Summoning and I have been talking about doing this for years, and up until now, we haven’t had a way to get it done. Due to fortunate circumstances at the UltraSpec warehouse, we have acquired a second unit of 3500 square feet and we can now designate one of the upstairs offices as a gaming/media/stream room.
With the recent shake up in the scene, and players in our area sort of struggling to figure out where to go to get in some level up sessions during the week, we thought this was a good time to announce it. As we move product out of the office and convert it, we’ll give updates. This will merely be a “free” alternative to train. We say free because we’re not going to directly charge anyone to be there, however we will encourage donations, from the players who attend and those in the stream who want to see content arise from this venture. Anything we get will go right back into the community. This can be done via donation bin at UltraSpec Warehouse or through PayPal, what have you, and it will be advertised on the stream. We might just come up with a dollar amount goal to reach by the end of the year and if we do, great. If not, oh well, keep coming to play and we’ll stream it.
The area is about 450 square feet, and we will set up tables with PS3s, 360s, Asus monitors, maybe a couple PCs. We’ll start with about 6 console setups and see how things go, get whatever games we can. There will be a dedicated stream station, and a 100″ projector screen in the room. We also may put a few arcade machines in it as well, with an MK cabinet already landed at the warehouse, likely Alpha 3, 3rd Strike, maybe KI. My goal is to fit every cabinet with a SuperGun for PS2 support.
The current time frame for open hours is looking to be 7 to 2AM (at least) on Fridays, which is after UPS and FedEx arrive and before the lights go off outside, and I think we can adjust as well. It also might not be feasible to do on Fridays due to work schedules, so we’ll have to figure out the details with everyone on when is the best day and time to do this. This is a relatively flexible project.
There will still be events at VSM, there will be seasonal tournaments at YesterCades, and we plan on working with Local Battles to bring at least one event this year, but in terms of a free alternative that a lot of players seem to be looking for, this is the best we can do. It will no doubt be a fantastic experience, but we want to continue to support our other partners in the community.
We acknowledge that the location, Marlboro, NJ, is relatively far for the NY players, and we also acknowledge bridges and tolls (believe us, we drive far and pay them every time we go to VSM too), but some effective carpooling methods can really reduce overall gas and toll prices, and help get this done. Coordinate and congregate. There will also be a zero tolerance policy on behavior. If you are a scumbag, you will be treated as such. Respect your opponents and TOs.
So with that, we will figure out when we can start, and how often. It might just be planned dates around VSM, Local Battles and YesterCades schedulings. The major benefits to the location is that it is centralized to the Tri-State Area and it’s a permanent setup, we never have to take it down. Players want us to do more, and the only way we can right now is if we don’t have to go to the players.
In terms of food, there is a pizza place that delivers until about 11PM about a mile away, and a Wawa about 2 miles away. Food will likely be limited to downstairs in the lobby/vestibule area, but bottled drinks will probably be allowed upstairs. We do have a vending machine for drinks, we’ll see about getting that up and running again.
This is a huge concept, we want to do it, we will derive enjoyment just through doing it, but we’ll need some kind of help to get it to where it needs to be before it becomes self-sustaining. With Injustice around the corner, the players are going to need a guaranteed place to train in the area, and again, this is our offer to you.
Thanks to everyone who’s helped us out and made the MK community better. Don’t forget about KombatNetwork/YesterCades/RBR Operation Wolf coming up in one week.
http://www.facebook.com/events/499062903449938
http://testyourmight.com/threads/jan-26-2013-kombatnetwork-presents-operation-wolf-red-bank-nj.25329