High-tech fun

New immersive, live-action gaming venue Activate powers up Houston debut

Activate's soft opening runs until November 15, with a grand opening planned for November 16-17.

Photo courtesy of Activate

Houston is leveling up its gaming scene with the debut of a new high-tech immersive experience. Called Activate, the indoor venue combines technology and physical activity in 75-minute gaming sessions, which can be played in teams up to five people.

Simply put, the whole place is like stepping inside a live-action arcade.

Activate's first Houston-area location opened softly November 2 at 20225 Katy Frwy., Katy. Official grand opening is set for November 16-17. It is the high-tech brand's sixth location across the country, and second in Texas (behind one in Plano, which opened in spring 2023).

According to a release, the Katy facility spans 9,600 square feet, with 11 different activity rooms offering more than 500 unique games across all difficulty levels. Games include Megagrid, Hoops, Press, Hide, Laser, Strike, Portals, Control, Grid, and more. Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) wristbands track participants’ scores and progress.

"Our mission is to fuse technology, movement, and strategy to create a unique interactive gaming experience," says Activate partner Bryce Anderson in the release. "We want guests to bring their closest friends, family, or co-workers and leave with a feeling of achievement, ready to come back for more."

While gaming activities are mostly adult-focused, children aged 13 and younger can participate with adult supervision.

During Activate's soft opening phase through November 15, 10 percent of sales will be donated to Best Buddies International, a nonprofit that provides mentorships for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. (Check the website for limited hours during soft opening.)

After the grand opening November 16-17, Activate will be open daily, 10 am-10 pm. Gaming sessions (75 minutes) are $24.99 Monday-Thursday, and $29.99 Friday-Sunday. Reservations are encouraged.

Activate has been creating live-action gaming experiences for adults since 2019, and has plans for further expansion, they say.

"As we continue expanding Activate across the United States, we are confident our concept will fill a void for interactive entertainment," says Anderson in the release. "We believe the Houston community will embrace this experience and find it both thrilling and challenging."

More information and reservations can be found on the website.

families gaming scene houston immersive openings technology

Concert News

Singer-songwriter Sara Bareilles brings Good Grief tour to Houston

Photo courtesy of Sara Bareilles

Sara Bareilles is touring in support of Good Grief, her first new album in seven years.

Singer-songwriter Sara Bareilles is hitting the stage on her new Good Grief Tour, which promotes not just her new album but also a new documentary, Sara Bareilles: Good Grief. The tour stops at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Houston on October 7

Bareilles will start the relatively short tour in Boston, Massachusetts, on September 9 and close it out in Seattle, Washington, on October 19. In addition to Houston, she'll stop in Austin at the Bass Concert Hall in Austin on October 6.

The Good Grief Tour announcement is highly coordinated, setting a preorder date of August 28 for Bareilles' seventh album, Good Grief, and debuting the album's first single, "Home." The documentary will also make its world premiere at the Tribeca Festival on Thursday, June 4. Viewers will get to see the process that brought the album to life as Bareilles returned to the studio for the first time in seven years, since recording the Grammy-winning album Amidst the Chaos.

Good Grief, which Bareilles produced herself, features work by Charley Drayton, Butterfly Boucher, Misty Boyce, Solomon Dorsey and Rob Moose in the band, and includes collaborations with Brandi Carlile, Andrea Gibson, Ingrid Michaelson, Joe Tippett and Megan Falley. "Hope" was inspired by an interview between Stephen Colbert and Anderson Cooper, making this an especially communal effort.

“This whole collection of songs felt like transmissions rather than a deliberate attempt to make sense of the world,” said Bareilles in a press release. “My deepest hope is that Good Grief provides some kind of comfort or catharsis.”

Tickets sales will open with artist, Verizon, and CITI pre-sales on Monday, June 8. General sales start Wednesday, June 10, at 10 am. One dollar from each ticket will go to mental health organization the Jed Foundation via Plus One and Live Nation. All net proceeds from VIP upgrades will go to NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness).

Sara Bareilles — Good Grief Tour dates

September 9—Boston, MA—MGM Music Hall at Fenway
September 12—Washington, D.C.—The Anthem
September 15—Toronto, ON—Massey Hall
September 18—New York, NY—Radio City Music Hall
September 21—Philadelphia, PA—The Met Philadelphia presented by Highmark
September 24—Atlanta, GA—Fox Theatre
September 25—Cincinnati, OH—Taft Theatre
September 27—Chicago, IL—The Chicago Theatre
September 30—Minneapolis, MN—Orpheum Theatre
October 2—St. Louis, MO—Stifel Theatre
October 4—Denver, CO—Bellco Theatre
October 6—Austin, TX—Bass Concert Hall
October 7—Houston, TX—The Hobby Center for the Performing Arts
October 12—Los Angeles, CA—Dolby Theatre
October 13—Los Angeles, CA—Dolby Theatre
October 16—San Francisco, CA—Bill Graham Civic Auditorium
October 19—Seattle, WA—The Paramount Theatre

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