Why Camp Nerd Street is the best video game and esports summer camp

The New Year is almost here, and with it registration for Camp Nerd Street 2026 is just around the corner!

Camp Nerd Street is a comprehensive video game and esports summer camp designed for kids aged 8 to 13 who are interested in gaming to meet and engage with their peers in a fun and safe atmosphere. The weeklong summer camp sessions take place at Localhost, Nerd Street's high-tech gaming venues, and other locations with partners like Maryville University. The 2026 season of Camp Nerd Street kicks off in June with multiple camp sessions set to take place at Localhost Philadelphia, Localhost Denver, Localhost Rowan in Glassboro, New Jersey, and in St. Louis on the campus of Maryville University.

Photo credit: Nerd Street

Camp Nerd Street offers a curated, social curriculum led by professional staff with access to all age-appropriate video games like Minecraft, Roblox and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate on professional-grade gaming PCs and consoles. The camp balances on-screen gameplay with off-screen activities such as video game trivia, relay race-style physical activities, friendly staff-led tournaments, in-game challenges and more! Activities focus on skills such as team building, communication, leadership and critical thinking.

Create Your Own Game is a great example of one of these group activities. Campers are split into groups and given multiple prompts related to creating their own game. They’re challenged to think creatively and come up with a title, characters, storyline, developer and other details. The kids are also asked to create the cover of their game by using colored pencils and markers and using the information they provided about their game.

Through a positive and supportive environment, Camp Nerd Street staff help young gamers build healthy gaming habits while developing their skills to inspire them to become the next generation of gamers.

Photo credit: Nerd Street

“Being in a safe, supportive, and healthy environment where there’s competition but not nastiness has been such an exciting treat for my kids and definitely something we’ll keep budgeting for as many years as we can!” said Brittany Bronson, the parent of a camper.

Each year, Camp Nerd Street strives to bring new and engaging programming, and in 2025, Nerd Street partnered with CoderOgres to introduce Roblox STEM programming to campers in Philadelphia and at Rowan. The kids created their own games in Roblox Studio while learning coding. Camp Nerd Street saw tremendous growth in 2025, with the following milestones hit:

• 20% year-over-year growth in sign-ups from 2024
• 20% of campers attended more than 1 session
• 100 sign-ups were reached 2 months faster than any previous year
• 10 out of 16 camp sessions sold out
• All 6 camp sessions at Maryville University sold out in less than 2 months

Photo credit: Philadelphia Union

In addition to these summer camp sessions, Nerd Street also partners with other organizations to create fun and engaging esports and video game summer camp experiences tailored to meet the needs and goals of partner organizations. One of these partner camps is with Major League Soccer’s Philadelphia Union. Union Esports Camps powered by Nerd Street take place at the Union’s Subaru Park and offer campers a chance to receive soccer coaching by the Union and play video games such as FIFA / EA Sports FC and Rocket League. Plus, the camp includes meet-and-greet opportunities with Union coaches, players and staff.

Nerd Street also partners with local parks & recreation departments to provide affordable and accessible video game experiences for kids around the country. In 2025, that included partnering with Philadelphia Parks & Recreation and Denver Parks & Recreation leading to over 1,000 kids visiting Localhost to play video games with their peers. Many of these kids come from underserved communities and wouldn’t otherwise have access to the high-tech gaming PCs, consoles and peripherals that Localhost offers. Nerd Street is set to kick off 2026 with a partnership with the Los Angeles Recreation & Parks Department to provide a three-day esports camp to serve kids in Los Angeles who are on holiday break.

Photo credit: Nerd Street

Nerd Street’s partner camp with Los Angeles Recreation & Parks is just the start of Nerd Street’s 2026 camps programming. Camp Nerd Street registration opens up in January, and then all the summer camp fun begins in June. Keep checking Nerd Street’s website and socials for details and updates. If you’re looking for an esports and video game summer camp for your kids, look no further than Nerd Street!

Lead photo credit: Nerd Street