Interactive game played in the city. Orginally commissioned by Playable City, Watershed and the Bristol Enterprise Zone.

BikeTAG is a system of led lights, proximity sensors and a Smartphone application, originally created in 2012 during the Playable City Sprint, hosted by Watershed and the British Council.

In a unique commission for Bristol Temple Quarter, the BikeTAG light system was used within an innovative street game that lit up Bristol’s Enterprise Zone. The new commission ‘Colour Keepers’ was designed to help re-invent perceptions of the Enterprise Zone – the area surrounding Bristol’s Temple Meads Station.

Part exploration, part battle, part collaboration, part art experience, Colour Keepers was a chance to play on bikes in the city, set colours free and co-create light trails using the BikeTAG light system. With five colours to set free, players explored the Zone as they battled to win.

The game ran at dusk on Sat 18 and Sun 19 May and was used as a public Play Test to gather feedback from players. This was the very first game created using the BikeTAG system, and the very first time it was played with a full line-up of participants.

See the project at Playable City Watershed.

Made in collaboration with Bang and Lee (Korea) and Julian Stykes (Wales).
Supported by Bristol City Council and Arts Council England.
Photos by Max McClure

Bristol Enterprise Zone.

I loved the game – it was a Technicolor experience

I played with people who I had never meet before – and we worked as a team

I saw placed in my own city where I had never been before!

We loved the Dark Matter Character.
Dark Matter was suitably terrifying – like an adventure.

Seeing people reacting to us riding around the city with lights was the best – like a beautiful bright team.

Cycling at dusk felt very magic –  loved the colour change aspect of the game and seeing other teams cycling around. The visual aspect was great!

Awesome night. My bike is looking really boring now.