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Gunrock Gaming Speaks to Rise of Esports

A Student Examines How the Popularity of Computer Games Led to a New Center on Campus

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Students play computer games at Gunrock Gaming.
A variety of computer games are available to be played at Gunrock Gaming, located near the Memorial Union ATMs. (Gregory Urquiaga/嘿嘿视频)

Rows of monitors stare at me as soon as I step into the former TechHub, recently renovated and christened . I take another look and see heads bobbing behind the monitors.

The room is comfortably filled 鈥 aside from everyone sitting behind monitors, students mill about, watching the gaming livestream platform Twitch on two flatscreen TVs and making conversation. White noise from fingers hitting keyboards sounds like falling water. A couple of students sit on the couch arced around a wide table, laptops open.

Coming into the visit, League of Legends and Fortnite, the top two titles I associate with 鈥済aming,鈥 pop into my head.

GUNROCK GAMING: IF YOU GO

  • Hours 鈥 10:30 a.m.-10 p.m. daily
  • Location 鈥 East side of the
  • Fees 鈥 $4 per hour for students and Campus Recreation members and $8 per hour for others
  • Games 鈥 14, including Minecraft, World of Warcraft, League of Legends and Fortnite, with four more on the way

League of Legends, released in 2009, . The 2018 world championship 鈥 where professional teams square off 鈥 had 99.6 million viewers worldwide. Gunrock Gaming stats reflect this popularity: League of Legends, a multiplayer battle arena game where players on a team control champions and try to destroy a protected structure in the opposing team鈥檚 base 鈥 was April鈥檚 most-played game. And a League of Legends team was the first professional electronic sports, or esports, team fielded by a public university: UC Irvine, which alongside the unveiling of its own esports arena.

Fortnite, a single or multiplayer game where players aim to be the last standing while defending residents of a post-apocalyptic island, came out in 2017 and also has its own esports teams and championship. This March, the developer said there were . The game even made a cameo in the blockbuster film Avengers: Endgame.

But I don鈥檛 play either game, and at first glance, most of the monitors depict the familiar League of Legends jungle or Fortnite arena. It seems the space seems to cater exclusively to their players.

Ferguson Mitchell '12, Games Area coordinator and primary mind behind the space, dispelled that myth by pointing out the , which includes go-at-your-own-pace, open-world titles such as Minecraft and 鈥 to come later 鈥 The Sims.

Ferguson Mitchell
Ferguson Mitchell oversees Gunrock Gaming. (Gregory Urquiaga/嘿嘿视频)

Even before he shows me the list, I wonder what the commonalities between fans of different games are 鈥 what does each player get out of a game? Why does the university have a stake in gamers鈥 emotional payoff?

During the center鈥檚 grand opening, I talked with junior Jack Concordia, president of Aggie Gaming, who explained games鈥 importance 鈥 both to the university and to students.

鈥淕aming is stress relief. It provides an outlet to be creative 鈥 you can make or play games,鈥 he said. 鈥淎nd Gunrock Gaming helps make games more accessible. It鈥檚 important for the university to offer that community (for gamers) to do what you love, and it shows that they鈥檙e listening to student needs and demands.鈥

Mitchell echoed Concordia鈥檚 opinions, saying he would have loved a similar space during his time as a student.

鈥淕aming is a really big hobby for the student demographic that hasn鈥檛 really been addressed,鈥 said Mitchell. 鈥淚f you want to work out, you go to the ARC. But if you鈥檙e into gaming, you see all these computers (like in Kemper Hall, home of the Department of Computer Science), but you can鈥檛 really do anything with them. This is a dedicated space for gamers 鈥 we try to be really open and accessible for students.鈥

Their eyes fond, Concordia and Mitchell touched on their past experience with gaming. Concordia reminisced on games he played in high school. Mitchell talked about starting the Starcraft II club at Davis and talked about his esports experience 鈥 working as a team manager, commentator and journalist for the past 10 years.

For both, college enabled them to find and create welcoming gaming communities. Similarly, though most of my close friends have been gaming for much of their lives, I didn鈥檛 notice the hobby鈥檚 popularity until I reached college.

I shared this with Concordia, who affirmed my observation. 鈥淚n middle school and high school, games are really seen as 鈥榥erdy,鈥欌 he said. People feel a lot more open talking about games now (in college).鈥

This eagerness was apparent: The Aggie Gaming booth was surrounded by a crowd of onlookers during the grand opening, including some who stayed to chat with Concordia鈥檚 fellow officers about gaming after grabbing flyers. The talk about games bled into conversation about career goals, majors and classes.

While Concordia fielded different conversations, I reflected on the scene鈥檚 dissonance. To me, gaming seemed a solitary activity 鈥 even multiplayer games like League of Legends are focused on individual development. Yet the people chatting animatedly around me were anything but isolated.

鈥淵ou鈥檇 think fans of single-player games would be alienated from other gamers,鈥 agreed Concordia. 鈥淏ut even with single-player games, you can share the experience by talking about what you like or hate,鈥 he said. 鈥淎nd all of these communities 鈥 with different personalities and perspectives, experienced and beginning gamers 鈥 come together for a big reason: We love gaming.鈥

Mitchell hopes that Gunrock Gaming will encourage more people to come together to learn about and share their love for gaming.

Having piloted the MU bowling alley鈥檚 special events program, which allows organizations to host fundraisers at the bowling alley, Mitchell wants to start a similar program through Gunrock Gaming. Other future plans he has for the space include hosting 鈥渋ntro to gaming鈥 classes, coaching, casual tournaments, skills workshops, campus rec leagues and viewing parties to support Aggie Gaming鈥檚 top esports teams.

Ultimately, Mitchell said, he鈥檇 really like to make the space the hub for all kinds of gaming on campus, for all people of different ability levels. 鈥淲hether you鈥檙e just beginning, or if you鈥檙e really hardcore and been playing all your life 鈥 I wanna be that space for people, no matter what games you鈥檙e interested in.鈥

When I got home, I dusted off my Nintendo DS console and booted up an old 笔辞办茅尘辞苍 game. Instantly, I was hit with nostalgia. Seeing that mirrored in both Mitchell and Concordia helped me understand the emotional resonance games offer 鈥 regardless of platform or type.

And knowing Mitchell, an avid gamer and fan, heads Gunrock Gaming leaves me hopeful for the center鈥檚 future: This is his passion project, and I鈥檓 excited to see how the programming he鈥檚 planned for the space emboldens and diversifies the campus gaming community.

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Janelle Salanga, News and Media Relations

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