Custom Laser Tag Rifle Packs A Sonic Punch

Laser tag is rarely (if ever) referred to as “The Sport of Kings”, but is a fun pastime nonetheless. While some are content to play with off-the-shelf toys, others prefer to make their own gear to suit their needs. [Heine Nielsen] is just one such builder, creating a fully-featured laser rifle loaded with features.

As far as hardware goes, [Heine]’s laser rifle is packed to the gills. There are two ESP32s running the show, along with a meaty 6S lithium battery to provide plenty of juice for long combat sessions. A 40W audio amp is hooked up to a speaker mounted in a faux-grenade launcher, aping the design of the M203 – and is able to deliver ear-splitting sound for that realistic touch.

Knowing the popularity of modern FPS games, [Heine] cribbed a lot from titles like PUBG and CS:GO. Grabbing sound effects from various weapons was just one step, with the ultimate goal being to replicate advanced game modes from these games. To help keep the player aware of the game state, there’s even a HUD on the gun, thanks to a 2.8″ TFT screen tucked into the scope.

It’s a serious build for playing serious laser tag, and we’d love to head out to the field for a match with gear like this. We’ve seen other hyper-realistic builds before too, like this one that uses actual blanks. Video after the break.

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Firing Blanks With Laser Tag

glockLast year, [Tony] was asked to develop a lasertag system with ultimate realism. This meant a system that used a blank firing replica gun, and a system to detect blank rounds being fired. Very cool, and the way he went about it includes some interesting electronics.

Because the system requires a blank to be fired before shooting a laser at a target, the entire system must be able to detect a blank being fired. [Tony]’s first attempt used a piezo sensor to detect the shock from being fired. This system had a lot of noise and was ditched for a much better solution: a magnet mounted to the slide, and a hall effect sensor mounted to a 3D printed frame that turns this replica into a carbine.

A little bit of tweaking in software was required to inhibit the laser when the operator cocks the gun, but it looks – and sounds – really good. It’s also very, very realistic: the only way to shoot an opponent is to physically reload. Video below.

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