By Anthony Gorges
JC Post
The 12th Street Community Center is the home of an all-new E-sports community in Junction City. The Junction City Area Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon-cutting Monday night to open Twister Arena officially.
Aaron Sheltrown, the city's E-Sports Coordinator, mentioned that he had visions for the E-Sports Arena when he was hired in February. Sheltrown noted that the arena would not have been possible without all the work from Josh Gray and the Junction City Parks and Recreation staff.
"The great thing about this, is that it's put on by the city, so it's free, just like the Community Center," Sheltrown said. "All you have to do is come down to the Community Center and make your free account, then jump on a computer and play."
Sheltrown mentioned that if a player is under the age of 18, their parent or legal guardian will need to fill out the waiver. If over 18, the player can fill it out themselves.
Twister Arena can hold 24 players at once. There are 10 computers (PC's), 10 Play-Station Pro's, two Nintendo Switches, and a Retro-Corner.
Colleges have ventured into E-Sports gaming. Scholarship opportunities are available for players. Sheltrown noted over $16 million in scholarship money for E-Sports was rewarded last year.
Very soon the Twisters will begin forming teams to compete at tournaments. The goal is to host tournaments at Twister Arena in the future.
Twister Arena is open 12:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday.
Many local elected officials were in attendance for the ribbon-cutting.