Paintball will disappear

[Syd (NSPL)]

OK, what about these things we all enjoy about paintball:

1) Choosing the right marker for our playing style. Wouldn't a lasergun be just a lasergun? Different styles for front and back players? Can't see it. We love customising our markers. And what about all those add-ons and adjustments to make sure we're getting the best gas consumption, the ideal chrono speed, etc.

2) Choosing the right paint. No matter how annoying paint can be when it goes wrong, their is great satisfaction in finding the right paint for your marker and seeing them fly straight and break everytime without smegging your breach and barrel.

3) Firing paintballs. The noise, the effect of wind, the arc they fly upon, the colours, the look on a guys eyes when you've just bunkered him from no where. Will you get these with lasertag - no. Paintballs make give the game a cretain amount of interest and unpredictability.

4) Cheating and abusing cheaters. No matter what you think, cheating takes place in all sports. Look at soccer - fouls happen all the time. It is an excepted part of the game and referees often make bad calls. I reckon we'd miss it, whether we agree with cheating or not.

5) Safety aspects - these all add to the atmosphere of the game. I love the look of a well laid out tourney, with netting, chronograph areas, and guys wearing goggles. I even enjoy putting my goggles on as I make my way out for a game. Take these away, we're loosing atmosphere.

6) Shooting Accurately. How long(big) is a laser beam? The size of a paintball? I doubt it - it's gonna be longer which means you don't have to shoot as accurately. Put a beam of light across a runners line of path and he'll run through it. I'd rather be trying to put a string of paintballs across his path, shooting fast whilst trying to keep my accuracy. So much more fun.

7) Shooting fast. Could you fire 13 laser beams a second??? Would it feel anywhere as near as good as shooting 13 balls a second?

I could go on and on and on. Your reasoning is flawed.

 

[FUBAR]

Originally posted by j0hn
Take example guns. There's people out there who should never have had real guns in the first place, who's only real intention of em was to cause some mass destruction or for someone to loose their life. With markers/guns it's the same thing... most of the cases you see of people misusing them is some punk kid wants to go shoot up his friends house with a talon at his local target. All the "top people" in the governments still see there's a difference between the two type of "paintballers".

I can think of a certain episode of MTV's Very popular Jackass which didn't help and probably undid an lot of positive PR for Paintball.
If you dont know one of them ambushed his dad walking back to his van after work and unleashed about 30 shots into him & his van with very little accuracy. The guy is lucky he wasn't blinded

FUBAR

(Edit: Spelling Mistake)

 

[crom-dubh]

How bad is the image of paintball being "too militaristic"? Everyone goes on about how paintball should be separated from the cammo and military terms, but how much is that affecting the sport?

I ask because it seems that in a lot of other forms of entertainment there is absoloutly no stigma attached to "army "themes.

Examples are, video games, where it is perfectly acceptable and even desirable to "play" war. Medal of Honour for example.
Again war films always do really well at the box office.

Going back to paintball, the most popular aspect of it is still rec ball. People still enjoy playing soldiers like they did when they were kids. Scenario games (in the states) mainly have military themes. I doubht tippman would bring out a marker that was a blatant copy of a well known real steel SMG if they thought that it would not be appropriate.

Just something to think about.

I know this post will not enamour me to many people but just trying to see the bigger picture.

 

[woodsta]

I think that the comments made at the top are a bit pesamistic, dude you really must of got mugged proper to say all that, but look at how much laterly p8ntball is taking off, i think wat will happen will be the reverse of what you said.
A bit of enthusiasm will most likely help it, not essays putting it down.

 

[Wadidiz]

Please read all the words. Don't jump to conclusions. I was painting a bleak, pessimistic picture. I want us to see what could happen if we don't make sure paintball markers are handled properly and safely. We could lose paintball if we stay lax on safety.

And then I went on to say what could replace paintball in the future.

Again, I hate lazer-whatever as it is today. I love paintball and want it to continue to grow and get better. I am not putting paintball down. I am pushing for improvement.

Read all my posts and you'll see.

As far as the militaristic thing, I don't have a problem with the military. Most people in the military in the free countries of the world are really good people, like the police. There is a job that unfortunately has to be done and we need people to do it.

We just have to be sensitive to how people view militarism. That's why it's good that the European paintball scene has been good about separating paintball from the militaristic image.

Anyway, this thread was started to get people thinking about possibilities. And to bring out why paintball is some much better than laser games. Not to cause hate or get people stirred up in the wrong way.

Peace,

Steve

 

[Wadidiz]

Originally posted by Syd (SPWL)
OK, what about these things we all enjoy about paintball:

1) Choosing the right marker for our playing style. Wouldn't a lasergun be just a lasergun? Different styles for front and back players? Can't see it. We love customising our markers. And what about all those add-ons and adjustments to make sure we're getting the best gas consumption, the ideal chrono speed, etc.

2) Choosing the right paint. No matter how annoying paint can be when it goes wrong, their is great satisfaction in finding the right paint for your marker and seeing them fly straight and break everytime without smegging your breach and barrel.

3) Firing paintballs. The noise, the effect of wind, the arc they fly upon, the colours, the look on a guys eyes when you've just bunkered him from no where. Will you get these with lasertag - no. Paintballs make give the game a cretain amount of interest and unpredictability.

4) Cheating and abusing cheaters. No matter what you think, cheating takes place in all sports. Look at soccer - fouls happen all the time. It is an excepted part of the game and referees often make bad calls. I reckon we'd miss it, whether we agree with cheating or not.

5) Safety aspects - these all add to the atmosphere of the game. I love the look of a well laid out tourney, with netting, chronograph areas, and guys wearing goggles. I even enjoy putting my goggles on as I make my way out for a game. Take these away, we're loosing atmosphere.

6) Shooting Accurately. How long(big) is a laser beam? The size of a paintball? I doubt it - it's gonna be longer which means you don't have to shoot as accurately. Put a beam of light across a runners line of path and he'll run through it. I'd rather be trying to put a string of paintballs across his path, shooting fast whilst trying to keep my accuracy. So much more fun.

7) Shooting fast. Could you fire 13 laser beams a second??? Would it feel anywhere as near as good as shooting 13 balls a second?

I could go on and on and on. Your reasoning is flawed.

If you read my last posts you'll see the thinking (or lack thereof?) behind my original post. But for fun let's look at some possibilities:

1. I could foresee the laser markers being in all shapes sizes and colors like today's paintball markers. Think Men in Black's arsenal.

2. Maybe a choice of power supplies, batteries, colors of visible laser beams?

3. Maybe future sound effects, colors (as above), the look on the opponents face when she gets mugged and feels the vibration, perhaps the electrical shock, of getting hit. (Maybe we could make the shock stronger the closer range the hit?)

4. I don't think we want to create room for cheating, but players will find ways to get more effect (than allowed) out of their markers or have them shoot in several different directions simultaneously or some shiznit. Or get beamed from a satellite where the opponent is.

5. We would have a lot more freedom for creativity concerning the playing environment and conditions.

6. The accuracy good be as good as we want it to be, probably at least up to 200 meters. The beam doesn't have to be any bigger than .62 caliber.

7. Again, we can make this anything we want it to be without any safety risks. Pulse, bursts, semi, full-auto. I would prefer semi-auto with limited ROF. And I would want it like paintball, without the possibility to go through bunkers and other unhardened objects.

This is just speculation. All of these technical capabilities are many years away. I may go against myself if I said they may be impossible. Never say never.

I love paintball the way it is, except for the systematic cheating and breaches of safety. I don't want it to go away.

 

[Hotpoint]

Originally posted by crom-dubh
How bad is the image of paintball being "too militaristic"? Everyone goes on about how paintball should be separated from the cammo and military terms, but how much is that affecting the sport?

It effects the sport in that it is a major factor why we aren't technically a sport (at least in the UK)

Whether they admit it or not the major factor why I've had to spend the last three years negotiating with the Sports Councils to get them to recognise us, is the fact that our activity is still perceived as having a paramilitary image

As long as we aren't officially recognised by the Government as being a sport... in the eyes of the public we simply aren't a sport it's as simple as that

Break the connection between Paintball and Wargames in the public perception of our Sport and there is no limit to how far we can go (IMHO)

 

[crom-dubh]

Ok so why not think of a new name for tourney? Instead of calling it "paintball" why not think of something else?

If we cannot get people to differenciate between paintball and "play war" Then lets stop calling it paintball.

 

[Tyger]

why not drop the offending guns and play professional "freeze tag"?



-Tyger

 

[Hotpoint]

Originally posted by Tyger
why not drop the offending guns and play professional "freeze tag"?

How about because the word "gun" has nothing to do with Paintball in the first place. The problem is convincing everyone of it