Recently a teenager won $4.3 million (out of a $43 million prize pool) at this year’s Fortnite World Cup. The champ took home the top prize out of 1381 players, after 40 million players participated in qualifying events across the globe. Fortnite
has over 200 million players worldwide according to the game’s creator, Epic, but Fortnite doesn’t even award the largest payout. League of Legends and Counter-Strike Award pools have been in the $60 million range and Data 2 is at $172
million, according to esportsearnings.com. E-sports prize money payouts have surpassed Wimbledon, The Indy 500, and The Masters.
Gaming has achieved a popularity that the creators of Pong could have only dreamt of. No less than 64% of households own a device that they use to play video games and of those, 41% are PCs and 36% are dedicated gaming consoles. Fifty-six-percent
of the most frequent gamers play multiplayer games, and of those 42% play with friends and 19% with family. Consumers spent $36 billion on gaming in 2017, $4.7B of that going to hardware and $2.2B on accessories. The number one influencing decision
to purchase video games is the quality of the graphics. Whether it be for a serious gamer trying to grab the e-sports spotlight or a casual gamer having fun with friends and family, the need for a space in the home for all of this game play
is on the rise as well.
To get the full experience of high-quality gaming a high-performance console or PC is a must, coupled with a super-fast, high-quality display and a pair of high-definition headphones or even immersive sound. People are even creating their own
multiplayer gaming rooms for parties and even friendly competitions. It doesn’t take long when scrolling through houzz.com to find thousands of game room examples that are professionally installed and setup by integrators.
What else do you need for a rock-solid game room in the home for the best experience?
- A robust, enterprise grade network with a high-speed Internet connection and solid wireless throughout.
- Fast, large, and high resolution displays capable of 4K resolution with a minimum 144Hz refresh rate, and,
- Immersive sound either in the room or on your head so you can hear every pin drop in the game.
The business opportunities for a game room in the home have never been better — and with the technology experience our industry professionals have, we can create some adrenaline-pumping solutions.
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NOTE: This Emerging Trends piece is brought to you by CEDIA’s Technology Advisory Council and Technology Application & Innovation department.