New space for competitive video gaming comes to campus
April 19, 2018
UC Berkeley leaders are planning to convert a undergraduate residence hall community room into a new facility dedicated to competitive student video game teams, ESPN reports.
The move comes after many colleges and universities are growing increasingly focused on competitive video gaming, often called esports. Schools like UC Irvine and Utah have built dedicated esports arenas or sponsored scholarships. UC Berkeley will begin with a space for students to play video games outside of their apartments or dorm rooms.
“We’re starting with this community center, as we’re calling it, rather than an arena, because we really want to focus on the concept community where a lot of things happen there; even things like TED Talks, for example, where people come in and talk about the gaming industry and jobs in the gaming industry,” Steve Sutton, the interim vice chancellor for student affairs, told ESPN.com. “From our perspective, this is designed to be a holistic community environment rather than just a place where students compete.”
The new space is expected to open in the Foothill Complex on the northeast corner of campus in time for the fall 2018 semester, and could host groups like the UC Berkeley Overwatch team, a two-time national champion. The space will be sponsored by Overwatch League team “San Francisco Shock” and NRG Esports.
“Not only is UC Berkeley one of the most prestigious institutions for higher learning in the world, but it also runs the best collegiate esports program in the country,” said NRG and Shock CEO Andy Miller. “We look forward to the many things we can do together not just in our Northern California market, but hopefully throughout the esports community as well.”
Cherlie Lin, a UC Berkeley junior majoring in communications and media studies who also serves as co-president of the Cal eSports group, said the new space would “promote gender equality in the gaming community, in addition to creating new opportunities for the entire student body.”