Tiviachick Loves Laser Tag

Friday, August 23, 2024

Tagging with my Teammates…with a Tribute to Sandra Bullock

I was excited to reunite with Kassidy and Chris (Woz and Cookie) and tag together again. It has been about a month and a half since we played together at Armageddon and we had planned to meet up at Grand Island Fun Center as I was passing through the area on my way back home from my weekend adventures. Tagging with friends was the best part of this experience.

We had expected to play using the iCOMBAT Barracuda based on photos and Kassidy’s last visit, but as we walked into the outdoor arena we passed a car with a familiar utility box in the back and I told Kassidy it looked like we’d be playing Battle Company instead. Turns out the car is the red base.

They have indeed changed systems and are currently running Battle Company, so we shifted gears and got ready to tag with the gear we had played most recently. However, at this site they are not using head sensors, which changes the way you tag considerably when the only sensors to hit are the ones on the tagger. The only benefit to that was that it didn’t mess up our hair for pic…see, there’s always a silver lining!

This outdoor arena was small, but had multiple “buildings” to tag in and around.

We had a great time playing together, but it is unfortunate this center opted to only run team games. We asked for free-for-all and were told they could not do that. Of course we all know that this is a choice, not a limitation of the system, but what it meant to a three person game was that there was no way we could really play an even game. Maybe we should have enlisted this guy to balance the teams, lol.

My favorite part of the game was playing with the tagger that had been assigned the codename “Sandra Bullock”. They were not using CallSign, so I didn’t get to play as Tiviachick, but in lieu of that, playing as “Sandra Bullock” was kind of fun! :)

This was a nice way to spend some time with friends.

And following it up with some sushi was the perfect end to this weekend tag trip!

Comments or Questions?

Wednesday, August 21, 2024

A Tactical Adventure in Erie

I had just enough time to add an unexpected stop to my night as I checked out the outdoor arena at Adventures Erie in Erie, PA. I was joined by the owner, Erick, who set me up with my Battle Company BR Pro and head sensor before we ventured out to the field for a really fun 1v1 game.

Adventures Erie has a nice sized field with obstacles including barrels, fencing, plastic barriers and stacked cubes.

The field seems well balanced and provided enough good cover to make the game a bit strategic, even considering there were only two of us playing.

This was a very good game! I enjoyed that Erick gave me some good competition and we thoroughly utilized the space. Playing just before dusk was the perfect timing for an outdoor experience. When we were done we checked out the monitor and discovered how tight this game was. I love when scores are close because it keeps things interesting!

And speaking of keeping things interesting…

Adventures Erie also offers mini-golf and axe throwing activities, all with interesting characters in and around the attractions.

So Erie, PA really was a bit…eerie!

I had a great time visiting and if I were local to this site I would be all about participating in their league challenges. However, next time I pass through this corner or Pennsylvania I would definitely plan to stop in again!

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Timing is Everything

I think it has probably been about a year since I last played Nexus. Walking into PlayPort in Erie, PA I was ready to enjoy it again and when they pegged me as a “professional” and started (jokingly) making bets on whether staff member Rob could beat me I felt like I was going to really have some fun with it here.

Side note: I always feel the need to hammer this point…nobody is a “professional” laser tag player if they aren’t getting paid for it (which I certainly am not). I dislike when players use that term when they really mean “competitive” or “hyper-enthusiast”, however I did take it as a compliment and went in ready to live up to it. Game on Rob!

I walked the arena and noticed two base housings right away, but vests configured for three teams.

When I asked the game master Steven if there were three bases in there he said no. In actuality there are, but one he called a target is just positioned differently without a structure around it. This became a central playing location during the game, so it bears noting.

This is a smaller arena with a narrow floorplan that plays lengthwise, so after I took both bases, most of the rest of our game was played between the red and green bases on the far side of the field.

Rob and I did a 1v1 and he brought some excellent skill to the game with player tags.

However, I knew that I could take this because I immediately figured out his Achilles heel…distraction.

Timing is everything in Zone and with only two of us in the game it could have gone differently if not for those bases that I mentioned. We were fairly close intrading player tags, but on the occasions that he tagged me out and then tried to take the base a fatal flaw became clear. He would tag the base once, sometimes twice and then see me hovering around and pointing my phaser at him while I was still down. The timing is such that once a player is down you have exactly enough time to get three tags on the base and deactivate it before your opponent is back up…unless you lose your focus and turn attention to the player instead while they are acting like a dancing monkey…or maybe an angry gorilla if you prefer an analogy that fits the theming on the walls. :)

In any case, my antics more than my game may have been what prevented him from taking his second base, but I commend him for bringing me a good challenge. This game was a lot of fun and I had a great time at PlayPort!

As I was leaving I looked up at the gorgeous early evening sky and prepared for my next adventure as the night was still young!

Comments or Questions?

https://youtu.be/jyn5tJ8jqmU

Displaying History During Laser Storm Nationals

One of my goals for the Laser Tag Museum Collection is to share it and make it viewable and accessible to as many people as possible. While most of this is taking place online via the addition of new virtual curated video exhibits, when I realized Laser Storm Nationals were happening in Pennsylvania it occurred to me that this was an opportunity to bring a few artifacts of laser tag history directly to the players in the laser tag community. So I loaded up my car with bins containing vintage packs, apparel, memorabilia and more from the history of Laser Storm to share with some of the most dedicated players competing on that system for the national tournament.

I was so heartened by the outpouring of memories, nostalgia and appreciation for the history! This was my first time delivering a mobile exhibit of this nature and you can see it for yourself here.

Big thanks to Logan Lockhart who also brought some history to the party as he shared this really cool original concept art (gifted to him by Bob Cooney) that was commissioned to illustrate some of the sci-fi theming Laser Storm incorporated into their system and arenas.

I also want to thank Kevin Caparosa, co-owner with his brother Joe of Family Bowlaway Fun Center in Butler, PA, for generously donating a white button-up Laser Storm shirt to add to the Laser Tag Museum Collection. Big thanks!

Kevin shared with me some of the history of this facility going back to 1995 and you will be able to hear his firsthand account on an upcoming episode of the Laser Unfocused Tag Talk podcast, so stay tuned for the story. He also gave me a tour of his business that includes so much ingenuity! So often we hear about bowling alleys taking out a few lanes in order to make space for an additional attraction (usually laser tag), however we never think about what was done with the hardware that was removed. Well, with a “put it all to good use” mentality, at Family Bowlaway Center that lane space became a banquet/event center with the most creative incorporation of the bowling alley parts into stunning architecture and new elements to enhance the business. For example, pieces of the lanes have been used to create the bar counter and tabletops, accent tables and even a really cool chandelier!

They even won a Bowlers Journal Architecture and Design award for this creativity.

And (speaking of awards) while I was touring the facility, interviewing players and showcasing the collection, let’s not forget that a tournament was in full swing between Friday and Sunday. Congratulations to first place team Legion and all the teams for their placements.

1st: Legion

2nd: Retribution

3rd: Tempest

4th: Collective Punishment

5th: WDDD

5th: Bajaja Blast

7th: 4Q

7th: X-Force

You can view the entire bracket results at

https://challonge.com/LSFinals2024

This was such a wonderful first opportunity for me to take pieces of the Laser Tag Museum Collection out for in-person viewing at a laser tag event. I hope to have more opportunities to offer this same kind of exhibit at other laser tag events in the future to spotlight even more systems to their player communities and to anyone who wants to learn more about the history of laser tag. You can view more of the collection and history online at LassrTagMuseum.com and to see the latest virtual curated exhibits please check out our new videos at lasertagmuseum.com/exhibits/virtual/ and watch for more on Museum Collection Mondays!

Comments or Questions?