A chair that will pass for a seat in a spaceship facing a high-end monitor, empty bags of chips and crackers and bottles of soda littering the ground, headphones, a mouse, and keyboard adorned with cool futuristic lighting effects – it’s the classical haven of the hardcore gamer.
With the mandatory isolation protocols that came with last year, it’s no surprise that many people turned to games to while away time and create their own realities. Live games, in particular, allow gamers to communicate in real-time via the internet and play multiplayer games that are all the more immersive.
But if you are a total newbie to gaming, you will quickly find how intimidating seasoned players can be. With impressive arsenals of virtual collectibles and achievements under their belts, their skill in using their gadgets can be almost god-like.
However, with a few tweaks and the right gadgets, you can practice gaming more effectively and get a head start ahead of other newbie gamers.
We’ll take a look at some tips to setting up the perfect gaming space for any gamer who wants to hone their skill and make their way to the top quickly.
What Gadgets Should I have in My Gaming Space?
Like with any niche, there are a few very basic gadgets you must in your gaming space. They are:
Your PC
Your personal computer is at the heart of the entire gaming system. As a gamer, you can choose to buy a ready-built PC or build one by yourself.
Any PC you’ll be using for gaming should come with a powerful processor and graphics card. And you may also choose to go for a portable laptop PC or a desk-mounted full-sized desktop computer.
Building a gaming PC is a little more technical and will require some computer know-how but is considered more cost-effective and gives more flexibility to all the features you want.
Ergonomic Gaming Chair
Perhaps as important as your gaming PC is the chair you’ll be sitting in. Great games will typically have you sitting in your chair for hours on end and your comfort should be your top priority.
Your gaming chair is where you definitely don’t want to sacrifice quality for affordability. You want to invest in a high-end ergonomic gaming chair that’s well-padded for the most comfort. It should be adjustable to any sitting orientation you’ll prefer and should encourage great posture.
Your Display Unit
Your monitor is where you see all the action unfold and should be crisp and clear. Some factors to consider when choosing a monitor would be its size, resolution, connectivity, and compatibility with your PC. Note that you won’t need to buy a separate monitor if you are using a gaming laptop, but you may want to do so anyway.
Gaming Keyboard and Mouse Combo
You also need a good keyboard and mouse combo. Controlling your avatars will be done on your keyboard. A keyboard and mouse combo that’s game-worthy should look cool, should be ergonomic, and should be plug-and-play. Gaming keyboards stand out from regular keyboards with their mechanical keys that give better response, cool RGB (red, green, blue, and other colors) lighting effects, and are usually programmable.
Your Sound System
For the full-blown gaming haven, you want to invest in high-performance gaming speakers. Great sound will ensure an immersive experience and you won’t miss any boom or bang.
And if you don’t want your games disturbing everyone in the house, you can consider investing in a pair of computer headsets. These gaming headsets will typically come with an attached microphone for two-way communication and for even better performance, consider going for a wireless computer headset.
What Gadgets Can Make Me a Better Gamer?
With a gaming setup, there’s always extra. If you want to improve your gaming setup even further, consider investing in the following:
Wireless Router and Extender
The gaming community is becoming dominated by online multiplayer games, and to access these, you’ll need a stable and strong internet connection. You want to invest in a high-quality wireless router for your gaming space and everything else. A wireless router will make your desk top less cluttered because they allow connectivity without threading Ethernet cables everywhere.
You also want to buy a wireless extender to increase the coverage of your wireless router if, say, you can’t physically position your gaming setup where the router gets the best reception.
PC Racing Wheels, Joysticks, and Gamepads
Do you love to play racing games, flight games, or action and sports games? The kind of games you play will determine the type of control devices you go for. Apart from your gaming keyboard and mouse, you can add racing wheels, joysticks, and gamepads to the list of gadgets.
PC racing wheels are best for racing games. Instead of using a keyboard to control the motion of saying a bike or car, a racing wheel gives a more realistic feel of driving.
PC Joysticks are great for racing and flight-style games where you control air-borne characters.
PC gamepads are exceptionally versatile and are typically hybrids between the fixed directions of keyboards and the dynamics of a joystick. They are great for action and sports games where you control character(s).
If you are feeling like it and play multiple games, then investing in each of these may not be a bad idea.
Computer Coolers
Gaming PCs work at maximum power and can get quite hot, so you want to invest in a computer cooler. Computer coolers can come as laptop and CPU coolers for laptops and desktops respectively. A laptop cooler will typically come as a cooling mat under your PC, while CPU coolers are available for gamers who want to build their gaming PCs and require technical know-how to install.
