Game On! has seen an increase in student interest after a slow summer and first half of fall quarter.
In an effort to bring in new customers, Game On!, the game room on the A-level of Ackerman Union, held two tournaments last week and has two more scheduled this month.
The experience of playing with friends in a comfortable environment is the room’s biggest draw, said Raymond Juarez, the student union division manager.
“One of the advantages is students can have a place to call their own,” Juarez said. “It’s a gathering place.”
While trying to remain competitive with online computer and platform gaming, Associated Students UCLA plans on employing new strategies to bring in more business, said Rich Delia, ASUCLA’s chief financial officer.
He said while the economy is down, students will avoid spending money unnecessarily. Game On! management is working to see if the $4 price per hour is competitive.
In October, ASUCLA’s games and recreation budget fell $7,000 short of its $17,000 earnings expectation. The budget fell short $14,000 from an expected $37,000 for the past three months, according to ASUCLA financial statements.
One statement attributes this shortfall in sales to a “slower than anticipated development of customer base.”
But store employees have seen business picking up.
“For about a month now, we’ve actually had a lot of people showing up in the morning,” said Luar Cervantes, a Game On! employee. “I think that most people just don’t know we’re here.”
So far, Game On! has brought in many of its returning customers by offering the first hour free.
Howard Gan, another employee, estimated that 80 percent of students receiving free hours come back.
“I think the great draw of this place is during the week,” he said. “You have an hour or two to kill between classes and not enough time to go back to the apartments or the dorms.”
Mario Barraza and Hector Martinez, first-year economics students, first noticed Game On! while it was under construction during summer session.
“It’s a good time to relax,” Barraza said, while moving a soccer player across the LCD screen. “It’s better than going to that quarter place. You get more bang for your buck.”
Both said Game On! is, in many ways, better than playing at home.
“Of course, you can easily have these games in your dorm,” Martinez said. “But there’s little doubt that you can be distracted (by the games). You can just come here when you have free time.”
Barraza noticed another benefit.
“The screens are a lot bigger than I’m accustomed to at home,” he said. “The setting is just right, you’re here to play. There’s just a vibe to it.”
Thursday’s StarCraft tournament and Saturday’s Halo tournament brought in eight participants each.
“We’re trying to throw more (tournaments) because that’s something (students) can’t do at home,” Gan said.
On Tuesday, Game On! will host a Call of Duty 4 tournament, and a FIFA 10 tournament will be held Saturday. Students can sign up in-store for $8. Entry in a tournament includes an additional two free hours of game time.
Next quarter, the staff hopes to hold two to three tournaments per week and introduce a gaming league with a final tournament for a prize.
Campus clubs have shown an interest in renting out space in the game room, Cervantes said.
Kevin Uson, a first-year biology student, won Saturday’s Halo tournament.
“It was a really fun experience and it would be great if more people could come more often,” Uson said. “Playing Xbox Live is fun, but it’s more fun to play with people (in the store).”