Originally posted by gyroscope
7. A question to Mr Rubin: Can the accomplishments of the last ten years all be obtained in a week's time by a team fresh from the time machine? Ten years of developement are all external to the player? No disrespect intended, but I don't agree. Persuade me.
I'm gonna make this quick, and it may not explain everyhting. I have 5 hours to get SOME sleep.
For all the pats on the back we give ourselves concerning "progress", we are playing the SAME GAME we did in the 90's, just in new surroundings. As much posturing as some will do, the fundamentals of the game, the basic skills of the game, have not changed. Yes, there are nuances that change (sliding techniques, sweetspotting from the break, and so on), but it's the same basic game we played in the 90's. ONLY the firepower has signifigantly changed, and stayed changed. Hell, we can't even decide if we like long or short barrels, small bore or large bore paint, or if we like 5, 7, or 10 man games, but we LOVE that 20 BPS ideal!
And as much as some will argue this or that about how much the game has signifigantly changed, it's just putting ice on a bruised ego. Paintball has not changed, with the exception of the look and the firepower. And that's what you need to understand. What we play now is the SAME THING. A few skills are diffrent, but not so diffrent that it's a whole new animal.
CASE IN POINT : "The Werewolves". A team based out of New Jersey area back in the EARLY 90's. They reunited (in a small force, not the whole team) recently and played a tournament a year or two ago (IAO, I think?), and cleaned house. They used to used pump guns, Bushmasters if I'm not mistaken. They used Automags this time around, and wiped the walls with teams.
And, how do you suppose they won? Teamwork, angles, communications. ALL THE THINGS I already mentioned before this. These are the CORNERSTONES of paintball. And say what you want, but that does not change.
Hence, my point. If you took a team from 10 years ago, IN THEIR PRIME, put them on an air course with e-guns, give them a week to acclimate, and I think you'd see them hold their own, if not win. Same thing going hte other way. Take a team from now, put them back in '93, give them the top of hte line gear (Autocockers, Mags...) and give them a week to get into the wods tourneys. They would hold their own, if not win.
The only thing that's REALLY changed are the nuances. You can't slide your gun into a tree like an air bunker. You can't crawl on an air field like you can a woods field. But the break is the same, snapshooting, cover usage, the count, and most importantly, THE FLAG are the same. The only constant changing variable for the PLAYER is firepower.
The game has not changed enough that players from '93 would not recognise it anymore. It's REALLY that simple!
So much for my "Short" post...
-Tyger
