Playing a full night of laser tag followed by sushi at my favorite restaurant in Albany somehow made me feel like something that has been missing from my life for the past few months has finally been restored. These are the two activities that I have missed the most since March.
I have been able to play a few sporadic
games of laser tag as a handful of entertainment venues have gradually started
re-opening in NY, however these games have been way too few and far between.
That’s why when I heard that Apex Entertainment in Albany had re-opened I made
a beeline for it this weekend, vowing to play every game I could for the
duration of the night. I enjoyed playing with a variety of players and groups
and it was just so great to get out to play again!
Upon arrival I saw a familiar
face (well half a familiar face as of course everyone was behind a mask) and
Josh and I compared notes about the changes to the laser tag scene in the area.
However, the chat got cut short when I realized there was a group by the arena
entrance ready to start a game and I was definitely going to join them!
That first game was small, but
seriously awesome. These guys played hard and gave me exactly the kind of
competition I was looking for. I left that game saying this was already the
best night I’d had in six months and it had only just started.
Laser tag is by it’s nature
both a social and socially distanced game. After all, if this arena is (I’m
guessing) in the vicinity of 4000 square feet and currently running a maximum
of 10 players you can do the simple math to see that there is PLENTY of space
for people to spread out and play without getting too close to each other. The
staff were all very attentive to disinfecting the packs after every game and
making sure everyone only touched one pack. Personally, I wore the same pack
for every game (ironically named Warlord...Photon throwback) so even after
seven games I only touched one pack the entire time I was there. This was
actually due to my own deliberate attention to keeping an eye out for it in the
vesting room, but regardless I felt very comfortable that things were kept
appropriately sanitized and distanced.
So, that first game was a great
start to the night! For the second game I had to switch gears. This group
included some enthusiastic parents with a group of kids and when I play with
young ones I implement my four foot rule (aka no deliberately tagging anyone
under four feet). This game I played lightly and just for accuracy instead of
score. When manager Mike saw the results he assumed I was the top score, but in
actuality it was one of the parents who didn’t mind tagging hard on their own
kids. Meanwhile I looked at my accuracy as the accomplishment that game while I
watched as the kids all left the arena as happy campers.
The third game was against a
couple of guys who I thought would play harder than they did, but the fourth
was definitely the best game of the night with a really solid group of ten
players (the current maximum in this arena) including seven college aged guys
who showed up as a group. I wish they had stuck around longer. The fifth game
was another family group, so four foot rule back in effect, but perfect
accuracy still gives me a sense of game satisfaction even while deliberately
letting the young ones get their tags on me. The sixth game was another big
group and the seventh game was a bit smaller, but a still made for a nice, full
night.
I haven’t played a full night
of tag since March and I really missed it. I’m certainly glad that Apex has
their Albany location open now. It was a great time! Throughout the entire night
I was very aware that, as a result of the pandemic taking its toll on other
small laser tag businesses, I might have to get used to having a new home laser
tag site. I never expected that it might end up being in an FEC. For a laser
tag community to develop here I think there is one suggestion I might make. Right now this location is only offering “per game” pricing which
I believe can be prohibitive for getting customers to stick around for multiple
games. Price incentives to keep them playing can often help to turn an
occasional casual player into a returning customer who shows up every week.
Even though I was ok with purchasing seven individual games in a row for one
night, I know that I am the exception and not the rule. I will also not able to
keep up my normal playing frequency at that rate. I noticed that I was the only
person there who played more than one game of tag the entire evening, even
though everyone who played had a good time and I’m certain that if there were pricing
incentives others would have played more as well. I would strongly encourage
the Apex management to consider designating an “all you can play” night with a
fixed price for that time window, even if it’s just for a few select hours once
a week to start developing a laser tag community here. With the other arena in
town having just recently closed down there is definitely a gap to fill. I have
played at many arenas where players like to come out on these nights when they
know that they can plan on seeing other familiar faces and make a full night of
it...and while they are there most will also partake of the bar and restaurant
options as well. These nights foster repeat business from people like me. It’s
also a way to place the more competitive players in a setting to develop skills
with other competitive players versus bringing their A game into a round with
casual customers. I’d love to see this develop because I could definitely see
myself becoming a regular player here and I look forward to laser tag thriving
again as we get past this pandemic. Now is the ideal time to start building a
base of clientele that can be both competitive and (dare I say it) truly social.
I’m so glad I had the chance to
enjoy a night of tag again out at Apex in Albany. I probably would have eaten
there as well, except I had decided to enjoy one more thing I had missed since
March. So I used those games to work up an appetite for the BEST sushi in the
capital region at Sushi X in Latham.
A full night of laser tag and
sushi? This was an amazing way to start the weekend!
Comments
or Questions?
Contact: Tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com
Websites: www.tiviachickloveslasertag.com and www.photonforever.com
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