UK hopes new Esports gaming lounge attracts future students

While gaming once was a solo activity, it’s grown to become a whole world of competitors, both online and in-person.

University of Kentucky has invested thousands in a new Esports lounge on campus to grow with the times and hopefully attract future students.

“It’s like a gaming wonderland,” Thomas Bailey said.

Bailey is a junior at UK and it President of the Esports club. He says the new facility makes UK a step above other universities, especially considering the size of UK.

“I was dumbfounded. I’d seen these types of things at other schools, but I really never thought that UK would have something like that, this early in the process,” Bailey said.

The process of growing its Esports resources overall.

One of UK’s chief information officers, Heath Price says the effort to grow in Esports started by talking with students in 2018 about what they wanted to see.

Now, especially with the pandemic, there’s a lot more young people gaming, Price says the Esports lounge will only help UK.

“When we think ahead, five to 10 years, students today that might be nine, 10, 11, 12, we really believe, many of them are gamers as well, and are going to come with some of those same interests,” Price said.

Price adds, UK wants to offers communities where students can feel like they belong and Esports is one it is investing in.

Bailey said the community is the main reason he continues to be fully invested in Esports at UK.

“I think it’s going to be a huge boom for our student population,” Bailey said.

The Esports club already has about 200 to 300 active members over about 11-12 teams.

Bailey said the lounge also breaks financial barriers considering gaming computers are thousands of dollars a piece.

“This facility does that. It really allows everyone on campus that wants to participate in the club or maybe wants to participate in this hobby. It lowers that barrier of entry significantly,” Bailey said

Available via WTVQ.