Remember imagination? Remember being able to create entire worlds inside your head, make a telescope out of a simple paper towel roll, or a fearsome sword out of that same paper towel roll? Remember the innocence and limitless potential of youth, and all the wonder and joy that came with it?

Man, children are stupid.

Put down that paper towel roll, you look ridiculous! Play a video game, for pete’s sake, you have hundreds of swords to choose from, and all of them look better than your imaginary one. (The graphics inside our head are… outdated.)

But what if… and stay with me, here… what if you could have all the fun of playing outside, but without the hassle of imagining things? What if you could add video game elements like health bars and power-ups to actual running around?

The AppTag Laser Blaster — available via the Apple App Store and Google Play — describes itself as a “real world first person shooter.” And while it may sound strange, it’s actually pretty accurate. Stick your iPhone, iPod, or Galaxy (1-4) in the back of the gun — it will be your display screen, projecting the camera’s feed (which should be pretty close to your own perspective) and augmenting it with your stats: health bar, weapon, ammo, timer, etc. And then… run!

Your instincts will kick in at this point, as you set your digital crosshair to the onscreen enemy who is also your best friend standing a few feet away. What do you do if your friends are lame? Make like a middle-schooler going through puberty and play with yourself! The game also features an array of solo options and various arcade-style shooters.

But that’s not all! There’s also SWARM, what AppTag calls an MMORG (Massive Multiplayer Online Reality Gaming)! When a swarm of aliens attack Earth, it’s on you to defend it — you know, if you’re up for it. Receive updates specific to your city or town, and work with other players to eliminate the alien threat.

The great thing about the AppTag Laser Blaster is that it appeals to fans of first-person shooters as well as traditional laser tag. It gets your lazy ass off the couch, and really puts your hand-eye coordination to the test. We love augmented reality because real reality is just kind of… meh… and it’s about time an innovative company like Hex-3 did something great with it!

Shut Up and Take My Money: AppTag Laser Blaster