It’s not uncommon to find Matthew Davis sitting among a throng of 50 something students at Riverside with a board game among them or decks of cards or gaming consoles. As president of the University of Alabama gaming club, ABXY, Davis plays it all: “Dungeons and Dragons,” “Magic the Gathering,” and even “Street Fighter.”

“We bring out all of the consoles. We bring out all the board games. We have a whole reserved area for it over in Riverside,” Davis said.

The games played at ABXY meetings range from card games, tabletop to even “Super Smash Bros.”

“’Magic’ is always big. We’ve recently got a lot of people playing ‘Battlestar Galactica: The Board Game,'” Davis said. 

The group also welcomes attendees to bring their own games. Davis said people would always be open to play. He said ABXY has adopted a free-form format, allowing people to hang out rather than stress over dues and meetings.

Davis is a huge fan of “Magic the Gathering,” “Halo” and “Ascension,” and wants to share his love of games with others through event nights. Tuesdays are designated as Fight Nights, where players can duke it out in “Super Smash Bros.,” “Street Fighter” and “League of Legends Night.

While ABXY is more student-focused, local arcade the Hive Bang Gaming is open for all of Tuscaloosa. Charging $4.50 by the hour, the Hive seeks to bring the citizens of Tuscaloosa a place to play the week’s biggest titles. 

Owned by University alumnus John Hamilton, the Hive features nearly 40 computers, 10 Playstation 4 systems, 7 Playstation 3 systems and several other consoles set up to play. Like ABXY, the Hive also features a Fight Night event, though it is less frequent.

 “The biggest game by far is ‘League of Legends,'” Hamilton said. “Sports games are always popular. The new game on the block is ‘Rocket League.’” 

The arcade has also considered adding arcade machines, but Hamilton has struggled with figuring out how to implement the idea. Along with gaming, the Hive also offers its customers a custom computer-building service where customers can bring in their parts for assembly for a fee.

Outside of the Hive and ABXY is Crimson Castle, Tuscaloosa’s premier place for tabletop and board games. Crimson Castle has existed since 2005, with current manager Dustin Gilliland and others taking over the business in 2009. The business offers figures, rulebooks, cards and games of all sorts. 

“We offer a variety of board games, generally the kind you can’t find in Walmart or Kmart or something like that. You know, something that’s a little bit more advanced than your ‘Chutes and Ladders’ or ‘Monopoly,’” Gilliland said. 

Throughout the week, Crimson Castle sees 20 or more people a day either playing or just finding a sense of community with other players. 

Nearly every night is a game night at Crimson Castle, with Wednesdays being “Magic the Gathering” nights, Thursdays being “Yu-Gi-Oh” nights, and other games finding their ways onto the tables with no real set schedule. 

For Davis, playing games is more than just a hobby.

 “[The club’s] more stress relief, and for lack of a better term, trying to build a home for people in college,” Davis said.