Story by Sam Cioffi
Photography by Ashley Mickens
It’s a Thursday evening in Oxford. Some students are still wrapping up their classes for the day. Some are working, and some are doing homework.
However, for one senior economics major, he’s spending his evening in another world.
That world is virtual.
He’s able to play in this unique universe with the help of Newgate Arena E-Sport Center.
“My laptop can play [games], but it’s kind of old," he said. "But here, the experience is better than my own room."
This esports arcade, located Uptown, opened recently in April 2019. It allows people all across campus to come together and enjoy their favorite games. Customers are given the opportunity to play games, hang out and meet new people who share the same interest.
The owner, Ambrose Li, opened the arcade here due to the popularity of esports in China, where he is originally from. He decided to see if the trend would catch on with Miami students.
Despite the popularity of esports where Li is from, he himself does not participate in the trend.
“I can barely call myself a gamer. I play one or two games a day,” Li said.
Over the course of 20 years, he’s only been to an esports arcade once or twice. But, by no means was this type of business unfamiliar to him.
“We have this kind of thing in China like everywhere,” Li said, “I feel like esports is kind of a new trend for college students and is growing bigger and bigger.”
So, Li jumped in head first and opened the store here in the United States. He chose the name “Newgate” from the license plate on his car, which bears the same name. It also happens to be the name of an anime character.
The setup for the arcade is unlike any other in Uptown. From the outside, it could be difficult to tell what the place is. The storefront features all black windows, so if you’re standing outside, you can’t just peek through the windows to see what the inside contains.
Once you walk inside, you’re greeted by a large, dark room. The arcade is filled with rows and rows of computers, each fit with a desk chair, keyboard and headset. The floor is made of black, foam puzzle pieces, similar to the kind children typically play with. In the very back, there’s a small well-lit room that features multiple tables to play mahjong, a tile-based game.
“Basically [Newgate] is the old type of internet cafe. Basically you can do anything here,” Li said.
This not only includes playing games, but also completing homework. However, the majority of the customers are there to play videogames.
Once customers come to the arcade, they are given the freedom to play whatever game they choose. As long as customers have their own account for whichever game they choose, they will have access to it.
All players have to do is pay $5 per hour on what Li calls the “High End” computers, or $6 per hour for the “World Class.” During the week, there are specials where the price drops to $3 for the “High End” and $4 for the “World Class.” The PCs are the same, but the main difference is the type of monitor, keyboard, mouse and headset available for each.
As for the types of games that are most popular, Li said that League of Legends, Overwatch, World of Warcraft and Fortnite were among those most favored by customers. Newgate Arena has all of the major tournament games available and ready for play.
People come to Newgate Arena to play games for a variety of reasons. There are customers that come because they like to play, but don’t have their own gaming set at home. Others are there because they’re looking to make friends.
Li explained that there is a mixture of different gamer types that come to the arcade. Some customers are experienced in video games, and others play more for fun.
“I would say [the customers are] between a casual gamer and a pro gamer,” Li said. “It’s very hard to get pro pro-gamers in here. They often prefer their own gaming set. They prefer to stay at home alone.”
Li, who is in Newgate Arena every day for two to three hours, and sometimes longer, gets to know most of his customers.
“After they come here one or two times, we know each other,” Li said.
In the store, Li has two people on his staff to help him with the day-to-day activities. He typically hires Miami students, so that they can inform other university friends of the store.
One of those workers is Silvia Shi. She takes control of the store when Li isn’t there. Shi will check on customers, see if customers need to “recharge” (pay more money for additional time on the computer) and clean the equipment after the customer leaves.
She has been working at Newgate since last semester. While she doesn’t play video games, she will sometimes use the computers in the store for other uses.
“Sometimes when I come here, I watch movies or do homework because the screen is bigger,” Shi said.
Although it can be a challenge to market a new business Uptown, Li uses different techniques to attract large groups of students on Friday nights.
He takes advantage of social media. Li utilizes something called WeChat, where he can reach Chinese students, as well as Instagram. He also works with the Miami Esports Club to try to gain a following for Newgate Arena. Li reached out to the organization over the summer, and even occasionally hosts tournaments for members to participate in.
On Sept. 21, Miami Esports Club had a League of Legends tournament held at Newgate.
“[Miami Esports members] like it because this is just a good place for gamers to play and my setup is really close to what they want,” Li said.
As for future plans for the business, Li hopes to have more tournaments for people to come and participate in. He wants gamers to come and be able to play with their friends.
He also wants Newgate to become more multicultural.
“I can have an American player and a Chinese player sit together and become friends,” Li said.
By hosting more tournaments, Li hopes to make esports more well known across campus. Also through continued collaboration with the Miami Esports Club, he hopes to draw more people in.
Whether you’re a professional gamer or a novice, you can still come out to Newgate Arena. Even if you’re just looking for something new to do late on a Friday night, this new environment just might be the place for you.
So, wander past the shop with the all-black windows, and discover something new.
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