infrastructures for anticipated console configurations, data portals and power needs. As technology rapidly evolves and teams change along with their needs, designs that allow for the ability to make technical and equipment upgrades are critical. Also important is architecture that supports gaming stations and peripheral products related to esports technologies. Key product types include game- play monitors for instructor and coach viewing, mounted speakers, audiovisual equipment for broadcasting, as well as mounted security and broadcast cameras.
With the acceleration of video-game technology and widespread interest in esports careers and competitive team play, the design of today’s esports venues at academic facilities needs to accommodate teaching, training and varsity-level competition. Creating inviting, technically driven, esports environments that ensure cutting-edge support for gaming competitions through effective architectural solutions offer incoming and enrolled students an inspired place to acquire the skills and competitive edge they need throughout their academic journey and ensuing careers.
Although our grandparents never imagined a career in esports (or our parents for that matter), the responsibility of higher education is to prepare our children for a future we can’t even imagine. It’s possible the development of university esports facilities falls squarely in that camp.