CrashNPlay, Randolph

Playing videogames can be an isolating pastime, with most conversations transpiring via headset. But not so when enthusiasts game with CrashNPlay. The service’s technicians deliver and set up video-game lounges in gamers’ homes, facilitating overnight or hourly parties that unite gamers under one roof. Clustered around the lounge’s Xboxes and flat-screen TVs, gamers build even stronger relationships thanks to system-link technology, which allows avatars to meet without players having to rubber-band screens together. To add extra flair to their party, hosts can hire an associate to explain individual games’ nuances or upgrade with a connection that hooks gaming systems up to homes’ wireless networks.