Swedish furniture giant Ikea is launching its first gaming collection at Milan Design Week 2024. Spearheaded by Philip Dilé, product design developer at Ikea, the Brännboll collection hopes to capture the burgeoning popularity of casual gaming; offering 20 new pieces of furniture tailored to this new audience.
'We were aiming for a collection that reflects casual gaming today,' says Dilé. 'Making pieces that perform well for gaming and blend stylishly or nicely into the home; making products that work effortlessly, that add to the gaming experience, whilst contributing to a nice home for gamers and those they live with.'
Brännboll: Ikea's first gaming furniture collection
The ‘gaming station’ cabinet from the Brännboll collection
Maintaining the brand’s reputation for iconic, functional, and affordable furnishings, Brännboll marks a broadening of Ikea’s catalogue to match the rise of gaming amongst younger people, and those sharing their living spaces with others. Many of the pieces on show have been tailored to allow for the swift re-shaping of a home; both by using light materials, and often including a transforming structure, to suit a variety of potential uses.
Whether it’s the discreet and compact ‘gaming station’ cabinet, or the unfolding ‘gaming lounge chair’, Brännboll’s additions have been designed to allow gamers to quickly transition a space from a domestic orientation into a gamer’s paradise. The collection also includes a shelving unit and side tables on castors, allowing for gaming materials to be effortlessly shifted around the room, and maintaining the multi-functionality of their homes.
First prototype of the ‘gaming easy chair’
One standout amongst the new items is undoubtedly the new ‘gaming easy chair’, developed by designer David Wahl to accommodate the range of playing habits often adopted by casual gamers during lengthy sessions online. Suspended within its frame by four finely tuned belts, the chair’s seat has been designed to adapt and shift with the movements of the gamer, capturing how people shift in their chair whilst engrossed in their videogame of choice.
Allowing for lateral movement in four directions, alongside robust support for gamers to lean back and get comfortable for longer stints playing, the piece hopes to embellish an immersive gaming experience. As a former gamer himself, Wahl brought his unique insight to the product’s design process: 'You notice that when less experienced gamers get into the game, they tend to move around a lot in their chairs, so I wanted to create something that would enhance this movement… embracing the fun of gaming.'
First prototype of the ‘gaming easy chair’
Whilst it's a jubilant pastime, conveying a sense of maturity for a gaming audience was a major focus for the Ikea team, and greatly influenced both the athleisure-inspired design of the Brännboll pieces and their atypical colouring. Whilst many gaming furniture brands use a darker, colder aesthetic, the team at Ikea embraced a vibrant palette; hoping to capture the less serious, and more playful tastes of a grown audience. Working seamlessly within Ikea’s established brand, and deploying a playful attitude to form, Brännboll aims to capture the imagination of gamers with a diverse set of interests and lifestyles, whilst bridging the gap between a popular hobby and the wider home.
The Brännboll collection will be released in September 2024
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