Hanover gets an e-sports and gaming center!
Hanover, July 09, 2021
"Man is only fully human where he plays", Friedrich Schiller is said to have said. Did the writer have any idea of the market potential of gamification for education and commercial enterprises? Today, we know that gamification can be used to shape digital transformation processes and provide important impetus for the competitiveness and modernization of entire sectors of the economy. Professional e-athletes, for example, have reaction times on a par with Formula 1 drivers. In other words, many of the
young people with an affinity for e-sports deliver top cognitive performance and would be ideal employees in a constantly accelerating, digitalized world!
"The e-sportsand gaming center willprovide important impetus for Lower Saxony's economy. The concept provides enormousadded value and secures Lower Saxony a top position in the competition, a flagship for the innovative and digital Lower Saxony," explains State SecretaryStefan Muhledas theconcept of the new e-sports and gaming center, which is being subsidized by the state of Lower Saxony with 168,000 euros as part of the digitization offensive via the DigitalHub.Niedersachsen funding program. The search for a location is already in full swing. The aim is to be able to start the conversion as soon as possible.
"The planned e-sportsand gaming center confirmsHannover as a central location for the industry," emphasizes DorisPetersen, Managing Director of hannoverimpuls GmbH, the business development agency of the city and region of Hannover. "The facility will motivate many young developers to settle in the immediate vicinity and make Hannover an indispensable location for this industry."hannoverimpuls has been supporting the innovative projectin close cooperation with Regine and Marko Silbermannsince 2016. Through their media agency, so-na GmbH & Co KG, they already know the gaming scene well, have gained a lot of experience and will operate the new center. The media agency has been on the market since 2012 and has been focusing intensively on gaming and e-sports since 2016. This also includes the Pixelpokal event series in Hanover with up to 500 players on site: "We have been successful in the scene for years and now have a strong network behind us," explains Regine Silbermann.
Infuture, so-na's partner inthe consortium will also behannoverimpulsGmbH, whose experienced business coaches will support the media agency with company workshops, among other things. One of the hub's central goals is to teach relevant skills that familiarize players from the business world with methods such as game-based learning, edutainment and serious games in a playful way.
The new center will be based on three pillars:The museum will exhibit the eventful history of video games and the beginnings of e-sports. It will be equipped with items from the Silbermann couple's extensive collection. From Atari to Playstation - over 80 consoles will be playable on site. In the second pillar, the e-sports arena, the thematic focus will be on the FIFA game series. As part of the Virtual Champion Niedersachsen and the Startup City Cup, a broad network of well-known stars has already been recruited. In addition to tournaments, the regional promotion of young e-sports talents with professional coaching will be offered at the center. Many stars from the scene are already waiting in the wings to provide support. The e-sports division of Hannover 96 has also long expressed its interest in working together. In the training area, participants can soon expect a fitness level as well as a kitchen and relaxation room - everything that successful e-athletes need.
Thethirdarea of the new hub will be the academy with its high level of digital innovation -whether it's recruiting employees, optimizing processes or teaching how to operate complex machines in a fun way - the potential is huge. "The gaming industry is a driver of innovation for the economy with growth rates of almost ten percent," says Doris Petersen. The e-sports and gaming center provides the scene with an important point of contact for promoting this development. The FIFA 21 online tournament in lockdown has already proven how well the implementation can work, with around 40,000 spectators joining in the excitement.