It’s pretty difficult to play a game or use a computer without sitting down, though stand-up desks definitely exist. However, unless you plan on standing up for the entirety of a game or simply standing because it feels better to (such as for Guitar Hero-esque games), there’s a good chance that you plan to be sitting.
Any chair will do, but some chairs are clearly better than others. There are also chairs specifically for gamers, and chairs made to keep you comfortable.
We’ve certainly seen our fair share of furniture focused on gamers, complete with desks and specific chairs, but IKEA looks to be getting in on that action thanks in part to a collaboration with Xbox in time for Gamescom this year.
The collaboration will see some rather literal interpretations of gamer gear, as IKEA takes an Xbox controller, and basically supersizes parts and pieces, exploding them outwards and providing the parts as decor and furniture.
Set to launch in Australia from October 1, the pieces form IKEA’s Yxstaby collection, and essentially use game controllers as an inspiration for things you can use to make your gaming setup a little more complete.
Nothing is electronic per se, even though IKEA does make electric stand-up desks and has previously built Sonos gear such as the Symfonisk Picture Frame speaker, technology it no longer offers now that Sonos and IKEA have parted ways.
Rather, this is a little more like the other collaborations the Swedish furniture giant has tried in the past, including one connected with the artist Swedish House Mafia.
Officially, there will be nine pieces to IKEA’s Yxstaby collection, but some will have variations in black and green.
There are black and green stools fashioned from the style of the thumbsticks on Xbox controllers, a green pillow pad shaped like a D-pad, and a box for the wall to show off a collection of limited edition gaming controllers, because there have clearly been a lot of those.
But some of IKEA’s Xbox collabs are definitely a lot more functional, such as a gaming monitor stand, a TV stand that can hang up a TV and collect cords and console nearby, a gaming side table with a small cabinet inside, a laptop support box which looks a little like a toolbox for you to rest your laptop against, and an arm-less lounge chair with a pocket underneath for your controller.
“I queued all night 25 years ago to get my hands on the first Xbox console, so those shapes are nostalgic to me,” said David Wahl, a designer at IKEA of Sweden.
Those shapes clearly include the thumbstick, which has resulted in one of the more iconic pieces in the collection: the stool. Rather than simply sit flat, it can tilt like the stick on the controller, and also features a grip just like the real thing, as well.
Given it was based from the original 3D design used to make the controller, it could be one of the more interesting to see.
“The challenge was making it work as a stool, with the right seating curve and stability, while still feeling like a thumbstick. It even moves the way a thumbstick does, so it tilts with you while you play,” he said.
Prices haven’t been announced just yet, but IKEA in Australia and New Zealand will both see the bits and pieces, landing in stores from October 1.
