Electronic sports venue management software

Esports Arena is a SaaS for managing gaming clubs. Currently, about 80 clubs have already subscribed to the service. The software has the following features:

• Flexible tariff settings;
• Accounting for additional services;
• Controllable from anywhere in the world;
• Report generation and statistics;
• A single customer base for all clubs;
• Support for diskless CCBoot systems;
• Discounts for customers through a loyalty system;
• Roles for employees that determine access levels;
• Details on each client, loading, and performance of the club.

Cashier

The web application for managing a computer club in Azure cloud consists of administrator, manager, cashier, and client interfaces.

Admin interface

The administrator can connect new computer clubs and configure existing ones: they can hire managers, limit the number of active PCs, and temporarily deactivate the club.

The new manager of the club receives a password by email or SMS. The system administrator can view the actions of all managers.

Only the administrator has access to the full list of clients of the entire club.

Club clients are split into:

• Unconfirmed clients – those who have only provided a phone number and login on their profile;
• Confirmed clients – those who have filled in the all fields on their profile.

The loyalty system is not available for unconfirmed customers. Confirmed client data can be edited by the administrator.

Manager interface

Adding a cashier to a club is similar to adding a manager.

You can give the cashier authorization privileges on multiple devices at the same time. If necessary, you can verify the device. When authorization attempts are made on an unauthorized device, an error message is issued, and an email is sent to the club manager requesting authorization from the cashier.

By clicking on the link from the email, the manager can reject or approve entry from a new device, or give the cashier access on a one-off basis.

The manager's main screen shows the current availability of the PCs and PlayStations. The arrows can be used to adjust the location of the machines of each of the club's cashiers.

You can permit or prevent the bookings of all of the club's machines.

On the page with the list of machines, you can issue a fine by selecting a customer or by using the search tool. The cashier is not able to do this.

Unlike PCs, which are added to the club when their ID is specified on the client software, PlayStations are added manually by the club manager.

To add a game station, you must specify the name of the console that will be displayed in the list of machines, the IP address of the Web Power Switch in the computer club's internal network, the login and password for authorizing requests, and the port number that the PlayStation responds to.

The club's tariff management can only be accessed by the manager. Tariffs are divided into the following two types:

• Hourly payment. This deducts funds from the client's account every second. The price is indicated as an hourly rate;
• Package. The price of the package tariff depends on when it was purchased, but does not change when the package is active. The price is indicated per package;
  • The limited package is valid from the moment of purchase and ends either when the time limit is reached or when the package time has expired;
  • The floating package is valid from the moment of purchase and ends once the package time has expired.

For tariffs, you need to specify the time period during which they will be valid.

• Calendar. The ranges of calendar dates and the duration of the tariff are specified.
• Weekly. The ranges of days of the week and the validity length of the tariff are specified.

For each date range, hourly ranges within a day are also configured. Prices for tariffs are applied in the following order of priority:

The flexible adjustment of time ranges allows you to create tariffs for any marketing campaign. For example, you can set night fares with different prices on weekends and weekdays, and can also set special prices for holidays.

Only the tariffs valid at the time of authorization are displayed on the PC. The tariff can take into account loyalty programs, and this can be configured by the “Allow loyalty system” option. Loyalty systems provide a percentage discount on the payment of playing time.

Loyalty systems are divided into the following two programs:

• A program with the accumulation criterion. To receive a discount, the required amount of deposits must be accumulated within a certain timeframe;
  • It is checked at the time of replenishment to add the client to the list.
  • It is checked at the time of authorization to determine the possibility of application.
  • It ceases to be valid as soon as the deposit sum is less than what is required under the terms of the program.
• A program with the replenishment criterion. To receive a discount under this program, you need to top up your account one time so that your balance reaches the required amount.
  • It is checked when the account is topped up.
  • It's valid until the next deposit.

In order for the loyalty system to apply, the following conditions must be met:

• The client must be confirmed;
• The PC must be listed;
• The tariff chosen by the customer must be compatible with the loyalty system.

Customers are entered into the loyalty program automatically if the conditions are met. If the conditions for more than one program are met, the program with the biggest discount is selected.

The “Expense categories” section displays a complete list of cash register transactions: top-ups of gaming accounts, bar services, cash collection and so on.

It is possible to set up a template for printing receipts, creating a new user and topping up the balance. When creating a user, a password printout is kept.

These session settings are applied to all of the gaming club's machines:

• The maximum amount of time for which you can book a machine;
• The amount of time it takes to display a warning that the session will soon end;
• The amount of time left until unnecessary processes should be deleted once the session has ended.

The following parameters are set in the report settings:

• When the billing period for counting the money in the cash register begins. The time of the beginning and end of the cash day is determined. If you enter a time less than the current one, the setting is set from the next day;
• The top-up sum of the “Success” account. Deposits higher than the specified amount during the day increase the account;
• The top-up sum of the “Feat” account. Deposits of more than the specified amount per day increase the account.

Here are the five types of reports in the Arena:

• The final report for the day;
• The manager's report;
• Daily revenue report;
• The type of funds report;
• Fine history.

The final report for the day is used by the manager or cashier and contains the following information.

• The balance at the beginning of the day. Equal to the balance at the end of the previous day.
• The number of receipts, consisting of the following components:
  • Bar and other services;
  • Service receipts.
• The amount of expenses. This consists of three components:
  • Administrative expenses;
  • Office expenses;
  • Collection.
• The sum of deposits to customer accounts.
• Remaining funds at the end of the day. This is calculated by calculating the difference between the sum of receipts (plus deposits to the customer's balance) and the sum of expenses.
• Victims. The number of visitors per day.
• Successes. The number of deposits that is greater than the value from the settings of the reports “The amount of replenishment of the account “Success”.
• Feats. The number of deposits that is greater than the value from the settings of the “Amount of replenishment of the account “Feat”.
• Average check. The sum of the deposits to the customer's balance divided by the number of deposits.

The manager's report contains the following aspects:

• The period of the report with the indication of time;
• Revenue (the amount of deposits to the customer's balance over a selected period of time);
• Average check (the sum of deposits sent to the customer's balance divided by the number of deposits);
• The number of visitors.

The daily revenue report contains the following sections:

• The period of the report with an indication of time;
• Daily table with sums from each day;
• Average revenue (the total sum divided by the number of days).

The type of funds report contains the following sections:

• Selection of report type;
• Report start and end dates;
• A table with dates and times, amounts and comments.

The club's penalty history is available in the fine history report.

There is also a help section for the manager and cashier. Their main privileges are outlined here.

Cashier Interface

The following options are available to the cashier:

• Remote control of the computer club's machines;
• User management;
• Cash register accounting;
• A history of the club's sessions;
• Viewing of the daily report.

Actions the cashier can carry out to manage the club's machines:

• Turn on or off PlayStations;
• Turn off or restart PCs;
• Remotely start a user session;
• Book a time slot for a user;
• Block a user's session;
• Send a message to a machine.

To top up a balance, choose a machine with a user, or use the search function.

A one-time login is created automatically. It is not assigned to anyone and is printed on the receipt along with the password. This is convenient for people who do not want to register, and so do not plan to receive discounts or visit the club.

The cashier can add new customers and specify the sum that must be deposited into the account.

When creating a user, a password is sent via SMS or email. It's also printed on a receipt.

The cashier can only edit unconfirmed customers of the club.

When making a purchase at a bar, for the purposes of collection or office expenses, the cashier can keep records of receipts and expenses.

The session history page displays the history of club users' sessions for the entire period.

Client interface

The client logs into the site – they are shown the balance and discount of each club that they have visited at least once. The client can change their password and edit their personal data, even if they are “confirmed”. Before booking a machine, the country, city, club, machine number and fare must be selected. The client can cancel the booking or end the session at the gaming club.

ClubServer

This is used for saving a club's transactions when communication with an external service is not possible. It can also be used for managing Web Power Switch hardware devices. WPS is needed to communicate with PlayStation consoles, which, in contrast, do not have the ability to install a local Arena client.

For security reasons, WPS receives only an internal IP address, and ClubServer executes HTTP commands on it.

The club server is installed on a separate machine in the internal network and does not require many resources – you can install it on the cashier's computer. To install it, just enter the club ID and reboot.

Application features

When connecting to the club server, the lack of communication with the main service means that authorization is prohibited for clients. Authorized clients can continue with sessions until they close, but after 120 minutes all sessions are forcibly terminated. After connection is restored, the transactions that have been collected are transferred from the club server to the main one.

The desktop application

• The installer
• WinService
• LoginApp
• Launcher

Installer

The player's application must be installed on each club machine, and in the case of using a diskless CCBoot download, it only needs to be installed once. You must enter the name of the new Windows user. Enter the username and password of the superuser who has the installation and club ID rights. After installation, you need to restart the computer and the client will start automatically.

In the new user profile, local Windows policies are configured and will disable:

In addition, the registry is closed, and the device manager and swap file are turned on in auto mode. The input is the Latin alphabet by default. The user can only install programs that do not require administrative rights.

WinService

This service is responsible for the interaction of the client application with the backend and the club server. It also monitors the status of the client's account and the status of the LoginApp and Launcher applications. When you try to close LoginApp using any software, the service restarts LoginApp – it is impossible to play for any longer than the account allows. The user does not have access to WinService and therefore cannot stop it. The LoginApp and Launcher applications monitor the WinService platform and launch it in case of an unexpected stop.

LoginApp

This application locks the desktop and does not allow you to switch to the main one. It is created on a separate desktop, and hotkeys are blocked without authorization.

The background images change sequentially on the lock screen, and the machine number (the last digits of the IP address) is displayed there. There is a “Login” button, and when it is pressed, the authorization and tariff selection dashboards appear.

The location of the elements on the screen can be easily changed, and each club can configure their own unique design. After authorization, the LoginApp application closes and switches to the desktop with the Launcher application.

Launcher

This is a dashboard with a selection of categories of games and applications. When switching categories, the desktop shortcuts change. The player's balance and the remaining time are displayed as per the current tariff, the name and price of the tariff, and the current discount.

A warning is displayed to the player 5 minutes before the end of the session. The point at which the player receives the warning can be changed in the club's administration dashboard.

The user can change the password of their account.

Superuser mode

• PC setup.
• A game category editor that allows you to set the desktop background.

• Settings for the location of the elements of the locked shell.

• A list of programs that will be forcibly terminated after the end of the session.

• A list of programs that will be launched after authorization and termination of the session.

Server-client interaction

The cashier can send these requests to WinService:

• Restart the machine;
• Turn off the machine;
• User logout;
• User authorization;
• Send text messages;
• Book a machine;
• Cancel machine reservations;
• Update the list of tariffs (when tariffs change in the administrative section);
• Server settings (the point at which the session termination warning is displayed, etc.);
• Updated balance and discount (when topping up the client's balance).

WinService sends the following requests to the cashier:

• Set up a connection;
• Block the machine;
• Unblock the machine;
• Get the machine's status;
• Get a list of tariffs;
• User authorization;
• User logout;
• Recalculate the balance – if the user's discount has changed at the time of top-up;
• Change the password;
• An active process on the machine.

If the cashier is unavailable, WinService sends the following requests to ClubServer:

• User logout;
• Block the machine;
• Unblock the machine;
• Recalculate the balance.

Other requests are not forwarded to the ClubServer. After connection is restored, ClubServer sends forwarded requests from WinService to the cashier. ClubServer is also used to control set-top boxes. This is because the cashier does not have a direct connection with them, since Power Switch lacks an external IP.

The cashier sends the following requests through ClubServer via API to Power Switch:

• Turn on the game station;
• Turn off the game station;
• Update the remaining time on the game station;
• Update the game station parameters. For example, login and password.

Data Import

Several clubs that have previously connected to the Arena were working on outdated software. A tool for importing the client database from the Firebird database has since been developed.