VDO Gaming & eSports Education opens in Menands

MENANDS, N.Y. (NEWS10) -The esports industry continues to grow in the Capital Region. This time, with an arena from VDO Gaming & eSports Education for anyone to play at regardless of age or skill.

The Crossman family started hosting their Claim to Fame Entertainment tournaments back in 2014. With no home base, that meant lugging consoles, monitors and controllers from place to place. They told NEWS10's Anthony Krolikowski that getting a location of their own was long overdue.

"We held a high school invitational last year at the MVP Arena and we had twelve high schools come out," recalled Michael Crossman, General Manager of VDO and CEO of Claim to Fame. "They were mostly local but throughout New York state."

The veteran-owned business acts as a computer lab for schools and other businesses. There are 25 computers and twelve consoles ready to be used whether that be for work or fun. "You guys can come down and use our equipment and our facility for your training, your esports team, education," said John Crossman, Owner of VDO and CFO of Claim to Fame.

Accessibility is the name of the game at VDO. It’s open to everyone: causal or pro.

"As a gamer, you have your setup and sometimes you don’t have the best equipment. So we want to provide that for somebody that might want to go to the next level or they want to play with their friend and they don’t have two of the systems," explained Michael Crossman.

To ring in VDO's soft launch, the Crossman family will host a Super Smash Bros. Melee tournament from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.

The arena will also act as a bridge between high schools and colleges, guiding gamers down a path in esports. Its hard launch will be in April with the 4th annual High School Esports Showcase.