Teambuilding has been given an all-action twist by UK-based Spy Games with the launch of a movie-style mission called The Snatch. Corporate and social groups have already begun signing up for the simulated raid experience, in which they attempt to hold up a prison van to spring free a fellow gang member, or make off with a bag stuffed with ‘spy dollars’. Armed with blank firing guns, ski masks and black outfits, participants are split into ‘gangs’ and trained in weapons and tactics before planning and implementing their own smash-and-grab raid. The scenario can also be enhanced with a helicopter getaway and the intervention of mock police, depending on budget.

Realistic experience

Spy Games founder and managing director Dave Thomas took inspiration from the Robert de Niro and Al Pacino crime thriller HEAT but wanted the experience to be as realistic as possible, with pyrotechnic effects and a genuine former prison van containing secure cells. He said: “We’ve run trials of this activity with a number of corporate clients and private groups such as stag parties and it has been extremely popular, so we’ve decided on a full-blown launch for The Snatch. Nothing like this has ever been done before and it is probably the most intense scenario we’ve ever developed. “A lot of businesses have signed up already. It’s a chance to get out of the office and do something completely different. But crucially, it is also embedded with important business messages in terms of meticulous planning, assigning roles and responsibilities, clear communication, teamwork and dealing with the unexpected.”

The Snatch is the latest addition to the portfolio of teambuilding activities staged by Spy Games at its base in Buckinghamshire and at other locations throughout the UK and overseas.
The espionage-themed activities offered by the company include diamond heists, car chases, spy hunts, escape and evasion, hostage rescues, laser combat and pistol shooting.