First Time Playing Gen 8 Infinity

This weekend I hit the road for St. Catharine's, ON Canada to play the latest from Laserforce, the new Gen 8 Infinity system, during the very first weekend it was open for the public to play at Parkway Lanes Sports and Entertainment.

 

It was definitely worth the drive across the border to get to be the first from my site (obviously with the exclusion of Sanch and Beanz) to get to try this new gear for myself. I knew that the guys had just completed the installation of the system last week and I was appreciative that Tom, the owner of the facility, welcomed me to be among the first to play at this new arena.

 

We entered the briefing/vesting area...

 

...and I got my first peek at the new Gen 8 packs.

 

They have really upped the game with Gen 8 in so many ways! The lights are encased in opaque plastic and the shield has a sharp, new redesign that features a digital screen in the center with the pack or player name lit up right on the front. There's also a screen on the back.

 

The phaser feels sturdy and solid with a rubberized plastic grip and the opaque plastic gives a very different lighting effect from the blinking LEDs that I'm accustomed to seeing. It also has a much larger, rectangular button on the side for special features.

 

One of the really distinctive features of Gen 8 is the touch screen on the phaser that gives you up to date info during the game.

 

You can change things from the particular sound associated with your shots (which is of dubious value, but a fun feature anyhow) and the language.

 

And then we had a chance to go into the 3400 square foot arena that was built where previously they had more bowling lanes. Tom told me that four lanes had been removed to make room for an impressive arcade and then another six were taken out to make room for the laser tag. If you look carefully at the floor you can get an idea of where the bowling lanes had been.

 

But I can promise most people won't be looking at the floor when they walk into the bright and colorful (and, yes Beanz, with very nice, artistic lighting!) arena designed by Art Attack. They used every inch of the space well to create a really impressive atmosphere.

 

I had heard that they decked it out with all the bells and whistles. There are a TON of targets in this arena! Some were typical, like the bases, beacons and generator...

 

...and others were programmed in ways I was surprised to see. For example, one target in the middle appeared to be a circuit of three small targets (one on each wall) that had to be sequentially hit to then shoot the final one in a rectangular base housing.

 

At least I think that's what was happening...it was different!

 

And I enjoyed getting to take control of the gate and see that work in the game as I've only played at one other site that had this particular feature.

 

Ten of us went in to play the first game, an individual (but not color ranked) game and here are a few of the players who were among the very first to enjoy a game here.

 

We all enjoyed meandering the maze and taking our shots.

 

As I am a level six, of course I had to take three shots to deactivate an opponent. Now, what I'm about to say is anecdotal from my first game and I am NOT certain that I perceived this correctly, but I'll relay what I thought I experienced anyway.  To my mind it felt like there was a bit of difference in the three shot timing. It felt like I was able to lock on a bit earlier while a player was down that I could take my first shot, but there was a beat in between and I could not complete the three shot sequence until they came back up. I would like for someone to corroborate what I "think" I was noticing there, but in the middle of a game sometimes it's tough to tell for sure what has just happened! :)

 

After that first round was finished I went in again, this time with Tom, just to play around with the gear and take better note of what was going on. As I'm not used to looking down at a screen it took me a moment to get acclimated to watching as the meters on the screen went up and down. Honestly, I will need to spend a little more time getting fully adjusted to the differences in the gear, but I can already tell that Gen 8 is going to be fun to learn to play to the fullest!

 

And when we were done I learned a bit more about the facility.

 

Parkway Lanes has just celebrated 60 years as part of the St. Catharine's community. While it is an impressive bowling alley with 22 regular lanes and 8 VIP lanes along with the arcade...

 

...and now laser tag, it is also part of a larger facility including a restaurant, 22,000 square foot convention center and 181 room hotel all part of the property. Although this time I was only in town for a day trip, as a traveler I think it is VERY handy to know that there's a hotel right there before making my next visit. Parts of the facility are still being remodeled, but I hope to return to see the completed project and have another opportunity to play tag here because I had such a great time getting to experience Gen 8 for the first time.

 

 

Comments or Questions?

Contact: tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com

Websites: www.tiviachickloveslasertag.com and www.photonforever.com

Playing It By The Numbers

After getting to 200 laser tag arenas I thought it would be interesting to analyze exactly how many sites per system I had played along the way. What can I say, I had some free time on my hands. :)

 

First I color coded each laser tag system that I have played. So far I have played 22 different laser tag systems (by which I really mean manufacturers...I did not break down upgraded software, versions or equipment lines any further than that) and here's how the numbers shake out.

 

I'll recap it because I realize the image is blurry. Here are the systems/manufacturers and number of sites I have played as of today...

 

Zone - 69

Laserforce - 28

Lasertron - 22

Laser Quest - 19

Laser Blast - 19

Lazer Runner - 11

Darklight - 7

Delta Strike - 7

iCOMBAT - 3

Q-Zar - 3

Laser Storm - 1

Photon - 1

Intersphere - 1

LaserTrek - 1

Actual Reality - 1

Steradian - 1

Laser Mania - 1

Laser Maxx Laser Trooper - 1

Adventure Sports - Tactical - 1

Battlefield Sports - Tactical - 1

Laser Tag Pro - Tactical - 2 (includes XP)

LazRFit - 1

I guess Zammy was right...I DO play everything. :) If you are adding them up and notice that the total comes to 201 It's because XP Lasersport in Owings Mills previously had both Lasertron and Laser Tag Pro and I played them both the last time I was there. And although the XP Laurel location typically operates with Lasertron I counted it for Photon because I have personally only ever played at that location during Phocon, the one weekend a year when Tron takes a backseat and they bring out the Photon gear instead. Everything else is pretty self explanatory on this color coded list of the sites I have played.

 

A few of the things I found notable once I looked at the data in spreadsheet form...

 

1. Although I love all forms of laser tag, I have always considered myself more a Zone player than anything else. This list backs me up as it confirms empirically that just over 33 percent of the arenas I've played were in fact Zone sites, leading far and away as the tag brand that I play more than any other.

 

2. I was surprised to see that Lasertron came in so high as it was third on this list. I really thought I had played more Laser Quest sites than Tron at this point (although the numbers were still relatively close).

 

3. There are 12 systems that are so few and far between that I have only had an opportunity to play them once (not counting if they were imported or otherwise part of 'geddon events). I feel very lucky to have had the opportunity to play these systems at all. I also find it a little amazing that I have actually been able to locate sites that are still actively operating systems like Intersphere and LaserTrek.

 

This was interesting to put together as a totally non-scientific sample, but still a pretty decent snapshot of where my tag experiences fall. It will be interesting to compare and contrast after I hit my next milestone number to see how those numbers might change...and if all the pieces fall into place I might get to work on my next round fairly soon!

 

Comments or Questions?

Contact: tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com

Websites: www.tiviachickloveslasertag.com and www.photonforever.com

Talking Tag with Bob and Sheri

Over the weekend I had a chance to visit with nationally syndicated radio hosts Bob and Sheri when they paid a visit with their affiliate station in Hudson, NY. It was about a year ago that they had invited me to "talk tag" with them on the Oddcast, so it was nice to have an opportunity to meet in person and strike a tag pose. :)

I appreciate that they have expressed such support for my efforts to tag in all 50 states and Sheri was nice enough to reference it in signing a nice message on my bag.

It's amazing how far my journey has evolved since this interview, but now certainly seems like a good time to revisit it and share a link to that fun memory from last year with Bob and Sheri.

https://omny.fm/shows/the-oddcast/oddcast-life-as-a-laser-tag-competitor

Enjoy!

Comments or Questions?

Contact: tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com

Websites: www.tiviachickloveslasertag.com and www.photonforever.com

My 200th Laser Tag Arena

I wanted to celebrate the milestone of playing my 200th laser tag arena with friends, so I decided to make it happen at Scene 75 Cleveland.

 

My friends Jansen, Christine and Holly joined me.

 

We walked into a pretty impressive facility that Jansen dubbed as "Chuck E. Cheese for adults." With a bar in the center, a huge arcade area, go karts, mini-golf, virtual reality and more we had plenty of options in front of us. We started with Food Truck Alley.

 

Then we hit the laser tag arena. 

 

Game master Anthony led us into the briefing room.

 

And then we suited up with the Gen 7 packs in the vesting room.

 

Time to play some tag! We entered a very uniquely designed double-level arena themed around with an old abandoned town theme.

 

The bases were housed in structures like this.

 

And there were beacons at various points at both ends of the lower level and one on the upper level. Although there were plenty of hiding nooks and wall areas to make the playing field of this large arena feel a little more compact it was simultaneously more open than I would have expected. For example, on the top level there were ample walls to duck behind, but the corners were so narrow they didn't actually provide much cover and there were many spots in that he arena where a sniper could place a clear shot virtually from one end to the other (at least on top, not as much on the lower level). 

 

I asked about who designed this arena. What they could tell me is that the same designer does all of their arenas and like a hidden Easter egg each one has an image of this character (by my banner) painted somewhere within it.

 

I enjoyed introducing my friends to laser tag as this was a first for them. And they hooked me up with a little something to mark the milestone.

 

Then an opportunity presented itself for us to play a second round with a couple of public players accompanied by Anthony and manager Samantha. Everyone had a good time, but this was not an appropriate game for going all "try hard" so I held back a bit. But that only led to a further challenge and comparing of skill sets so I told Anthony that we needed to settle it with a one on one...his military training vs my level 6 experience. This was a GOOD match and my friends were watching the play by play on the screen outside. Well, a very solid game, but with a home field advantage this one went to Anthony...although I challenge him to a one on one rematch if ever he gets over to my home turf in Syracuse, lol! Great game!

 

The managers at Scene 75 were kind enough to send me back with a tag swag souvenir.

 

And remember the gift card from earlier? Well we put it to good use at the photo booth. :)

 

We all had a great time at Scene 75 Cleveland and I am so glad we were all there together as I checked off my 200th laser tag arena!

 

 

Comments or Questions?

Contact: tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com

Websites: www.tiviachickloveslasertag.com and www.photonforever.com