WATERLOO GAMING LOUNGE BRINGS HIGH-POWERED PLAY TO UPTOWN

On the second floor of 1 King St. N., lit by multicoloured RGB strips, over a dozen high-end gaming PCs whir to life, each loaded with over 70 games. The Waterloo Gaming Lounge has become a hub for community and competition since it opened in October 2025. Fitting right into the middle of uptown Waterloo’s nightlife, the space provides a unique experience for folks looking for something to do during a night out or space for teams to practice their skills together.  

Tony Shiff, owner of the space, is a veteran of the video game development industry but does not consider himself a core PC gamer. His inspiration to open the Waterloo Gaming Lounge instead comes from observing current social gaming habits in his own home.  

“My son is [a gamer], and the idea started because I saw him in the basement a lot of the time gaming with a whole group of friends. And I was like, why don’t you ever get together? He said, ‘I have my PC and they have their PC, where are we going to meet each other?’” Shiff said.  

Modern PC gaming at a high level requires expensive and bulky hardware. If someone is even able to afford a powerful rig, disassembling their whole setup and transporting it to a friend’s home is far from convenient. The Waterloo Gaming Lounge instead charges an hourly rate to access their top-of-the-line machines and an inviting, if sometimes chaotic, gaming environment. 

“PC gaming is often a solitary experience, and I wanted to do something that made it more social,” Shiff said. 

Some of the most popular games the Waterloo Gaming Lounge offers are Valorant, a first-person hero shooter; League of Legends, a multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) game; and Counterstrike 2, a traditional first-person shooter. While these titles take up a lot of the playtime for gamers, Shiff was particularly encouraged by the impact offering less popular games has had on customers.  

“There is a whole community of people who play Counterstrike 1.6, a 25-year-old game. They were going to Hamilton before we opened because that was the closest place,” Shiff said. 

The Counterstrike 1.6 community at the Waterloo Gaming Lounge highlights the unique experience the space provides. One team of five gamers sets up in one room, another in the room next door.  

No headsets, just two teams calling out strategies and laughing together. They turn to pat each other on the back after a big win and run into the next room to playfully tease their opponents after a defeat.  

“They’re weekly regulars. It’s like a modern bowling league,” Shiff said. 

Directly across from the Counterstrike 1.6 crew sits another group of players grinding through ranked matches of League of Legends, a game that rewards consistent communication between players. Although League of Legends does not require the latest high-end graphic cards or other equipment to run, groups make the effort to get together to play the game in person.  

For Ian Zhang, a University of Waterloo student ranked platinum in League of Legends, Shiff’s goal of building a social gaming space resonates.   

“It’s more fun to play with other people physically together. As a kid, you’re on the couch playing with your friends on a console, and as you get older, it’s hard to do that. So, it’s just a nice place to get together with friends,” Zhang said.  

Waterloo Gaming Lounge is also hosting a series of tournaments for their most popular games. Previous tournaments have been held in Valorant, League of Legends and Counterstrike 2. All have been free to play and come with a gift card prize for the winners. While these events were well attended, Shiff was particularly happy to see the success of bringing together smaller gaming communities.  

“One of the most interesting tournaments for me was DOTA 2, which is not a big community in Canada…as it is in Europe and Asia,” Shiff said.  

Making gaming accessible and communal for everyone has become a guiding principle of the Waterloo Gaming Lounge. Players can log in to their own accounts for each game to rank up and maintain use of items or characters they may have. The lounge also provides a limited number of house accounts for new players to use, depending on the game. Gamers of all skill levels and group sizes are welcome. 

BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO DISC GOLF IN WR

Disc golf is a rising alternative sport that is low-impact, cheap and beginner-friendly. Waterloo Region boasts beautiful courses, helpful retailers and a burgeoning community to help you along your journey out into the woods to clink baskets with plastic discs.

Getting started

The only gear needed are discs, which are different from traditional frisbees.

Local online retailer Big Disc Energy sells a wide variety of discs for all skill levels, including cheap starter sets. Additionally, any big store with a sports department or basic online retailer should be able to sell you a starter set.

The next item you should invest in is the free UDisc app. UDisc is a great resource for finding courses, keeping score during your rounds and tracking your progress over time.

For some courses in the region, using the app during your round is the best way to have any idea how to get from hole to hole.

In addition to its discovery and tracking features, UDisc also has an active blog and forum community that can help answer any questions you may have as you learn.

Montgomery Park Aceplace

Montgomery Park Aceplace course offers a short and forgiving but varied layout perfect for beginners or those looking to practice their game. Recently, the City of Kitchener put in new concrete tee pads, making the course even better for practicing long drives. Beware the bushes on hole five, they’re full of burs that will stick to your clothes!

Columbia Lake (UW) Disc Golf Course

Located on the University of Waterloo campus, Columbia Lake has some of the nicest views of any disc golf course in the region. Managed by the university, the course is free for UW students, but they charge $3 for a day pass to any non- students. Visit the UW recreation website or scan the QR codes on the course to purchase your pass before playing.

It is not uncommon to see ducks and other animals resting in the lake. Be sure to keep your eye out for the occasional turtle making its way across the first fairway.

Four Fathers Brewing Co. DGC

Sandwiched between Four Fathers Brewing Co. and the Mill Pond in north Cambridge, this course winds through wooded areas before wrapping up in front of the restaurant patio, inviting you in to celebrate a successful round.

Next steps

Now that you have successfully learned the basics of disc golf and have had some fun, it’s time to up your game. Two easy ways to do that are watching pros on the Disc Golf Network (DGN) and joining the Grand River Disc Golf Association (GRDGA).

DGN broadcasts live pro tournaments on their app and on YouTube. The GRDCA is a local association that hosts tournaments, builds community and operates the members-only course Rudy Woods. If you want to get involved and play more disc golf with likeminded people, the GRDCA is the place to be.

Overall, all you really need to be successful at disc golf is some interest, walking shoes and maybe some friends who are down to try it out.

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KITCHENER HOSTS INTERNATIONAL CALL OF DUTY COMPETITION

The world’s largest Call of Duty tournament took over the Aud from June 26-29, launching Kitchener into the esports spotlight. The Call of Duty League Championships wraps up the 2025 season, with the top eight teams battling through matches of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 with the hope of claiming a piece of the $2,000,000 prize pool.   

While the focus of the event is watching the best gameplay Call of Duty has to offer, there were also ample opportunities for attendees to engage in various activities. Covered over murals and signs of Kitchener Rangers legends were free Monster Energy booths, ghillie suit-clad mannequins, and a Movember barbershop. Rows and rows of top-of-the-line PCs lined the halls, giving visitors a chance to get a taste of high level gaming.   

Fans from across the world and the region poured into the venue.  

“This is my hometown, right? I live here, so I was happy to see it’s here,” Ethan Wing, a Kitchener-based Call of Duty fan, said. “Obviously, it’s tougher for a lot of fans to come out, but I think we got some decent turnout on Saturday and Sundays, so it’s pretty fun.”  

Additionally, the tournament was a boost to the Conestoga Condors esports program, who were advertising their upcoming Waterloo Campus Esports arena.   

The Condors’ Call of Duty team has seen particular success recently, with their varsity team qualifying for their first international tournament in May.  

Michael Wiggelaar, a Condors varsity Call of Duty team member, was excited to see such a large tournament with popular teams end up in Kitchener, giving him a chance to connect with some of his favourite professionals.   

“It’s definitely a big deal for the school as a whole. We hosted Optic Texas for a boot camp prior to the event, so I think it’s definitely getting some attention on our school[…]it’s a positive thing for sure,” Wiggelaar said.  

Going into the finals on Sunday, only Vancouver Surge and Optic Texas remained. Optic, the 2024 league champions who had previously defeated the Toronto Ultra in the tournament, were causing a buzz across the arena.  

“I want Surge to win. I think there’s a lot of Optic fans, which is awesome, but I’m cheering for the Canadian team. I want to see them take down Optic,” Wing said.   

“I’m definitely rooting for Optic. I’ve always been an Optic fan even since back in Call of Duty: Ghosts [released in 2013],” Wiggelaar said.  

Optic Texas entered the stadium to thunderous applause compared to the Vancouver Surge’s more tepid response. After eight grueling rounds of various game modes, Optic Texas defeated Vancouver Surge 5-3, becoming the first back-to-back champions in the Call of Duty League history.   

As fans poured out of the Aud after the four-day long tournament, it’s clear that there are opportunities for esports growth in the Waterloo region. After hosting a global tournament for one of the most popular video games and with a dedicated esports arena on the way, the region has the chance to become a leader in a fast-growing community. 

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