Game Room Ideas
Take game night to the next level
With the days getting colder, it is time to plan your winter pass times.
Everyone likes a good game. What could be more luxurious than your very own playroom? A private space where you can live out your wildest (gaming) dreams in the comfort of your own home.
The elements of a great playroom…(Or should we rather say game room?)
Privacy
This space is your own little kingdom. The very best playrooms are hidden away from your usual entertainment areas and have a door that can be firmly locked…so that you can get up from the games table and leave the monopoly board until next week’s game night of course. The best playrooms are well kept secrets, and you should be selective about which playmates you allow into your inner sanctum.
Soundproofing
This is a place that you disappear into. Your playroom is your haven. The rest of the noisy world (as well as your noisy, nosey housemates) are not allowed to disturb the serenity of the playroom. You can choose to be as loud as you want to here, and even test the extremes of your auditory boundaries, but nothing from the outside world should be able to encroach on your playtime. Along with soundproofing you should plan your sound system. Music sets a mood and can inspire even the most introverted guests to playful greatness.
Comfort
The soft furnishings in your playroom are key to ensuring your continued comfort for those marathon play-sessions. Whether you opt for leather or plush velvet, the options are endless. We love the idea of custom making bespoke seating (and lounging) spots to fit the specific hobbies you intend to indulge in. The type of soft furnishing you need for building a 5000-piece puzzle is different form billiard-spectator stools or movie couches.
Amenities
Here the only limitations are budget and imagination. The focus of your playroom will determine what you need in the line of amenities. Are you into casino style games like roulette and classic card games? Are you focussed on Billiards or pool? Are you going retro with darts, table tennis and foosball?
Questions to ask yourself:
- How many people will be joining in?
- What kind of refreshments will they enjoy?
- Will you need a dining table? kitchenette, fridge, full bar?
- Are you doing snacks or full meals?
- Do you need a full set of cutlery and flatware?
Once you have an idea of how your playdates will look, you can decide how much you want to spend on this.
Shine some light on the situation
Mood lighting is crucial to a good playroom experience. Again, your needs will differ, based on your play preferences. What you need for puzzle building and blackjack won’t be the same as darts and billiards. The best option to get the most out of your setup is to opt for smart lighting devices. Changing the saturation and hue, as well as brightness can have a huge impact on your games. Also think about investing in movable lights. Whether this is as simple as tabletop lamps you can move around, or swivel fittings on extendable rods, is, as always, dictated by budget.
Top Tip: Depending on the vibes of your playroom, why not go all out and get your hands on some dancefloor ready coloured lights and a mirror ball…who said grownups need to be all grown up?
Now for the conversation piece
For your playroom to be a real playroom, you need something to…PLAY. Obviously you can dedicate your space to online gaming or streaming if that’s your vibe, but we hope you will be spending some face to face time with your favourite playmates. For those of us older than 21, the thought of going out to a pool bar is a nostalgic but daunting prospect. Yes it was fun in the early 2000’s, but now that the 40’s are creeping up on us you wont find us in the icky, vape filled bars with the weird music. We have matured and now we will be playing bar games in our own homes, with our own clean glasses and our own nostalgic 90’s alternative tunes in our ears.
Treat yourself
If this sounds like the ultimate dream, we want to introduce you to your new best friend. Lectron Billiards. But don’t be fooled – they offer so much more than just billiards tables. They have pool, snooker, poker, foosball and air-hocky tables as well, and even provide accessories like cue cabinets and artboards. Lectron is your one stop shop to kit out your playroom with the ultimate nostalgic games paraphernalia.
More than a table
Lectron also specialize in creating custom games tables that serve more than one function. A pool table becomes a table tennis table and then a dining table, allowing you to get the most value from your purchase, depending on your needs for that day. These switches between functions are easy and can be done without major DIY skills or manpower.
Customization is their specialty and they have been doing this for many years. Lectron has their head office in Cape Town, but have branches ready to serve you in all the major hubs across the country.
Take Note: Ok – so let’s get real.
We should have probably stayed away from the name “playroom” and rather called it a “games room”…But, We knew exactly what we were doing and we had some tongue in cheek fun with it. You already know the number one homemaker’s rule: You get to make the rules. And that’s exactly what we did today. We hope you’ve been tantalized into living out your biggest game play fantasies, one playroom update at a time.
