"The first semester it opened, I looked in there
and it seemed to be all guys playing, so I walked by," Lim
said. "Later that semester I was craving to play, plus the
center's computers have great specs for gaming. I thought, 'Maybe if
I go in, other girls will see me in there and maybe they will be
more willing to go in there.'"
Sydney Lim is dressed in her esports jersey. Lim was a member of the
Game Changers team, which finished second in the National Association of
Collegiate Esports’ Varsity Plus Valorant Conference.
Image credit - courtesy of esports program
Lim's inclination to step into the center aligns with
the esports program’s value of inclusion. Now a sponsored
organization housed in Recreation and Wellness, the Laker Esports Centerhas intentionally hosted women-only game nights and
recruited women and students from diverse genders to play on teams
or during drop-in hours, according to Riley Long, an assistant
director for Recreation and Wellness, who oversees the esports program.
Those efforts have proved fruitful. Lim and other
members of the Game Changers, an esports team composed of women,
finished second in the National Association of Collegiate Esports’
Varsity Plus Valorant Conference.
Sponsoring a Game Changers team is unique in the
collegiate esports world, as most programs have all-male or co-ed
teams. Only once did the team play other Game Changer teams and Lim
said that was a tournament sponsored by Valorant.
Sadie Doctor was the Game Changers' team captain. Doctor earned a
bachelor's degree in psychology last week.
Image credit - courtesy of esports program
Valorant is a first-person tactical shooter game and
its characters have certain roles and abilities. Long said it's the
most popular game at the esports center, ahead of Rocket League and
Super Smash Brothers Ultimate.
Lim was encouraged to try out for the Valorant Game
Changers team by other student gamers last fall. Sadie Doctor, who
earned a bachelor's degree in psychology last week, was the team captain.
"Last year, I played on a club Valorant team and
was the only woman on the team," Doctor said. "Riley
messaged me over the summer and asked what I would think about
leading the Game Changers."
Doctor said while team members connected as friends,
they did not instantly connect as teammates in their roles on Valorant.
"We had to take on more aggressive roles that
women usually don't do, more fighting roles," Doctor said.
"We had to learn to trust our experience. Some teammates were
low-ranked players but our quality of play surpassed a lot of the
teams we played once we learned to trust one another."
Lim agreed, saying her initial role while playing
Valorant was as an agent, a protector of the team. Then she began to
enjoy playing more aggressive roles.
"Women may be nervous to make mistakes during a
game and get called out. Or, they might be nervous of critique and
whatever someone would say," she said.
Long said the center's intentionality toward inclusion
spills over to its goals of aiding the university's recruitment and
retention efforts. The growth of the center has allowed Long to hire
part-time coaches for its premiere league teams.
A new studio, in partnership with the School of
Communications, has allowed the esports program to livestream
premier team matches multiple days per week. The program has hosted
and broadcast two high school events this year. Long said he has
hired more student employees to broadcast and announce matches, in
addition to serving in other support roles.
