The Gaming World: Choosing the Best Gaming Television and TV Mounts for Gamers
The video game world has a lot of things including friendly competition and enjoyment. But when you’re serious about your gaming, you need to be serious about your gaming experience, including your home setup.
So, what is needed for a gaming setup, including the ideal gaming TV and all of the accessories that you need to beat your friends (and foes) in the game? We delve into that here.
History of Gaming and Why Video Games are so Important to Culture
Most historians look to the 1960s as a revolutionary time within the timeline of American and worldwide history. This is not only due to the fact that there were many changes afoot including the Civil Rights Movement, multiple assassinations, and the Vietnam war, but there were other countercultural, and cultural, movements.
The 1960s also saw innovation in the media and culture space. This included a few students from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) who were adamant about the popularity of not just tangible games — such as board games and card games — but also computer games. The popularity of games that these MIT students acknowledged evolved into a project to bring the love of computer games to a television screen.
As such, the transition from computer games to video games took place a few years and so when Magnavox and Atari created two of the first video gaming consoles in 1972, it was pun intended, game over. Video games were in the cultural lexicon and there was no stopping them, besides some ebbs and flows of arcade games becoming increasingly popular, while simultaneously, the whole gaming industry was built up into something .
What happened, then? Well, if you’re a subscriber of Apple TV+ and watched the movie Tetris, you’ll know that video games, specifically Tetris, took over in the 1980s. While that was happening, video game developers and gaming entrepreneurs had their sights set on the future: video game consoles.
Once the 1990s began, as the Museum of Play showcases in their video game history timeline, video game console competition began, in addition to the possibility of online video game play.
Fast forward three decades and gaming is one of the most lucrative industries in which a company might take part. The rise of video games becoming part of the sports industry in the form of eSports has pushed gaming into another echelon.
Are you interested in eSports or are you content with playing brickbreaker on your computer while streaming it to your TV? Either way, if you are a video gaming enthusiast or connoisseur, you will need to have your gaming setup in top shape. And we’re here to help you break down what you need for the ideal setup including the go-to TV for your gaming console.
What is Needed for a Gaming Setup?
So what is needed for an ideal gaming setup? Of course there’s the computer monitor, but if you really want to elevate your entertainment experience, utilizing a TV can do that. After the headset and the actual games, think about comfort. A gaming chair, couch, or other type of seat is necessary. We look at the top priorities of a gaming setup, here.
Gaming Television
A gaming television is a fairly simple product to buy. Or, is it? We’ve talked a fair bit about the types of televisions but, when considering the context in which the television will be used (for gaming!), there are two main factors to think about.
- Are you a gamer who wants a brighter television screen but also that lacks contrast, as opposed to other TV screens?
- Are you a gamer who wants the contrast of light and dark on the TV screen when playing a video game?
If you’re one of the former types of gamers, you’re likely going to want to look for a gaming television that is an LED TV. On the other hand, if you’re the latter type of gamer, an OLED TV might be what you’re looking for. Additionally, if you are looking for a television that is a hybrid gaming and movie/TV show watching television, ensure that not only the clarity, pixilation, and color contrast is what you want, but also the size.
Need help in your decision? Forbes has vetted a handful of gaming televisions and broken down which ones are better for gamer needs. Are you still unsure about the best gaming TV for your setup? We’ve created a TV Buying Guide that is sure to assist in your purchasing decision.
So whether you’re searching for a TV for a gaming console or more focusing on choosing a TV for an entertainment setup, you should be confident in your choice.
Headset
The next item on your gaming setup checklist should be a vital part of your items: the gaming headset. As video games and the eSports entertainment industry has evolved, the need for a gaming headset has taken more of a precedence. As games continue to bring a more immersive experience, a headset is a priority for gamers, regardless of the experience level of the gamer or the passion level of whoever is playing the video game.
For headsets, to have that more immersive time while playing, it is imperative to have noise canceling headphones. This would indicate that any exterior noise that’s not part of the headset noise’s audio is null and void.
Not only is having the noise canceling aspect of the headset an important part of the audio portion of the gaming experience, but so is comfort. Although comfort is a big part of gaming, especially considering the time increments many gamers allot to their playing, comfort doesn’t just mean body comfort (which we’ll get to in a moment), but audio comfort.
It’s smart to not only be cognizant of how the headset feels against your ears and your head — which, if you’re looking for some of the best gaming headsets, PC Gamer’s guide should be a go-to for you — but also how to protect your ears and hearing.
The World Health Organization has called out a few things to keep in mind including:
- Keeping your video game’s volume at or below 60% of the maximum volume amount
- Download and use apps that monitor your volume
- Take ten minute breaks every hour without headphones or a headset on
Gaming Chair
For bodily comfort, having a chair that is inviting is helpful, as is one that supports your back, neck, and legs, so as not to get cramps or aches. One distinction that should be made before delving into your gaming chair research is if you are sitting at a desk for your gaming or using a TV for your gaming console playing experience. If it’s the latter, you’ll likely be seeking a chair that fits in with other living room furniture, or, at the very least, one that is comfortable enough to sit in for non-gaming purposes.
Gaming chairs are useful for those gamers who don’t want to get their body out of alignment from sitting in odd positions for long periods of time while playing their video games. Keep in mind that, if you’re a dedicated gamer who spends a lot of time looking up at the gaming TV, that your neck should be supported, so ensure that you’re not just looking after your spine and how you’re sitting but also how your head is impacted by your playing.
Still unsure of the type of chair you need to make your gaming setup as comfortable as possible? Although the price may, or may not, be an issue, the New York Times has a thorough review of cheap gaming chairs that are ideal for a living room TV gaming setup.
Games
This is where the floor gets a bit hotter and we need to do some tip-toeing around the subject of video games. We’re not in the position to tell gamers which video games are “the best” or “the most fun”, but we can tell you that there are thousands of games to play that are available to the masses.
Are you looking for video games to quickly beat or are you looking for games that see you through a years-long gaming narrative? How Long to Beat is a great website to gauge the time commitment versus the difficulty.
Some more well-known and popular games, though, will always be around for gamers to play, regardless of the time spent playing or how difficult it is to play. These include video games like Minecraft, Grand Theft Auto, The Legend of Zelda, Call of Duty, Pokemon, and, of course, the aforementioned Tetris.
TV Mounts for Gamers
We’d be remiss not to talk about how to achieve maximum comfort while playing your video games through using a mount for your TV for your gaming console. While we’ve mentioned before that having a TV, gaming TV or otherwise, at eye level is imperative, especially when playing video games and having that immersive experience, a TV mount is ideal to include in your setup.
Like the video above, a gaming setup is much more palatable with a TV mount. Additionally, if you’re a gamer who ends up using a lower-seated couch or gaming chair, having a mount helps to assist in achieving the ideal television placement so you can get more invested into the game.
What’s more, if you incorporate a TV mount in your gaming setup, your living room, family room, or office space can be easily transformed into a home theater setup. The location can be turned into a hybrid spot for both gaming and movie and TV watching entertainment.
Regardless of which MantelMount TV mount you use, you will game happy: The Motorized Drop Down and Swivel TV mount, the MM815 is a popular option, but so are the MM700 Premier and MM540 Enhanced Pull Down TV mounts.
If you’re looking for a way to wow others and possibly even yourself with your gaming setup, there’s nothing more to search for when it comes to your gaming TV mount than having the ability to have the television be placed in the perfect position for you, the gamer, than through a remote while you’re getting comfortable for your gaming session.