1Up Gaming Lab Packs the Latest Video Games into a Mobile Trailer

Tyrell Slappey and his partner Derron Davis are taking the interactivity of video gaming to a whole new, real-world level with 1Up Gaming Lab, a mobile gaming theater. Think party bus-meets-gaming lounge. The "lab" is a climate-controlled 32-foot-long trailer equipped with a comfy leather bench, four 55-inch flat-screens, all the top consoles and a near-endless menu of games.

These Cass Tech grads got started in August 2017 and, perhaps unsurprisingly, kids have been up front and center. "I think adults think it's not for them, but I tell people, 'It's for all ages,'" Slappey says. 1Up has hosted a bachelor party and a couple adult birthday parties. Secure one hour for $199.99, two for $299.99 or lock in a three-hour slot for $369.99. Each additional hour is $99.99, and use of the lab's additional two 65-inch outdoor TVs is $49.99 per hour; mileage rates calculated from the lab's Sterling Heights home may also apply.

Slappey often pulls up outside of foster homes and lets the kids play for free for a couple hours. He says he especially likes those sessions because those kids tend to be some of the most gracious players, even sometimes helping him clean up afterwards. "Those are my favorite events to do because you just feel appreciated."

He thinks the future of gaming will be on-person sensors that put you directly in the game. Whatever's up next, 1Up is hitched up and ready for the ride.