Esports may appear like an intimidating activity, but in truth it requires discipline, practice and teamwork – no matter if you have been gaming since childhood or picking up controller for the first time! Our eSports team welcomes gamers of all skill levels.
Researchers from Cornell University and Columbia University recently conducted research that demonstrated how wearable devices could detect changes in cognition and concentration during esports competition using heart rate variability index (HRVI).
Whether you’re a lifelong gamer or a newcomer to the world of eSports, the Anna Maria College eSports Team is here to help.
Esports (Electronic Sports), also known as E-sports or competitive video gaming (CCG), was initially limited to amateur competitions until late 2000 when participation by professional gamers and live streaming became more prominent.
Esports teams compete within an overarching organization’s leagues and are ranked according to their performance during a given season; those that perform better may advance up a league, while those that fail may drop into one that’s lower down the chain.
Dylan McLaughlin ’27 decided to join Anna Maria College’s eSports program after transferring from another Central Massachusetts college, due to its state-of-the-art eSports Center and teamwork opportunities it provided. Furthermore, Dylan was drawn in by how playing video games can develop strategic thinking, communication, teamwork, confidence building, academic performance improvement as well as many other skills that transfer over to other professions.
Head Coach Jeremy McLaughlin
Jeremy McLaughlin is the Head Coach for COGnitive Gaming Esports Team. A former professional player in the game himself, he began coaching since 2012. A graduate of Providence College with a major in psychology and Masters of Education from Boston University respectively.
COGnitive Gaming came third in their group at the Smite pre-launch tournament. Their roster consisted of Shing, MLCst3alth, Allied Kaeyoh and 0mega; MLCst3alth was soon benched for not playing enough; Shing left for SNIPE Gaming while Kaeyoh, Shing, Allied Kaeyoh and Shing joined Andinster’s new squad with BaRRaCCuDDa DaretoCare joining their new squad with his former squadmates Kaeyoh, Kaeyoh and DaretoCare to complete it all.
Cognitive Prime would become known for winning the inaugural Smite World Championship and taking home $1.3 million prize pool as winners of that inaugural tournament. Team members included John “BaRRaCCuDDa”, Rosario “Jeff_Hindla”, Brett “MLCst3alth” Felley and Andrew “Andinster” Woodward – as announced by North American esports organization Cognitive Gaming on December 31. Cognitive Gaming announced on December 31 that it will cease operations and close down.
Games we play
COGnitive Gaming boasts a Smite team competing in the Smite Pro League. Their current roster consists of members from What’s Kraken (rebranded to COGnitive on February 15). COGnitive had an outstanding pre-launch tournament performance by finishing third overall and defeating newly sponsored SNIPE Gaming team. At Fall Relegations Tournament they reclaimed their SPL spot by beating Noble eSports 3-1 in finals!
CognitiveReelz is an AI-powered highlights creation platform, designed to streamline and automate the process of creating video game competition highlight reels for consumption in production workflows and social media channels. You can then access them whenever necessary.
How to join
Our team provides an engaging environment in which students can develop the necessary skills for competitive gaming while building social, emotional, and STEM capabilities.
eSports (electronic sports) is an emerging category of video gaming competitions involving organized online tournaments. To become successful at this sport, practice and dedication are needed; skills required include problem-solving, quick reaction times, teamwork and communication.
Establishing an esports program is much like creating any sports team: begin by gathering student interest, setting goals, structuring the schedules and scheduling training sessions, ascertaining stakeholder commitment levels including those from school administration and staff, then considering computer hardware needs (there is a direct relationship between system performance and player performance in esports; devices should feature fast processors with dedicated graphics cards with ample memory storage capacity, monitors designed specifically for gaming peripherals) before selecting monitors and peripherals designed specifically for gaming). For additional guidance download Intel’s white paper on Esports Education published in 2022!
