Ready, Set, Play: IKEA and XBOX Collab on a Nine-Piece Collection for Gamers

It’s a collaboration no one saw coming, but on second thought, makes perfect sense. Because what does a furniture brand know about gaming and what does a gaming company know about design? Quite a lot, it turns out.

With an estimated three billion gamers in the world today, gaming has changed how people spend their time and furnish their homes.

Global giants IKEA and XBOX have come together to design YXSTABY, a nine-piece collection for gamers, one designer from each company drawing from their expertise in comfort and design, and what gamers need. In Filipino households, this means a gaming chair can move from a shared bedroom to the dining room when everyone is asleep, a TV stand can move to the living room for a multi-player gameplay, and stop the family from complaining about gaming accessories being all over the house.

One might even say it’s a small step toward world peace as it settles the argument in countless homes about how gaming can ruin the aesthetics of a house.  

“XBOX knows what players need from their gaming setup, and we know how to solve the small problems that come with adapting that to everyday life at home. Together, we set out to make furniture people really want in their home, not furniture they accept because it is what you need to game,” says Philip Dilé, Product Design Developer at IKEA of Sweden.

XBOX Devices Head of Design Carl Ledbetter says, “We share a common design ethos: we want to help people solve the challenges they face in their everyday lives.”

In a true coming together of two worlds, IKEA launched the YXSTABY collection in its Pasay showroom on November 4 through interactive room settings that show what a gaming setup can be. Attended by passionate design lovers, gaming enthusiasts and coplayers, the launch event referenced IKEA’s iconic blue and yellow carryall bag FRAKTA with a cosplay runway followed by immersive station tours.

IKEA Philippines Sales Leader May Castillo says, “For Filipino gamers, the collaboration is even sweeter with IKEA’s affordable pricing and insights into how people really live, especially since the Philippines ranks first globally among internet users who play video games on any device, and play an average of 11 hours per week, the highest weekly gaming time globally.”

IKEA Philippines Selling Manager Sarah Cox adds, “The YXSTABY collection is inspired from XBOX gaming controllers, designed around the way gamers actually play, and splashed with IKEA’s sense of fun.”

There’s a gaming lounge chair that can accommodate a player’s forward-leaning position for early gameplay and reclining position during longer play. A rolling side table keeps gaming accessories at hand, while a flexible storage solution for cables is designed with felt inserts to keep things protected and also unfolds into a laptop stand.

IKEA YXSTABY’s iconic D-pad cushion and gaming chair (below) providing comfort for every gaming session.

For families with a limited space, gaming no longer has to be in one room that serves multiple functions throughout the day—for homework, meal preps, eating or work meetings. They can easily cart the TV stand on castors for gamers to move their setup from one room to another.

XBOX’s influence is especially apparent in the playful details: the Gaming D-pad cushion inspired by the “+”-shaped directional button on the controller; a stainless steel platter inspired by the D-pad; the tilting thumbstick stool that draws from the controller’s analog stick; and a mirrored display box for prized controllers and gaming collectibles.

The coming together of IKEA and XBOX, each a leader in its own field, just might be the best thing since the save button.

Visit the IKEA showroom at Mall of Asia, Pasay, and shop online at www.ikea.com.ph.