Summary:
- Bishan Esports Hub, Singapore’s first senior-focused esports hub, is now open at Bishan Community Club, offering free access to PC gaming and exergaming facilities that challenge stereotypes about ageing and technology.
- The hub aims to empower seniors, bridge the digital divide, and encourage intergenerational bonding, with structured esports and exergaming programmes launching in March and subsidies available.
- Early interest has been strong, with over 100 seniors signing up, and participants highlighting benefits such as improved reflexes, mental stimulation, social connection, and enjoyment.
Move aside, mahjong and line dancing – Singapore’s silvers are levelling up with free gaming sessions at the country’s first esports hub designed for seniors.
The newly opened 55sqm Bishan Esports Hub is located on the third floor of the Bishan Community Club. At first glance, it looks almost exactly like a throwback to the LAN cafes popular in the nineties and early noughties (which isn’t a bad thing).
The facility comes equipped with 10 gaming desktop set-ups, complete with headphones and comfy adjustable chairs. There are also five Nintendo Switch consoles hooked up to TV screens meant for exergaming – activities that are a mix between exercise and gaming.
Games at the hub’s respective sections include Counter-Strike – a team-based first-person shooter which relies on quick reflexes and tactical thinking – and Ring Fit Adventure, an action roleplaying game which aims to get you moving through gamified exercise.
The initiative was spearheaded by the Bishan Community Club Management Committee with support from the non-profit Lien Foundation, the Singapore Cybersports and the Online Gaming Association (SCOGA), hardware company Acer, and gaming peripherals company Razer.
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Bishan Esports Hub open for public use
The Bishan Esports Hub, launched on 11 January 2026, will be kept open to the public – young and old – on weekdays, 8:30am to 5:30pm. The goal? Empower seniors to pursue hobbies stereotypically associated with younger people, while fostering intergenerational bonding through gaming.
Apart from allowing drop-in sessions, the hub will also play host to e-gaming and exergaming programmes conducted by Esports Academy, a homegrown social enterprise. The programmes will begin in March, with a cost of $120 per person for a dozen two-hour sessions. Subsidies are available for people with lower incomes.
According to Adviser to Bishan-Toa Payoh Grassroots Organisation, Elysa Chen, over 100 seniors have shown interest in the hub’s esports programmes since its soft launch late last year.
Aster Lim, a 59-year-old homemaker who participated in the Bishan Esport Hub’s soft launch, likens the excitement she feels from e-gaming to a game of pickleball, which she also enjoys.
"And when you get the hang of it, you can really feel your reflexes and movements becoming faster and faster. To be honest, it’s quite addictive!"
Bishan Esports Hub
Location: Bishan Community Club, 51 Bishan St. 13, #03-04, Singapore 579799
Opening Hours: Mon – Fri, 8:30am – 5:30pm
Website: https://www.facebook.com/BishanCommunityClub
