Photo credit goes to UC Irvine.
To an uninitiated audience, phrases like “eSports” and “cyber athlete” often conjure up images of social misfits who have somehow managed to turn their beloved timewasting hobby into a lucrative career, much to the chagrin of their parents and grandparents. Yet if you were to take a brief glance at the history of eSports, a deeply ingrained history of competition, motivation, and generous support from the parents of professional gamers would dispel most of the stereotyped notions that surround competitive gaming.
It is difficult to deny that eSports’s popularity has also exploded into the public domain within the past seven years or so, what with the rise of games like League of Legends and DOTA 2 in competitive gaming. The University of California, Irvine (UCI) plans to take this blossoming phenomenon to the next level this fall with several programs that will distinguish it as the first public research facility to nurture an eSports initiative.
UCI is located in the heart of Irvine, CA, which is home to a number of tech giants and gaming companies (with the most well-known among these being Activision Blizzard).
It is only appropriate, then, that the a linkage between academic institutions and professional gaming should begin in Irvine. It’s even more pertinent when you look at the stats: a recent survey conducted at the university “found that 72 percent identify as gamers and 89 percent support the creation of an e-sports team.”
The Association of Gamers is home to the most members of any club on the UCI campus, and the Computer Game Science major is largest in the country (several other schools, such as UC Santa Cruz, also offer this degree). College Magazine, meanwhile, ranked UCI the Number 1 school for gamers in 2015. And UCI’s interdisciplinary programs often weave gaming studies together with other programs like Anthropology and Psychology, further demonstrating the university’s willingness to expand the scholastic and public perception of video games to that of a rich human experience.
According to UCI’s official press release, the university’s goals include building a “state-of-the-art arena equipped with high-end gaming PCs,” a stage for competition, and a live webcasting studio, all located within the campus’ Student Center. As many as 10 different Academic Scholarships will also be offered to students on UCI’s eSports team, which is currently planned to include a League of Legends team.
The eSports initiative isn’t just about fun and games, though the center will offer non-competitors a space in which they can leisurely enjoy some good ol’ social gaming. The UCI team not only plans to attract skilled gamers, but also grant these skilled gamers an opportunity to pursue professional careers through one of the country’s most elite academic institutions.
“UCI eSports will be built on four pillars: competition, academics, entertainment and community,” said Thomas Parham, vice chancellor for student affairs. “We hope to attract the best gamers from around the world, and our academic programs in computer gaming science, digital arts, computer science, engineering, anthropology, law, medicine, neuroscience and behavior create a strong foundation for research and inquiry related to gaming.”
Jesse Wang, president of The Association of Gamers, stated that “The eSports team and the arena will ensure that UCI continues to be a leader and trendsetter in collegiate e-sports.”
The UCI eSports initiative has apparently attracted the attention of Los Angeles-based studio Riot Games, who is known worldwide for creating and developing League of Legends. Riot has pledged support to UCI in hopes that the program will not only foster a home for gamers on campus, but also inspire other colleges and universities to do the same.
Let us not forget the voices of UCI’s students themselves, some of whom have more nuanced visions of what the eSports initiative can offer to both UCI and the gaming world at large. UCI alumnus Kathy Chiang, for example, sees the program as an opportunity to help bring female gamers into the competitive sphere.
“At the collegiate level – and especially at UCI – you do see more girls in gaming, and women are involved in leadership positions with campus gaming clubs,” Chiang says. “There’s something about UCI that enables girls to do more with gaming, whether as players or designers and developers of games.”
UCI’s gaming arena, scholarship program, and League of Legends team are set to debut this fall. Whether UCI plans to expand its team to other competitive games remains to be seen.