Intersection

A safe and friendly place to shoot zombies: Experiencing Top Shot Las Vegas

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Trisha Morris prepares to fire an AR-15 with assistance from Chief Range and Safety Officer Billy Karl during a media tour of the new Top Shot facility which uses real guns to play out interactive virtual and lifelike shooting scenarios on Friday, August 19, 2016. Morris is with 24x7 Magazine.
Photo: L.E. Baskow

I don’t know what to expect as I walk into a small room with a floor-to-ceiling screen and arm myself with a 223 AR-15 Armalite rifle. But with direction from a range safety officer, I shoulder the gun, peer through the laser sighted-scope and pull the trigger—dispatching approaching zombies.

Immersive experiences like this one at the brand new Top Shot Las Vegas pair non-lethal munitions with gaming, training and education, making for a gun range unlike any other in the city. The range, which opened about a month ago and is owned by Discount Firearms and Ammo and Ultimate Training Munitions, uses advanced technology and real firearms to create a lifelike experience—but even without imminent danger, you’ll still get the adrenaline rush. This style of dry-fire practice has been used by the United States military, special forces and law enforcement for many years and is now available to the public.

The first room, where I attempt to live up to my Xbox nomenclature ZombieSlayer410, is awesome, a gamer’s paradise fusing virtual reality with real life. My rifle’s laser sight (“Just like Call of Duty,” my range safety officer comfortingly informs me) makes aiming much easier than the training exercises out front, which are actually used in law enforcement. It’s a surreal feeling to shoot the animated, flesh-eating creatures and attempt to save fleeing humans while feeling the weight and kickback of a rifle. In this room, the rounds are UTM Silent Blank Ammunition, and as the name would suggest, they make no noise; this way, you can hear the harmonious chorus of the undead as they approach.

Top Shot Interactive Shooting

Feeling like Milla Jovovich, I walk into the next room. Here I wield the 9mm Glock 17, and this one is loud; it’s equipped with UTM Battlefield Blank Rounds. The scenario is not so lighthearted; it was originally a military program, and actors playing armed home invaders shoot at me. They pop up from behind a couch, from around a corner and more. Although it feels eerie since it’s more realistic, it really enlightens me to the lies of movies. It’s a lot harder than James Bond makes it look. I miss nearly double the amount of targets that I hit.

Fortunately, Top Shot offers top-notch training and education courses and drills, headed by Chief Range Safety Officer Billy Karl. The company even partners with law enforcement squads who come in to perform training drills. All fun aside, it also provides a safe and friendly environment for parents who want their children to learn how to safely handle firearms, without the intimidation of loud bangs and risky situations. “We introduce it not as a weapon, but as a firearm,” Karl says.

Along with the training services and gaming rooms, Top Shot also contains two mazes where you can mix elements from both. Whether you want to play laser tag (with or without being zapped when shot), gear up and use UTM Man Marker Rounds (similar to paintball) or just shoot at targets, the labyrinth can accommodate you and a few of your friends.

Top Shot offers a $100 annual admission for locals, plus munition costs. Future plans include equipping more kits and guns and expanding to incorporate more training space, including the radical possibility of adding a 360-degree experience through a room completely covered in video screens. For now, you can rack up points in the interactive shoot house, attend Introduction to Handgun Classes, or go just to try and beat my scores—a feat that, unfortunately, won’t be very difficult.

Top Shot Las Vegas 3084 S. Highland Drive, 702-478-8550.

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