The Basement a Space for Gaming and Community

The Basement at the UTA Central Library has become a place for gaming, learning, and building community. 

Britt LaRiviere, a FabLab technician, stated that daily, The Basement is busy with activity as students gather around gaming consoles and game tables, competing against one another in friendly competition. 

"The Basement is a recreational space where people can come down to play against each other in video games as well as tabletop games," Britt said. "We also have just as much a focus on the learning side of things. We're going to offer different development opportunities through workshops." 

Some of the past workshops The Basement has offered included video game literacy workshops. 

One of the upcoming workshops will focus on using the Unreal Engine software suite that will teach people to create their video games. Some of the games made with this software include titles such as "Bioshock," "Gears of War," and "Batman: Arkham." 

Britt shared in this workshop that the staff at The Basement wants to give students the fundamentals of game design and an overview of the program so they can successfully bring their vision to life on screen. 

"Potentially, it might not be their major, but (game design) might just be something they want to get their feet wet in and learn more about," Britt said. "The workshops are a good place to go and get an introduction to it. They can get that confidence to take it from a hobby to something more." 

Britt shared that the workshops are not just centered around video games but tabletop games as well. During the fall semester, a workshop was held around creating characters for "Dungeons and Dragons" using creative writing. 

Along with these workshops, The Basement has game-watch parties and gaming tournaments. Gaming consoles available for use include the Play Station 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Mini, and the Super NES mini, along with stand-up arcade machines. Students and staff members have donated older game consoles as well, which adds to what The Basement can offer. 

For more information about The Basement, what it offers, and its hours of operation, go to UTA Libraries website at https://libraries.uta.edu/services/technology/the-basement.