By Daniel Tepeyac | September 16, 2024
Students get settled into the new ESports Arena.
Photo Credit: Daniel Tepeyac / The ASP
The new Esports Arena at the University at Albany Uptown Campus officially opened its doors on Monday, Sept. 9 after years of construction.
This new space is now home to UAlbany’s Esports program, which has recruited over 200 players in over a dozen competitions, and is one of the largest collegiate programs in the country.
Esports, which is hosted by the State University of New York League and the Eastern College Athletic Conference showcases games such as League of Legends, Fortnite, Valorant, FIFA and more.
While the arena is still being set up, UAlbany Esports has announced that its equipment will include PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Lenovo Legion T7 computers, 25-inch Lenovo monitors with 240-Hz refresh rate, gaming headphones, and a large spectator area for fans.
Henry Scholl, the new Program Coordinator for Esports, is optimistic about the future of the Esports program and arena; he previously competed at the Downtown UAlbany arena and returned to the program this semester.
“Big transformation, we are really looking forward to it,” he said. “It really saves me and all the students that are interested in the program or just playing games, lots of travel time whether it’s by bus or commute.”
“It’s a great thing that students now have access to, saves them time, gives them a chance to meet other students with similar interests and opens up the program to a lot more people,” he said.
John Macone, UAlbany’s ESports Director, said the Esports program’s primary goal is to utilize a shared love of games among players to create a community, engage in competitive teams, and discover career or volunteer opportunities.
Although undergraduate or graduate students have complete access to the arena from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays and weekends, Macone is determined to increase its opportunities, and its arena's opening hours as it accommodates teams competing. He would like to extend it even later into the morning hours.
“We would love to stretch that out further into the earlier parts of the day, like 1-2 p.m. onward, so that's operating during regular operation,” Macone said.
The new Esports Arena is located in the Computer Science building, which is accessible through the Lecture Center between the Fine Arts and Arts and Science buildings.
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