March 1984:
Inspired while watching the battle scenes in Star Wars in 1977, George Carter III gets the idea to build Photon - The Ultimate Game on the Planet Earth. Research and construction started in 1982. The first location opened in Dallas, Texas in March of 1984 featuring the original Alpha playing field design. This is the first ever Laser Tag system in the World.
September 1985:
The first Photon franchise opens in Kenilworth, New Jersey. This is followed by Toronto, Canada in the same month.
March 1986:
The Photon concept was licensed to MCA and a live action/cartoon TV show aired and toy phaser sets went on the market.
May 1986:
The Baltimore (Dundalk) Photon in Maryland opened featuring a 13,000 square foot facility with a 6,500 square foot Alpha style playing field.
July 1986:
Worlds of Wonder introduced Laser Tag toys and aired a commercial showing arena play identical to Photon. Laser Tag and Photon toys were the number one category in Christmas of 1986.
1987:
Photon was at its peak. A new company owned center in Fountain Valley, California was setting new revenue records. 70 franchises had been sold and 45 were open or under construction. Over 2 million players had played Photon.
February 1987:
Photon opened in Warren, Michigan featuring an Alpha field with four bases; two in the normal spots and two along the back corridor.
December 1988:
The decision to stop franchising Photon facilities was made and to open only company-owned stores. An IPO was prepared but the stock market crash of October prevented any funding.
1989:
Photon was unable to secure financing and no longer was receiving franchising income, George Carter decided to sell Photon. The company centers, technical rights and equipment were sold to various entities. The parent Photon company was closed in good standing and no bankruptcy.
September 1989:
Facing closure, the Baltimore Photon changed ownership when a group of players and friends purchased it from the original owners. After the purchase, the facility was ran with cooperation between the new owners, employees and regular players.
October 1992:
Closed after being opened for over 6 years, the Baltimore Photon showed that a Laser Tag facility could survive totally without help from the parent organization in Dallas. The technicians and owners of the Baltimore facility later assisted the Chicago facility to also achieve this self-sufficiency after it was purchased by a group lead by one of it's regular players. The Baltimore Photon hosted 5 tournaments during it's lifetime, 2 of which were attended by a team from Tokyo, Japan. These were: Phaserblast I, Phaserblast II, Supremacy I, Supremacy II, and Supremacy III.
May 1995:
Photon Chicago (Harvey) closed it's doors on Mother's Day. It was the last of the 'old' Photon sites.
November 1996:
Some former Baltimore players open a new Photon in Laurel, Maryland. It features a newly designed Alpha 2 arena concept seen as an updated version of the original Alpha arena. It uses the original Photon player equipment.
June 1998:
Due to unknown circumstances the Laurel Photon closes, or so it seems?
February 1999:
XP LaserSport (XP for Extreme Photon) opens next door to the former Laurel location using the same Alpha 2 arena. It is improved including the addition of the classic Photon style alien towers. XP LaserSport is still going strong today. You can check out their XP LaserSport website where their XP league players actively schedule and play games and discuss team strategy.
August 29, 2005:
The Metairie Photon in Louisiana was destroyed during hurricane Katrina. It was one of the last remaining Alpha arenas. Their Laser Tag and Games website states they are working to rebuild the facility to bring it back to New Orleans.
Sources: The International Laser Tag Association and the Baltimore Photon owners, employees, players, friends, and other Photon fan websites. If you have any Photon related news, additions, or corrections, please e-mail me so I can update the information presented here!
