Feasterville's Gamin Ride Pushes the Right Buttons

Clowns, balloons and bounce houses are fine for standard birthday party fare, but most children these days are looking for something with a little more juice. For the past three years the Gamin Ride truck, a Feasterville-based party entertainment company, has become a beacon of button-mashing light as it toured throughout Bucks County and beyond to give the people what they want.

"From Friday morning to Sunday night, we'll do anywhere between five and nine parties a weekend," said Norman Kent, who drives the truck for his daughter, Lisa Quarry, who started the local franchise of the national company in 2011.

The mobile, interactive video game party bus parked outside the Chick-fil-A near the Neshaminy Mall in Bensalem Monday night, offering free play time between 6 and 8 p.m. Kids and the kids-at-heart lined up to take a turn at one of the four consoles inside the lounge or the two 55-inch flatscreens set up on the outside of the truck.

"We can get 24 people playing at once, 16 on the inside and eight outside," said Kent. "We try to stick with games that allow up to four players so as many people as possible can play at once."

Party planners should contact Gamin Ride at least a month in advance, says Kent. Any game can be requested; if they don't have it in stock, they will by the time of the event. For children's parties, any game with a Mature rating will need a parent's signature before it is plugged in, Kent said.

The cost is $399 for two hours of playtime. Anything outside a 30 mile radius of Feasterville will also include travel charges, Kent said. Quarry also takes pictures during the event and projects a slideshow at the end of the party.

"People say they don't want a copy of the DVD until they see the slideshow," said Kent. "Lisa takes almost a hundred pictures, and the parents love to see them."