Esports has been growing quickly in Las Vegas ever since Nevada’s governor Brian Sandoval announced last year that he wants to make Las Vegas the esports capital of the world. One of the newest expansions to the Las Vegas gaming scene came in February 2017 when Grow a Pear Gaming opened their doors to the public. The cozy gaming lounge is made up of two rooms. The entrance room looks like your standard PC LAN center setup with all the software and hardware you’d want for PC gaming. Beyond the first room is a more casual hangout room with 5 flat screens, each setup to run PS4 or XBOX One games. Grow a Pear charges buy the hour for gaming but gives discounts for an all day pass or if you and your buddy are going to be playing on the same console.
Grow a Pear Gaming Lounge
The gaming lounge is operated by the owners which creates a professional atmosphere of good customer service and attentive help when it comes to all accommodations. There are also some regulars that take advantage of the all day pass which has created a sense of community and friendliness among gamers of different age groups.
Grow a Pear has been taking steps to stay modern and contribute to the future of esports in Las Vegas by holding their own prize pool tournaments. I participated in a 1v1 Rocket League tournament held by Grow a Pear earlier this month. The tournament consisted of 6 players with a $15 entry fee and a $60 winner takes all pot. The tournament players were allowed to play on ps4 or PC, whichever they preferred, since Rocket League accommodates for cross platform play.
The tournament was very low stress and casual feeling with a wide variety of skill between contestants. The newer players to the game gained tournament experience and contacts with better players to give them tips and mentoring in the future. The owners of Grow a Pear really stand out for their active involvement with the players during the tournament, hyping the games that are going on and giving supportive encouragement to the players knocked out in the early rounds.
A New Breed of LAN Center
Gaming Lounges like Grow a Pear have become more popular in the last couple years to the surprise of many gamers who saw the age of LAN centers die a decade ago. The main difference that we see with gaming centers like Grow a Pear from their predecessor, the LAN center, is that there is now a sense of community and local competition instead of just a dark room packed with PCs for people who didn’t own a PC. Grow a Pear has plans to continue to separate themselves from the standard LAN center model by setting up a projector screen to view the finals of local tournaments and they are also looking into the possibility of setting up an area for VR game play.
If you’re interested in visiting Grow a Pear Gaming they are at 3281 N Decatur Blvd #120, Las Vegas, NV 89130 or you can check out there Facebook page. To find out when Grow a Pear Gaming or other venues are holding esports tournaments, check Las Vegas’s esports calendar.