Why play videogames from the couch or desk, when you can buy a gaming bed?
There's a culture of gaming furniture, did you know? From the aesthetic-matching desk designs of Reddit's /r/battlestations to Felix "Pewdiepie" Kjellberg's reclining gaming-chair, gamers have their own sense of interior design. But now, Japanese retailer Bauhutte ushered in the apotheosis of gaming furniture—a gaming bed.
The site is in Japanese, but the Google-translated product description reads:
"I wake up and move from my bed to my desk. Why is that so complicated? Gaming beds solve this problem. . . . As soon as you get up, you can watch a game or animation and realize a life cycle of falling asleep without difficulty. . . . It is truly a 'perpetual institution'."
While the translation isn't perfect, it's clear how the product is meant to be used. Sized for one person, the bed is surrounded by snack-laden credenzas and electronics, much like a hospital bed has IV drip stands and monitors. It's meant for peak convenience and comfort, which isn't hard to appreciate for anyone who's seen WALL·E.
Not even fully reclined, must be a scrub gamer. From WALL·E, Courtesy IMDb
Accessibility for Gamers
In reality, the gaming bed is assembled from a variety of paraphernalia on Bauhutte's site, totaling around $1,048. The wheeled desks, accessory holders, and even the "gaming wear blanket" are sold separately and mix-and-matchable.
While scrolling through their desk layouts might look like the stages of evolution between humans and The Borg, it's actually kind of heartening. Gaming is a great hobby in moderation, but it's often inaccessible to gamers with disabilities or mobility problems. A gaming bed, or a specific ergonomic combo of accessories, might be perfect for someone's set of circumstances. What's more, a lot of their products are space-efficient and designed with a variety of living conditions in mind.
Just need a wall for this projector set-up. Courtesy Bauhutte.
The Importance of Ergonomics
On their site, there's a deep-reclining desk, a stand-up desk, a desk on the floor, and even an exercise-bike desk. Though their gamer-chic products aren't meant for everyone, anyone who's spent a lot of time at the computer knows that using one isn't always comfortable. Using electronics with bad posture can be harmful (are kids these days more hunched over from phones?), even though we use them more than ever. A gaming bed is probably decadent laziness for the average user, but I do think it's good to think about how we can best arrange our technology. Our spines, wrists, and eyes will thank us.
How's your desk arranged? What's your gaming set-up? Weigh in with a comment!