By: Ryan Hixson
Nervous energy buzzed around LBCC’s new high-tech esports arena in M-224 on Thursday as the team planned to host its first tournament of the season there.
The arena also doubles as a training area for the esports team, with a screen that allows users to view any player’s screen anytime, anywhere in the room.
Within the area, there is also a state-of-the-art casting room, allowing commentators to easily view the game live and quickly switch points to catch essential plays.
The impressive setup uses a proprietary mixture of hardware and software designed specifically for the esports team.
Coach Gabe Giangualano also believes the arena can open avenues outside of esports: “My hope is for this setup to show what’s possible for other departments as well. I want this to benefit media, broadcasting, whatever other programs that could use this tech,” Gianguialano said.
Giangualano formerly ran esports at St. John Bosco High School four years ago and helped build it into a full-time program that won four national championships.
Cesar Hernandez, a networking major who joined the team after being interested in the hardware, said, “I used to work here at LBCC, and when I heard about the new building being built, I knew I had to get involved in the esports program in any way I could.”
“We have a great set of resources here, and I’m hoping to use them to find my path in life,” Hernandez said about his goals in the esports program.
LBCC’s esports program is uncommon because it is officially affiliated with the school, which allows for more support from the school itself, which was a big help in creating the new arena.
The team is preparing for the upcoming Grim Cup tournament, which will be held on October 26th and 27th and will feature matches for Valorant, Rocket League, League of Legends, and Super Smash Brothers Ultimate.
“This season, we have some new games. We’ve added Call of Duty, Overwatch, and Smash Bros. We used to have Rainbow Six: Siege, but that fell off the collegiate scene,” Coach Giangualano said
One student, Brandon Walker, who has been with Coach Giangualano since St. John Bosco, spoke about setting up the tournament.
“We’re working on scheduling, ensuring we can fit all the games into a decent time,” Walker said.
Walker, one of the Valorant players on the team, has been playing the game since its release four years ago and wants to encourage more players to try out for the team.
“We’re always looking for people to join. We have more opportunities than players and are always willing to set up tryouts for new people trying to get on the team,” Walker said.
The new LBCC esports arena is open for sign-ups, which can be found on the esports page on the LBCC website at https://www.lbcc.edu/esports