Esports gamer students can now enjoy their favorite games from the brand new “gameLab” on the third floor of the Keith Leftwich Memorial Library, room LIB 320A and LIB 320B.

The gameLab is packed with ten Dell Alienware Aurora R12 Gaming PCs gearing up with the 11th Gen Intel Core i7 CPU, 16GB of RAM, and the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 dedicated graphic card. Coming with each package are a Dell 27-inch curved gaming monitor with 144hz refresh rate, a Razer gaming mouse with the same brand controller and headsets, a gaming chair, and an air filtration system.

Games such as League of Legends, Rocket League, Apex Legends, Overwatch, and CS:GO, are preinstalled for students to explore, but they are welcome to install different games on the machines.

“The idea is student engagement. The more we can keep students here on campus, the more they will be engaged in their study,” said John Claybon, dean of business and information technology at OCCC.

Students can participate in different types of playing modes, from single-player to multiplayer or teaming up with friends or other players in the lab. They can even represent the college on a team or as an individual in competitive plays.

“Eventually, if there is enough interest, we will start having tournaments. The way we set up here, we are having an A-side and a B-side, we’d actually hold tournaments within the Gamelab. We could do practice, tournaments, and competitions,” said Claybon.

The gameLab was successfully launched on Oct 21, 2021, by the Business and Information Technology (BIT) department after one year of planning due to the COVID-19 pandemic and difficulties in the supply chain.

“I got three more Alienwares coming. They’re on backorder,” John added.

With the collaborative support from the Information Technology Services (ITS) department, the Student Life and Student Affair, and from the students’ interests, the BIT is more capable to bring more features to the lab.

The Gamelab’s future plan is to rearrange the space and give it the look of a real gaming lab. They will also try to keep the equipment and hardwares in top of the line as possible.

The lab is open for all current students from any majors. Students just need to check in at the Student Computer Center, room LIB 322, with valid student IDs.

There is no current rule or limit on how long students are allowed to play. As the lab becomes more popular, a dedicated schedule may be created in the future. 

Operation time:

Mondays – Thursdays:

9 AM – 2 PM: OPEN PLAY

2 PM – 8 PM: OPEN PLAY / RESERVABLE FOR TEAM PLAY OR PRACTICE

Fridays:

9 AM – 12 PM: OPEN PLAY

1 PM – 4 PM: OPEN PLAY / RESERVABLE FOR TEAM PLAY OR PRACTICE

Saturdays: RESERVABLE FOR TEAM PLAY OR PRACTICE 

Sundays: Closed

For more information: https://www.occc.edu/bit/esports/