LaserBall is a futuristic sports game, a fusion of laser-tag with popular ball sports such as soccer and basketball, where the aim of the game is to advance a “virtual ball” across the arena and score at the opposing goal.
At its simplest, LaserBall can be played by newer players but it also has enough depth to be playable in a competitive league with experienced players.
LaserBall Classic
The most straightforward variant is LaserBall Classic in which players are divided into two teams. Each team has a goal which consists of a standard Laserforce target or other device.
Play takes the form of a number of rounds. At the start of each round, players must start at their own goal and zap it once to activate themselves. Players cannot interact with any other players or aspects of the game until they have activated themselves in this way.
As the round begins, one active player will receive the ball. They will get a Battlesuit message so they know they have the ball, and their Battlesuit lights will flash rapidly so other players can also see that they have the ball.
The aim of the game is to get the ball to the opposing team’s goal, where a single zap of the opposing target (by the ball carrier) is enough to score! The player with the ball can advance it themselves by moving though the arena, or the ball can be passed to a teammate by zapping them.
LaserBall Mayhem
A more hectic variation is LaserBall Mayhem. This game has the same basic structure as LaserBall Classic with the following differences:
There are three teams instead of two, with each team having its own goal. Players must still start at their own goal, but they can score at either of the opposing goals.
At the start of each round, three balls are put into play, rather than one. Each team starts with one ball. When a goal is scored, that ball is removed from play, but the round continues until all three balls have been scored with, at which point the round ends. Once a goal is scored, the round ends. Players have 30 seconds to return to their starting area in preparation for the next round. Play continues until the10 minute total game time has elapsed, at which point the team that has scored the most goals is crowned the winner!
Although this game type may seem less “pure” than LaserBall Classic, the multi-ball aspect makes it so that players are much more likely to be able to participate in the new and exciting aspects of the game. In simple terms:
More balls = more scoring = more fun.
Recommended Length: 10 minutes
Skill Levels: All players play at the same level
Scoring: The winning team is determined by how many goals are scored. Like in all points games\sports it is possible for a game to end in a draw if both team have scored an equal amount of goals by the end of the game.
When an individuals results are displayed on the Member Kiosk or on the iplaylaserforce.com site the following formula is used:
Score = (Goals + Assists) * 10000 + Steals * 100 + Blocks
Note that for the purposes of calculating this score, the steals value is capped at 99, and the blocks is capped at 99. This is to ensure they do not overflow into the next section of the number