24 Jun Week in the Life: How Roby Ho Maximizes His Triangle of Strategy through Esports
- Roby Ho shares how esports helped him develop the discipline, strategic thinking and teamwork skills that shape his daily life.
- As a student leader and event organizer, Ho applies lessons from gaming to create opportunities and build community on campus
- Through his personal “triangle of strategy,” Ho balances academics, leadership and personal growth while pursuing his goals.
Associated Students Inc.’s Esports Lounge is a thriving hub of gaming, community and events that bring Cal State Fullerton students together.
ASI esports student assistant Roby Ho works passionately and meticulously behind the scenes to bring his ideas to life.
Finding Your Calling While Staying True to Passion
An ASI student assistant since fall 2023, Ho has been a driving force behind ASI’s esports team, the “Titan Cup” series and has helped champion the gaming community right in the Titan Student Union. Ho grew up in a family of entrepreneurs, so he knew business was always his calling. A business management student who grew up learning the ins and outs of his family’s jewelry business, Ho’s true passion lies in video games.
“I grew up playing video games, and I love the creativity that it enables me,” said Ho. “The skills, mastery and traits that it has taught me are crucial to who I am today and are utilized every day in everything I do. From class, extracurricular to even work, there are many skills I learned from video games.”
Ho’s earliest gaming memory is playing the coordinate-based shooting game “Gunny,” giving him the freedom to create his own identity in a world without expectations.
Later, “Counter-Strike” introduced him to competitive gaming, teaching him the value of discipline, skill development and learning from top players.
With “Minecraft,” Ho turned the ideas in his imagination into digital creations.
Ho has found himself drawn to the business side of esports or game development marketing.
Turning Passion Into Opportunity
Ho became a frequent visitor to the Esports Lounge during his first year at CSUF and befriended many ASI staff.
“I’m big into gaming and the Esports Lounge is such a cool space,” said Ho. “It’s nice to spend a lot of time there. A few months into the semester they reached out to me and asked if I was looking for a job.”
Originally hired as a front desk attendant for the TSU Games Center, formerly called Titan Bowl & Billiards, Ho soon became the first esports student assistant at ASI. Alongside TBB & Esports Coordinator Aaron Chai, Ho helped create the ASI esports program.
The esports program transformed the lounge into a community where students could game, relax and delve into fantasy worlds.
“He rose to the occasion, wanting to help me organize esports tournaments due to his passion for gaming,” said Chai.
From inception to execution, Ho regularly uses organization skills, customer service and creativity to execute events successfully.
A Week in the Life: Planning “Titan XP: Inside the Game”
This past spring semester, Ho and his team hosted “Titan XP: Inside the Game,” an event bridging professional development and gaming. The event brought professionals from Blizzard Entertainment, creator of the popular first-person shooter game “Overwatch,” to share insights on careers in the video game industry. Ho moderated the event and handled all the promotion for the panel.
Coordinating and communicating with campus partners and professionals from the beginning, Ho worked to bring the event to life.
Here’s what a week in Ho’s life looked like planning “Titan XP: Inside the Game.”
Monday: As the event approaches, Ho shifts into coordination mode. He finalizes student-submitted questions, meets with event staff and campus outreach team members, and connects with Blizzard panelists to confirm logistics to keep everyone aligned before the panel begins.
Tuesday: Ho works alongside building managers and event staff to coordinate logistics, finalize the panel setup, and ensure the stage, lighting and audience experience aligns with the event’s vision.
Wednesday: As the event’s emcee, Ho spends time practicing introductions and transitions to ensure a polished presentation while keeping the audience engaged throughout the panel.
Thursday: Promoting the event required more than social media posts. Ho follows up with student organizations, clubs and faculty members to spread awareness and connect students with the opportunity.
Event Day: The day of the panel, Ho arrives early to practice the questions he will ask the panelists. As moderator, he speaks directly to the guests in front of an audience of 75 students and staff.
Pushing Past Struggles to Build Confidence
ASI Esports has flourished into a thriving department that has hosted nearly 30 events, bringing in over 1,000 people in the past three years.
The Titan XP esports discussion series, “Inside the Game,” received a total of 128 RSVPs with 60 percent of those RSVP’s a product of personal outreach. The event is paving the way for more professional development events that help students make informed decisions about careers in gaming.
The Esports Lounge has also hosted events like “Women in Gaming,” “Pass the Controller,” “Caps & Crafts,” and even a meet and greet with Daniel Marin, voice actor of Namor from Marvel Rivals.
“The best part of working with Roby is seeing him always taking the opportunity to grow,” Chai said. “We recently hosted our first speaker panel event, and he immediately volunteered to moderate. You’d think he’s done this multiple times, but I got to see him rehearsing and practice his timing.” The job isn’t always easy for Ho.
“I stood up on the stage, I’m holding this piece of paper with the questions I’ve read time and time again, and I just couldn’t get the words out,” said Ho.
Despite his nerves, Ho settled in once guests arrived. He credits his team for encouraging him to step outside his comfort zone and take on projects like the Fall 2024 Valorant tournament, one of his proudest accomplishments.
“It is one of the first few tournaments that I was completely hands-on with and helped produce,” Ho said. “That environment is one of the highlights of not only my career at ASI, but of my life so far. Being able to create that environment, being able to facilitate it and bring these people together to have fun and game together is incredibly rewarding.”
Outside of ASI, Ho likes to participate in intramural sports like volleyball and football, and is a part of the CSUF Video Game Development Club.
Maximizing Skills and Time in Life
To balance his responsibilities on and off campus, Ho keeps clear boundaries between the different roles he fills.
“It’s difficult when I have so many identities here on campus. When I am here, I am an employee, and any other time in between that I’m here for friends, clubs or for school,” said Ho.
Ho plans to pursue a master’s degree in business administration after graduation, hoping to better understand how to apply his skills and find the right career path for him.
“I just want to maximize my triangle of mastery. I want to maximize my skill, my talent and my passion for whatever I do,” said Ho.
Gaming is not just a hobby for Ho; it’s a passion.
“If there’s anything anybody could get from this and from reading about me, it’s that I hope the next time they play games, they just take a moment and enjoy the game. Enjoy the moments they spend with the people around them and try not to get caught up in the actual act of winning itself. Enjoy the art of gaming itself,” said Ho.