Gamers and interior design might not be the first pairing you think of when you see all those rate my battlestation memes floating around. But with a little work (and a tasteful number of LED lights) a beautiful gaming setup is well within your reach.
In the past you may have been happy to put a fold out chair in front of a CRT in your basement to play Demon's Souls, but in the age of remote work, Zoom classes and streaming stardom, now your gaming den needs a glow up. So here are some solid interior design tips to help you decorate your gaming space, no matter how big your rig or how small your budget. There's something here for the RGB fanatics, the pastel anime aestheticians, or those who prefer a more subtle approach to sharing your game room with others.
Taste the rainbow
When most people first think of decorating a gaming space, the old holdout is still the RGB LED. There's plenty of flexibility in those little lights, especially now smaller, brighter LED technology can make tiny ribbons of pure light emanate from your battlestation. To match your fancy color-changing mouse, like the HyperX Pulsefire Surge, you can deck out other parts of your gaming setup with complementary colors. Don't think you have to go monochrome to get a cohesive lighting profile either,use a tool like Canva to pick out a main color's complementary, triadic or even tetradic options, depending on if you have two, three or four different sources.
Of course, you can always opt for the full rainbow build and have everything set to pulsing through all available colors. With HyperX components like the Pulsefire Mat mousepad, you can even sync with other peripheral lighting profiles through the NGENUITY app, so you don't end up clashing accidentally on different cycles.
Outside of your peripherals and PC, you can add splashes of light throughout the rest of your gaming room with Philips Hue lights, which come in every variation. From adhesive strip lights you can attach to the underside of your desk or shelves, to bulbs that go into existing lamps and outlets, or even units you can attach to the back of your screen. You can also get a HDMI passthrough so the lights in the room change according to whatever you're playing, creating an ambilight effect on the wall behind your TV or monitor. Total immersion!
Pretty in pastel
One of the hottest trends dominating TikTok, Instagram or anywhere else you might see behind the scenes of your favorite streamers, is the too-sweet tones of pastel palettes. Lighter, airier colors from pale and low-saturation palettes give everything a softer vibe, so it's popular among those who want to make their gaming setup less of a battlestation and more of a cosy nest. That isn't to say you can't split heads in Dead By Daylight while looking at a baby blue cat-eared monitor, though.
which of these fit your setup? pic.twitter.com/dOzlbX3vzy
— HyperX (@HyperX) January 28, 2022
If you do enjoy outfitting your desk with Squishmallows and Animal Crossing amiibo, to avoid an overly cluttered cornucopia of colors try using white as a base canvas to make your color choices pop. Replacing your standard LED keyboard letters with white HyperX Pudding keycaps, then setting your RGB lighting profile to the pale pastel of your choice (or try something more adventurous like lighting zoned by key function) will be a soothing centerpiece.
You can also pair your new "white + pastel" aesthetic with an ultralight mouse like the white Pulsefire Haste 2. Opt for the wireless version if you'd like to be clean of cables, too. Either way, rose accenting on additional buttons will match up beautifully with the colorway of the Cloud Stinger Pink. Though pastel colors almost all complement each other, less is more when creating a peaceful interior design, so choose two or three colors and stick with them. Canva's colorpicker tool can help here as well.
There's no need for colorless cables to spoil the picture either. Instead of an unseemly black keyboard cable cluttering your desk, consider introducing one of the many colored variants of Coiled Cable instead. Compatible with most USB-C keyboards, they'll keep everything in view in line with your chosen look.
Show your passion
As you may have noticed, what's behind a person on webcam is often just as interesting as the person. From streamers to colleagues to classmates, creating a perfect backdrop can frame you in a different light (sometimes literally). It's no secret why professional streamers, or those with a steady following, spend a lot of time agonizing over what's behind them when they go live.
To help your viewers or school/work friends get to know you better, decorate the space behind your desk with things you are passionate about. It'll make you feel a lot happier about where you spend most of your free time as well, and give you something nice to look at when you turn away from your screen to avoid watching your teammate fail an important round clutch.
If you have posters for movies or games you love, or prints from an artist you follow, go one step further than tacking them to the wall by giving them a nice, simple frame. And if you're heavily into game music, pick up some soundtracks on vinyl and install rails or shelves on the wall to display the ones you like the cover art of. If you prefer physical collectibles and memorabilia – like amiibo, statues or gunpla – then an enclosed glass display case will stop you having to dust in between every tiny crack and crevice, and look just a little more put together.
Keyboard creatures
© HyperX
With HyperX’s HX3D designs, you can even introduce some customized fun to what’s under your fingertips. These 3D-printed keycaps can help you transform your keyboard with cute creatures and designs to match your favorite game genres. If you’re a carer for many plant children, then the Sally the Succulent Keycap is the ideal way to show your love for them. Well, that and watering them, which you have done recently, right?
© HyperX
The HX3D doesn’t just deliver on your keyboard. The upcoming line includes headset topper ears that’ll clip neatly onto your Cloud III, Cloud II, or Cloud Alpha gaming headset. Choose between a cutesy bear, dastardly devil, or imposing dragon depending on your mood for the day.
Touch grass
If you're spending a lot of your time indoors but want some of the benefits of outside, then go outside. Seriously, you should go outside sometimes, it's really good out there. But you can also bring some of that good outside stuff inside, too! Hanging plants look great and (bonus) also help purify the air in your gaming room. If you want to expand on the theme, furniture with natural textures like wood grain and woven hemp or other natural fabrics give a relaxed feel to your gaming space.
Interesting lighting doesn't just have to be garish neon underlighting if you aren't into that either, you may have noticed some streamers have panels of lights attached to the wall behind them for atmosphere and visual interest. Most use IKEA smart panels, but some use Nanoleaf, which on top of multicolored options also have an Elements line of wood panel effects.
Nanoleaf panels can be integrated into smart lighting systems like Alexa, Google or Apple HomeKit, with programmable settings and sequences. They even react to music, for a subtle pulse while you enjoy the sounds of your favorite game composer. With some tinkering you can probably tie them into third party automations like IFTTT (If This Then That) so that you merely have to hit a button on your Elgato StreamDeck and suddenly it's War Room Mode when it's time to clutch.
The most important thing to remember when decorating your gaming space is that you make it your own. Hopefully with the ideas above, there's enough flexibility and customization for you to truly express yourself with something unique.
