Hotspot Laser Tag hosts games at Bartlett Park

Aug. 21—Hotspot Laser Tag made camp at Bartlett Park Sunday from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m., giving families the opportunity to score discounted games.

The mobile entertainment company's owner, Joey Thompson, stated his desire to bring fun to the city he grew up in.

"We're just bringing a fun event to the community and trying to get the word out about Hotspot Laser Tag, our mobile laser tag," Thompson said. "We do these events...a couple of times per year on days where we aren't booked just to bring a bit of cheap entertainment to our local parks."

Sunday's participants were able to purchase games for $3 a person, with prices normally hitting $5 per person.

According to Thompson, his organization will be present at several more festivals and fairs throughout the remainder of the year.

"This will probably be our last park event for the year, but we do have Southside Fall Festival coming up ... we'll be there," he said. "Wathena Fall Festival, we'll be out there, and we're doing the Northwest Missouri State Fair in Bethany as well."

Hotspot Laser Tag is also available for reserved events for a fee. As Thompson stated, prices for booking Hotspot Laser Tag vary, with smaller packages ranging at around $300.

"We do birthday parties, fairs, festivals, we do after-proms, church events, we did graduations this year, a couple of those," Thompson said. "So, any event, there's nothing too big or too small that we can do. We have up to 32 inflatables and 18 (players) at a time."

According to Thompson, his goal for Hotspot Laser Tag is for the company to grow large enough for an indoor arena, which would feature additional entertainment options.

Thompson further stated his goal to let players have the option for the most tactical form of laser tag available or to play as casually as they please.

Thompson also made note of comparisons between his brand of laser tag against potential competitors in airsoft and paintball.

"If you think about paintball or airsoft, not that we compete (directly) with them, but we are a little bit with the younger crowd, and you don't have to worry about getting hit ... and the paint splattering everywhere," he said.

"Airsoft, you're not worried about getting hit by the bullet. There's variables in that as well like you don't have to worry about the wind. With the new technology, you can play it in the daytime, and this equipment will reach three football fields."

Thompson also spoke about his desire to expand his company down the road.

"We started in 2018, and we wanted to do a family entertainment center, but obviously, we didn't have the funds to start big like that, so we decided to start small with a focus on laser tag. It has always been my dream to have a tactical laser tag in a building."

More information on Hotspot Laser Tag and its services is available at https://hotspotlasertag.com.

The group also posts information on upcoming public events it plans to attend via its Facebook page.