Play in Comfort: Game Table Ergonomics
From pool tables to foosball, the perfect home leisure environment often focuses on functionality and aesthetics.
However, ergonomics is an essential element that's sometimes overlooked, where comfort, proper physique and safety can greatly enhance the gaming experience.
Be it sitting in an unnatural position, facing sharp or unsafe parts, or staring at a screen for too long, gaming can sometimes lead to discomfort, fatigue or even injuries.
Ergonomics is essentially design with the intent of reducing these pitfalls. Be it arcade, pool or foosball tables, any game table can be well-designed to confer benefits such as comfort, right posture and safety.
We delve into some of our most ergonomic game tables on offer, whilst sharing some of the hazards of certain postures or features regarding game tables.
1. Prime II Arcade Machine: Go Retro in Comfort
Intentionally designed for comfort, we love how the Prime II Retro Home Arcade machine allows players to sit down in comfort and play when at rest. The Japanese sit-down style allows players to maintain a neutral posture, minimising strain on the back, neck, and shoulders.
Unlike most vertically flat arcade cabinets that force one to hunch to reach the joystick panel, the Prime II was also intentionally designed to offer deeper leg room. Besides the freedom of leg movement, being closer to the panel also allows you to keep an upright posture.
While its wide, angled 27" screen means you’ll not need to tilt your head to unnatural positions nor squint, there’s also a volume button to make sure that your ‘Hadoukens’ are perfectly placed - both for the opponent and for your ears!
2. Fusiontable Dining Pool Table: Flexible Pool Play
The challenge for dining pool tables has always been finding the balance between a taller (for playing) and lower (for eating) height.
Showcasing Aramith's status as a company at the forefront of sport and technology, the Aramith Fusiontable is a groundbreaking table that solves this issue with its proprietary lift-lever mechanism that easily shifts the table between 2 heights - one for dining and one for pool - in seconds. Say goodbye to arched backs when playing, and strained necks when dining!
The Fusiontable further features streamlined legs that aren’t just cosmetic, but its minimalist setup means more space overall. Vertically it offers more legroom, while horizontally it accords extra space to help seat 8-10 people comfortably for a perfect dining experience.
3. Aston II Foosball Table: Have a (Kids-)Friendly Match
Accidents and injuries can occur through knocking into sharp corners or protruding parts, for adults and especially for kids. The last thing you would want is for a home leisure item to cause injury instead of bring joy. Hence, it's worthwhile looking for game tables designed with safety in mind.
One pretty common example pertains to foosball tables, where protruding rods at the ends of the table can pose an injury risk to others on the opposing side, especially kids with heights similar to these rods.
The Aston II Foosball Table is an example of safety in action. It comes with non-protruding ('Telescopic') rods that prevents potential accidents from happening and gives you peace of mind while playing.
Besides player-side ball returns that help players avoid stretching to collect the ball on the sides, it also features well-designed grip handles with appropriate weight distribution that ensure a natural grip and maneuverability, reducing the risk of hand and wrist fatigue.
Indeed, some of our customers have feedback that with such human factors in place, the grip feels ‘lighter’ than even some of our branded tournament tables.
4. The Tribeca-M: Safe Surface, Durable design
As mentioned, sharp parts can cause injury, and this applies to pool tables with sharp edges as well.
For all its minimalistic beauty, the Tribeca-M Pool Table constructed with curved, smooth corners does not feature sharp edges, thus enhancing safety.
Its double-braced legs adds to its sturdy construction, conferring stability that prevents tables from tipping over during intense gameplay and avoiding potential accidents.
Conclusion
When it comes to setting up a home leisure area, ergonomics should be a priority. By considering the principles of ergonomics - whether it’s improved comfort, physique, or safety - such seemingly small decisions can transform your leisure activities into more enjoyable and worry-free experiences, as it should be.
Afterall, a game table should bring pleasure, not pain!