I’m a bit of an MMORPG addict, and I get sucked easily into the immersive fantasy life of my Achaea character quite often. It’s not unusual for me to be playing MUD games deep into the night, battling orcs or chaos wizards and ignoring my real life duties. Don’t judge me, I’m a level 100 Dragon Lord.
Being such an avid gamer, I decided that I didn’t want to be bothered by things like the phone ringing, or the encroaching sunlight, so I built myself a dedicated gamer room where I can hang out and play the speakers as loud as I want. Plus one for sound-proofed walls! I’ve been so stoked about my gaming room that I’ve been hosting quite a few game nights for friends, and the occasional LAN party. One thing I’m particular about is my gaming chair, which I’ll delve into later.
A Perfect List for a Perfect Gaming Room
- More Monitors, More Mayhem – If you’re a graphics junky like I am, then skip the consoles and big-screen TVs and go for a powerful graphics card and tri-monitor configuration. Resolutions of 5760×1200 can be achieved with a pair of high-end Radeon or Nvidia cards running in crossfire mode. We’re talking realistic peripheral vision in first-person shooters type resolutions now, something you could never achieve with consoles and a television.
- Consoles Galore – Having all the modern systems is brag-worthy, but what about systems past? Old, used systems like the original Atari can be found on Amazon or Ebay. The next time your friends want to brag about a game collection, give them a history lesson on 40 years of video games when you school them at a game of Galaga.
- LAN Night Tables – If your friends bring over their laptops to LAN game a lot, consider putting together a series of smaller tables which can easily be configured into the design of your choice, fitting any of your space needs. For example, if you’re having a larger LAN party, push the tables together to form a long party table where everyone can hook up their computer.
- Hot Pocket Station – A gamer needs to be able to eat something hot, greasy and fast so they can quickly jump back into the action. Having a snack food station nearby will ensure minimal interruption when you’re in the zone. A combination mini-fridge and microwave are easily found for a reasonable price. Just be sure to place it well across the room so you can sneak in a bit of calorie burning.
- Ambient Lighting – If you’re using an LCD monitor, you want to reduce lighting glare as much as possible. Use window curtains to control natural lighting levels, and a hanging ceiling light will provide the most even illumination as opposed to smaller desk lamps.
- Wireless Headphones – There are numerous reasons why headphones beat surround sound speakers in my opinion, cost difference and sound quality being the major two. High quality surround sound can go into the thousands of dollars, while a great pair of wireless, noise-cancelling headphones can be had for under $300. Scary games are so much spookier when the ambient noises are right in your ear…
- A Realistic Racing Wheel – If you’re heavily into racing games like I am, then you’re going to want a responsive, realistic racing wheel with force-feedback, an easy stick shift and metal pedals. The plastic ones become less responsive over time. Good brands are Mad Catz, Logitech and Thrustmaster. You can also purchase a racing seat which is shaped to emulate a Nascar driver’s seat, and has a cockpit for you to place your racing wheel. Perfect!
Dude, Where’s My Chair?
The last thing you need to consider is seating arrangements for you and your friends. Choosing chairs that are thematically matching needs to be balanced with the comfort needs of the chair occupants. I personally prefer a big leather recliner, but some might prefer a small reclining chair, or even just beanbags.
You can’t go wrong as long as everyone is comfortable, just try not to make your friends sit on the floor while you recline in a fancy executive chair. They’re already jealous enough of your super sweet gaming room, and if you’re playing turns on the same game, chances are you’re already good at it and they’re doing a lot of watching. Do them a favour and equip the room with equally comfortable seating for everyone.
Freelance writer Benjamin Baker loves to write tunes on guitar, and often does manly adventure things with his two sons, such as digging for retro treasures in the junkyard. Benjamin takes comfort very seriously when he’s in the gaming zone, and he browsed sites like http://www.reclinerchairreviews.com when he needed to purchase a great gaming chair.