Lazer Tag
Original Lazer Tag Logo
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| Type | Game |
|---|---|
| Inventor | Worlds of Wonder |
| Company |
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| Country | United States |
| Availability | 1986– |
| Materials | Plastic with electronics |
Lazer Tag is a brand name for the infrared pursuit game generically known as "laser tag," "lasertag," or "lazertag." First introduced by Worlds of Wonder in 1986, the Lazer Tag brand is currently a subsidiary of Hasbro's Nerf toy line.
Lazer Tag was created by the toy company Worlds Of Wonder in 1986, appearing at approximately the same time as the home version of Entertech's Photon brand. Like Photon, Worlds of Wonder's Lazer Tag brand also inspired a TV series. The animated series Lazer Tag Academy was produced by Ruby-Spears Productions, with one season airing on NBC from 1986-1987. Three Choose Your Own Adventure-style books were released based on the game as well. A boy is briefly shown playing Lazer Tag in the 1988 film Married to the Mob. A Lazer Tag video game was released in the late 1980s for the ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC and Commodore 64.
The toy, however, was not without controversy. In April 1987, 19-year-old Leonard Falcon was shot and killed in Rancho Cucamonga, CA by a sheriffs deputy after witnesses saw him and several friends playing with it, mistaking the toys for real guns. The deputy who shot him quit his job soon afterwards. According to some sources, the negative publicity associated with the incident contributed to Worlds of Wonders bankruptcy and dissolution the following year.
The Lazer Tag brand name was acquired by Shoot The Moon Products of Pleasanton, CA, after Worlds Of Wonder ceased operations in late 1990. Since then, the brand name has been licensed to Tiger Electronics from 1996–1998 and to Hasbro from 2004–present under the Nerf banner.
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