Video gamers on the go

When Brandon Patty and Cameron Tabbert recently brought their trailer full of video games to a customer’s party in a local park they soon attracted some unwanted attention from a park ranger.

The Costa Mesa residents, who co-own the Gametruck they rent out for parties, didn’t have the proper paperwork to do business at the park.

No problem. Even the park ranger had trouble resisting the party trailer’s lure.

“They let us stay because they could see how much fun the kids were having and they thought it was cool,” Patty said.

And so it’s been for the two since they took the idea for a mobile arcade from their associate Scott Novis and ran with it.

Five 50-inch plasma screens, four Nintendo Wiis, four Xbox 360s and a PlayStation 3 welcome entrants, while cushioned couches and air conditioning make their stay all the more comfortable.

The Gametruck — a jungle green pick-up truck that pulls a long trailer — has been in business since May.

“No one’s seen anything like it,” Tabbert said. “That’s what I hear the most.”

Up to 16 players can link together on the same game; the most popular games so far have been “Halo 3,” “Call of Duty,” “Rock Band” and “Guitar Hero.”

The business so far has catered to parties of school kids, office workers and even fathers.

“On Father’s Day we had a party for six fathers. Six guys just sat here and played all day,” Patty said.

The isolation of personal gaming inspired Novis’ idea. He wanted to recreate the camaraderie found in arcades.

“It’s like a party,” he said. “They’re playing video games, but it’s still a party.”

Childhood friends who grew up in Irvine, Patty, 29, and Tabbert, 26, were both in between work and looking for self-employment opportunities when they came across Novis’ idea. Both saw the potential and decided to run with it.

“We can market to kids as young as 5 years old and men as old as 40, because 40-year-olds marked the beginning of the industry with Nintendo and Atari,” Patty said. “When you have a demographic that large, the only possibility is for growth.”

“I’m more excited than I thought would be,” Tabbert said. “Everybody else is more excited than we thought they would be, too.”

“The Gametruck was awesome,” Don Snyder, the principal of Robinson Elementary in Trabuco Hills said after the truck was at a graduation event. “My students loved it.”

Though the business is still getting off the ground, Tabbert and Patty hope to have multiple trucks running throughout Orange County within the next few years.

“I know it’s going to take off,” Patty said. “I know it’s going to be incredible. We have ideas in the back of our minds, but the real exciting part is not knowing just how big it could get.”

GAMETRUCK

OWNERS: Brandon Patty and Cameron Tabbert

SPECIALTY: A mobile arcade with games on the Xbox 360, Wii and Playstation 3 consoles.

LOCATION: Services all of Orange County.

HOURS: Reservations taken at any time and date.

CONTACT: (888) 602-4263