By: John Hulen, Director of Channel Marketing, Education, Crestron
This article originally appeared in AV Technology magazine

With two years of hybrid or fully remote learning in the books, colleges and universities understand a digitally-enriched, future-ready, and layered education experience is what students, faculty, and other stakeholders expect moving forward. This is most visible in the classroom, where the collaborative AV infrastructure has evolved from individual overhead projectors and manual pulldown screens to one-touch videoconferencing connectivity and remotely-managed AV-over-IP distribution for dozens of displays. The utility of these solutions in a hybrid learning environment is both plain to see and well reported on. Often, the more instructive technology integration projects on higher education campuses are actually found outside the classroom.

Many of the most popular and intellectually productive social and athletic pursuits are built on technology backbones. Perhaps the best illustration of this idea is college esports, which has grown from a niche interest to the brink of monoculture. To give an idea of how ubiquitous esports have become, consider that more fans watch the League of Legends World Championship than the Super Bowl and 32% of 13-39-year-olds say they would rather watch an esports competition on television than a traditional sports game like football, according to a data report from YPulse. Schools are increasingly capitalizing on this massive level of interest by building state-of-the-art esports facilities and using these technology-rich spaces as tools for recruiting, retention, community-building, varsity sports, and even academics. The expansion of esports in higher education is a boon to technology manufacturers and integrators ready to get in the game.

Clarifying and contextualizing esports

The question of how to define esports is a complicated one because unlike traditional sports such as football or hockey, esports as a category includes any video game that is played where there is a “win-state.” Countless games fit that description, but most schools officially compete in only the most popular half-dozen or so. Among that select group are League of Legends, Overwatch, Rocket League, and Call of Duty.

There are a variety of reasons games like these, and esports more broadly, have become so popular. Perhaps the most obvious reason is that esports are digital, not physical. Not only does this allow players to participate regardless of their physical athleticism, but it also renders the games “placeless.” That means players of any size and shape can compete from anywhere in the world which levels the playing field and opens games up to far larger pools of participants. Fans can watch from anywhere in the world, too.

Esports has exploded at the college level in particular and schools have realized they have an opportunity to meet students where they are by offering a highly social activity that the current college-aged demographic grew up immersed with. “Today’s students walk into their campus esports lab to play Super Smash Brothers with strangers much the way previous generations showed up to the park to play pickup hoops,” explains George Claffey, CIO of Central Connecticut State University (CCSU), which supports varsity teams in three distinct games. “Our facility is a great recruiting tool for exactly that reason, and we even use it as the site for Connecticut’s high school esports championships.”

Many also see esports as a tool to guide students along productive professional paths, as esports can provide effective — if unofficial — apprenticeships for careers like game development, broadcasting, technology management, or any number of STEM-centric fields. Esports are valuable for less directly related careers too, an idea once scoffed at but now finding more mainstream acceptance. Esports are frequently cited as excellent incubators for strategic thinking, teamwork, communication, and performance under pressure.

CCSU President Dr. Zulma R. Toro has embraced this position, recognizing the value in the personalization, diversification, and most obviously gamification of the learning experience that their esports facility enables. She emphasizes that with the addition of esports-related academic courses inside their arena space, “CCSU students will be among the most employable in the state, and beyond. The Esports Center is a place where academics, research, and gaming meet and will soon expand CCSU’s mission to be a driving force of the economic, cultural, and intellectual development in Connecticut.”

What do schools need to support esports programs?

So where do technology manufacturers and integrators come in? To outfit the facilities, of course. Esports are played in arenas that are essentially elaborate computer labs — medium-sized rooms outfitted with state-of-the-art machines, configured specifically for the purpose of competitive gameplay and broadcast.  Some schools repurpose existing computer labs for this while others spend millions on a new build. Schools like Miami University (Ohio) with Division 1 varsity teams also outfit their arenas with “casting space” for commentators and production teams to broadcast the action to fans in the stands and in greater number online. As you can imagine, these spaces have significant infrastructure needs.

In addition to the gameplay monitors, CPUs, and lighting, esports arenas require tools for signal distribution and routing, often via AV-over-IP solutions. During matches, these tools allow broadcast teams to toggle between feeds on their own displays while casting others’ content to main feeds. During practices, it lets coaches use real-time “game tape” to educate their players. Doing this over the network cuts down on latency, obviously a critical element of successful gameplay and consumption. While some of this investment might sound like bells and whistles, it’s hugely necessary because a lot of the video production, editing, and control is happening elsewhere on campus. Having a high-throughput video system with low latency is a must.

In more than a few cases, successful esports arena investments have been parlayed into larger technology investments elsewhere. These additional projects can include things like XR labs where virtual “hands-on” experiences can replicate real-world experiences, giving students greater exposure to their chosen fields before they make a final commitment.

With esports in the higher education space still growing on an exponential trajectory, and these successes translating into future projects, manufacturers and integrators have to recognize there are incredible opportunities if they can capitalize quickly. “As we look to the future, we’re looking at how to leverage these technology investments to help students connect with next generation technology,” says President Toro. With comments like that from decision-makers like her, it’s time manufacturers and integrators got in the game.

Interested in learning more? Join us on June 28 for the Crestron webinar “Esports — Bringing Digital Transformation to Campus” hosted by Crestron’s Michael DiBella and John Hulen with guests Dr. George Claffey, Chief Information Officer, Central Connecticut State University and Joe Mendonca, Director, Digital Media Practice AdTech Systems and the integrator responsible for CCSU installation.