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Tactical Tag at Battleground Orlando

I have had very limited experience so far tagging with the Netronic tactical gear, formerly known as LaserTag.net, so I was really pleased when I met with Michael Obod, co-founder and CEO of Netronic, and his wife Oksana who told me I could find their equipment in use at Battleground Orlando. Even though it was getting late by the time I arrived and I had an early flight the next morning, it was worth it to me to stop in, even just to play one game before I headed home from Florida.



Although playing one game (versus a full session) was seemingly an unusual request, the staff were wonderful to accommodate me and I played a short 1v1 game against staff member Eric who showed me the features of the smaller size tagger that I had only just seen for the first time the previous day at IAAPA.



This is a different model from the Netronic taggers I had tried out in the past.


We walked over to the metal building that houses a good size tactical indoor arena. The wooden structures were “battle ravaged” with the rugged aesthetic you would expect. However, my first impression of the field was that it was a nice set-up for this kind of laser tag. I imagine it would make for some excellent group games.




Eric explained to me that I had 30 ammo to fire before I would have to reload with the button on the front left side of the tagger. He also explained we would be playing an elimination game with each of us having 60 health to deplete before one of us would be deactivated. Sounds perfect for getting a small sample of the experience.


I put my headband sensor around my new hat. Since I had already packed away my lucky Photon hat (which I jokingly say is the source of my laser tag power!) I purchased a new hat to wear along with a matching Battleground Orlando light hoodie. As it turns out, all my laser skills must actually be in the other hat, simply based on my less than stellar game performance without it tonight! Lol, let’s blame it on exhaustion from the busy trip. :)


I crossed over to start behind the raised structure on the right-hand side. There are sensors down the front of the tagger. However, my greatest weakness was that while peeking out to look for my opponent I did not do well with keeping the bright lights on my headset hidden. This is often a challenge for me with any tactical tag using head sensors because I am so much more conditioned towards a traditional laser tag style where peeking out does not necessarily result in showing sensors (as they are usually on your front, back and shoulders). Although I was able to get a few decent tags in, my experienced opponent easily took me down by capitalizing on my exposed head sensors.



I think it is difficult to properly assess a system without playing with a group, however a 1v1 at least allowed me to check out the equipment, try something new and visit one more arena, so I was happy about all of that. This visit was not about victory or defeat, but simply having an opportunity to play with a Netronic tagger in my hands to get a feel for it. I must say, I continue to be impressed with the equipment. I like the size of this tagger. It is easy to grip and control. It feels sturdy without being too heavy. Personally, I might prefer to play it without using a head sensor (like my first experience using the custom sensor sash or perhaps with the vested version that I saw at the trade show), but still the gear feels good to use and I congratulate my worthy opponent on a good game.


This was the last thing I did during my visit to Orlando. Flying home the next day meant I had an early start, so I left feeling pleased that I had been able to fit in playing a quick game, but also feeling certain that I want to return to Battleground Orlando the next time I am in town because I would love to spend more time developing some skill with the Netronic laser tag gear and experience more of the games that I know are possible. Even with only having a short window of time to visit, Battleground Orlando was still an awesome experience!



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