Marcus Delaney
Arena Manager
Ran esports bars across East London for a decade. Keeps every bracket on time.
Shoreditch · Est. 1954 vibes
Crystal Wild Empire
Neon nights, chrome dreams.
A retro diner reborn as a high-refresh gaming lounge and esports arena on Leonard Street. Grab a booth, load your build, and play like it's Friday night — every night.
240Hz battlestations Open till 2am
0Battlestations & booths
0HzDisplay refresh rate
0+Tournaments hosted
0.4Average member rating
How the night runs
From front door to final boss
Five simple steps from walking off Leonard Street to lifting the trophy. No membership required — walk-ins welcome until the booths fill up.
Grab a battlestation
RTX 4080 rigs on 240Hz panels with mechanical decks and low-latency mice. Peripherals sanitised between every session.
from £9 / hour · pay at the counter
Drop into a console booth
Private diner-style booths with PS5 and Series X on 120Hz OLEDs. Perfect for four-player couch nights and FIFA grudge matches.
£28 / hour per booth · seats 4
Step into the VR bay
Room-scale VR on Quest 3 and PCVR with a padded play zone and a spotter on hand. Great for first-timers and rhythm-game regulars.
£15 / 30 minutes · booking advised
Enter a tournament
Weekly Valorant, Rocket League and Tekken brackets run on the main stage with casters, a leaderboard and a cash prize pot.
£10 entry · Thursdays & Saturdays 7pm
Go live from the studio
A soundproofed streaming studio with key lighting, a broadcast mixer and a capture setup, plus an on-site producer to run the show.
£35 / hour · producer included
The crew behind the counter
Your hosts for the evening
A small, obsessive team of tournament organisers, technicians and short-order legends keeping the frames high and the milkshakes cold.
Priya Nandakumar
Head Technician
Builds and tunes every rig on site. Can shave 40ms off your input lag before you blink.
Theo Brandt
Tournament Caster
The voice of the main stage. Play-by-play for Valorant and Rocket League finals.
Sofia Okonkwo
VR & Events Lead
Designs the VR bay experiences and books out private parties and birthdays.
Jamie Whitlock
Diner & Bar
Runs the counter. Loaded fries, thick shakes and bottomless refills mid-match.
Word from the booths
What our regulars say
“Booked the studio for our launch stream and the producer made us look properly professional. Peak concurrents doubled versus our home setup.”
Before you drop in
Questions, answered
Walk-ins are welcome and we hold a block of battlestations for them every day. That said, weekends and tournament nights fill fast, so we recommend booking booths, the VR bay and the studio in advance through the contact form or by phone.
We open Monday to Thursday from 11am to midnight, Friday and Saturday from 11am to 2am, and Sunday from noon to 11pm. The kitchen serves food until one hour before close.
PC battlestations start at £9 per hour with discounted five-hour passes at £38. Console booths are £28 per hour for up to four players, and the VR bay is £15 for a 30-minute session. Students get 20% off before 5pm on weekdays with valid ID.
Yes. We regularly run birthdays, stag and hen gaming nights, and company socials for teams around Silicon Roundabout. We can reserve the arena, cater from the diner and set up a custom tournament — just tell us your date and headcount.
PCs run everything on Steam, Epic and Riot titles with popular esports games pre-installed. Booths carry PS5 and Xbox Series X libraries, and the VR bay has Quest 3 and PCVR headsets. If there is a title you want loaded, message us and we will sort it before you arrive.
Our diner does loaded fries, burgers, milkshakes and bottomless soft drinks you can order from your station. We offer vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options — flag any allergies when you order and the kitchen will take care of you.
Roll up to the counter
Book your night at the Empire
Reserve a battlestation, a booth, the VR bay or the studio — or just ask us anything. We reply within one working day.
Phone
Address
54 Leonard Street, Shoreditch, London EC2A 4LT
Hours
Mon–Thu 11am–12am · Fri–Sat 11am–2am · Sun 12pm–11pm