- Last Friday, Northern Kentucky University opened its new eSports venue: the Sandbox
- The place will give the opportunity to students to play both competitively and recreationally, stream and participate in events
- The program aims to be a leader in preparing players for gaming careers
Northern Kentucky University opened the Sandbox – an esports venue that will offer players many new competitive opportunities.
NKU’s New Venue and Big Ambitions
Northern Kentucky University aims to be a leading force when it comes to collegiate esports. To that ends, it prepared its own esports venue, called the Sandbox. The Sandbox was officially opened on March 26 and will now serve as a home to the NKU eSports program.
The NKU Esports is focused on teaching students and hosting live esports events. It primarily covers Rocket League and Madden NFL. The hub has 11 cutting-edge gaming stations, all equipped with the necessary periphery items. Moreover, large monitors can be run for an audience to watch the matches live or on a replay.
Bonita Brown, chief strategy officer, and vice president said that the program is not only loved by the students but is also providing them with all kinds of competitive opportunities. Brown said that the team is committed to providing students with all they need to grow as competitive players.
The funds for the Sandbox were received by the Honors College through winning NKU’s Innovation Challenge last January. Both students and teachers participated in making the Sandbox come true. To top it, NKU will also soon start awarding scholarships top performing players.
The venue will also have its very own production studio that will stream matches and make promotional content. It will promote the NKU and its young stars. Students will have the opportunity not only to play but participate as commentators, broadcast talents, and content creators.
NKU Esports’ director Dean Jim Buss said it would be a great learning opportunity for aspiring gamers. He believes that the pandemic has paved the way for college esports to step out of the shadows. Buss aims to make the program a leader in preparing students for gaming-oriented careers.
NKU will offer scholarships in competitive play and production of streaming content. The program is now looking to expand its range of games by including Overwatch as well.
