Chris and Dan in Falmouths Esports Lab (Photo credits: Christopher Wyatt)
This winter, Falmouth University’s Esports society is competing in a series of national tournaments hosted by National Student Esports (NSE). Marking another step forward in the university’s presence is competitive gaming.
NSE stands for National Student Esports, and is an organisation that runs competitive tournaments for British Universities. Often described as the home of British university Esports, NSE hosts seasonal competitions each spring and winter, allowing students to represent their institutions in organised leagues.
Esports is the word used to describe competitive video gaming and is a rapidly expanding global industry. At Falmouth University, the Esports and Live streaming course has existed for only 4 years. Making it one of the newer degrees. Despite this, the course has received significant growth and engagement, as well as their own ‘Esports lab’ which holds a large amount of professional equipment to support the course.
NSE offers 14 different competitive tournaments, featuring popular games such as Overwatch and League of Legends. Universities can submit teams to compete, giving students a professional style environment.
NSE, with sponsors from big brands like pot noodle and monster energy, gives students the chance to get a taste of the Esports industry beyond casual gaming, offering a structured and career focused experience, giving students the opportunity to manage and play in teams.
I spoke to Christopher Wyatt and Dan, members of the Esports society, to ask what being apart of NSE means to them, and what opportunity’s it can open.
Across the board, teams apart of the national championships feel a sense of community. The friendly competition sparks motivation and unity and being apart of a team is a great way to build life long friendships.
Beyond the social benefits, NSE is a great stepping stone for students who hope to pursue careers in Esports, gaming or live production and can serve as a great reference for future CVs.
With Esports on the rise, NSE gives students the opportunity to gain hands on experience in one of the fastest rising industries as of current.