Titan: Bringing Video-Game Moments Into Physical Laser Tag

Titan is designed around a simple idea: technology should not just record what a player does; it should respond to them and make the experience feel personal.

From the moment a player picks up the equipment, Titan changes how laser tag feels.

The first difference is physical. Titan cuts the cord between phaser and vest, replacing a connection that has been standard in laser tag from the beginning with a proprietary wireless solution.

For the player, that means greater freedom of movement and lighter equipment. It allows the experience to adapt around the individual. A younger child can play using only the lightweight phaser while an adult in the same game wears the full phaser-and-vest setup. Different players can enjoy the same game using equipment appropriate to their age and size, rather than every guest being treated the same.

That flexibility extends to accessibility. Operators can disable hand-sensor requirements and enable auto-fire, allowing players who cannot comfortably use a conventional two-handed grip or repeatedly pull the trigger to participate more easily. That can include players with the use of one arm, or wheelchair users who may need one hand free for mobility.

The second difference is immediately visible.

Traditional laser tag beams have been limited to fixed mono colours, most commonly red or green. Titan introduces a full RGB one-inch colour-changing laser, allowing the beam itself to become part of the experience.

A pink player fires a pink beam. A blue player fires blue. Teams become easier to recognise, the arena becomes more vibrant, and information that would normally require a screen can be communicated naturally through the physical environment.

The beam responds to gameplay too. During a rapid-fire power-up, for example, Titan pulses white through the player’s normal colour, turning a digital game event into something physically visible to everyone around them.

Titan adds another layer of personalisation through Tag-Cam.

A front-facing camera in the phaser works with software that considers aim direction, proximity and available light to intelligently capture the moments around successful tags without continuously recording throughout the game.

When a player is tagged, that footage can appear on their own phaser while Zone’s redesigned scoreboards share it with the wider group. A tag is no longer simply another point added to a score. It becomes a moment players can see, react to and remember.

After the game, Titan automatically creates individual highlight reels from each player’s best tags. Through Zone’s revamped membership platform, players can access and share their footage, extending the attraction beyond the venue and turning gameplay into personal social content. A rear-facing camera adds selfies and further personalised media.

Titan’s onboard player assistant and dynamic audio system make the experience responsive in another way.

Audio, instructions and interactions change according to game events, player behaviour and skill. A first-time player can receive different support and encouragement from an experienced player in the same game.

Players can also select their own audio theme and language directly from the touchscreen. A guest might choose a pirate-themed adventure in their preferred language while another player in the same game chooses something completely different. All spoken information is also supported with subtitles, helping make important instructions and game feedback accessible to players.

Zone’s new scoreboard platform continues that connected experience, handling Tag-Cam replays and scores while also delivering intelligent pre-game briefings based on the selected game and operating settings.

Titan’s revamped membership system extends personalisation between visits. Players can customise phaser styles, borders, graphics and emotes, creating an identity that carries with them over time.

The system can also track physical activity, including steps taken during a game, and translate that into fun, familiar food equivalents. It gamifies something laser tag operators have always known: laser tag gets people moving. Physical activity becomes another part of the experience players can see, compare and share.

Together, cameras, RGB lighting, audio, subtitles, touchscreens, displays, player identity, physical activity and adaptable wireless equipment operate as one connected ecosystem.

The result is an attraction that can adapt to the individual before, during and after play, giving more people the freedom to participate and making every game more personal, intuitive, memorable and shareable.

Partners

Greg Smith, head of software. Who had to make it all work
Patrick Holmes, founder of Zone. Product designer.
All the team in RND at Zone.