Paintball Vs. Airsoft

[vengie]

I want to get into a new hobby this spring and have been debating between these two. Does anyone here play either on a regular basis?
I've never actually played Airsoft and I've also heard there aren't very many Airsoft fields left in Calgary, and the one that is left is poorly run.
Airsoft intrigues me due to the realism of it, but the lack of fields would make it difficult to play often.

I've played woodsball quite a bit at Brag Creek and enjoy it everytime.

I figure it would be about $800 to outfit myself with some relatively decent gear, which is not an issue. What is the per day cost like above that?? I'd like to get out at least once a weekend.

Also what is the overall attitude like towards a new player? (I would classify myself as a beginner, borderline intermediate paintball player.)

Any and all input is appreciated!

[zieg]

Paintball gets lame really quick when you realize the range and accuracy of the guns. Airsoft is much more realistic not only in the guns and gear, but also the gameplay. Lots more strategy involved, etc. Put it this way, when military folk get back from deployment and wanna kick some ass.... they do not play paintball. It's good to run and gun but that's about it.

Fields are a problem yes, but if you are part of the local club you can find a game going on almost every weekend during the summer. They play at bragg creek as well as other locations around Calgary and area (there's a really nice one in olds and another about an hour east of town).

[DEATH2000]

Been a little since I played either, but I will throw in my .02c.

Their are no longer any indoor airsoft fields in Calgary. Only outdoors, and most Airsoft guns are battery or gas powered which dont do too well in the cold. Paintball can be done year round realistically.

Airsoft can get very expensive very fast. Paintball requires a much cheaper initial investment to find out if you like it or not. I had a marker from Walmart and it worked just as fine (for me) as the rental Tippmans. Airsoft guns start at around $200 for most rifles/pistols and can exceed $2,500. Most battery powered rifles (AEG's) run around the $500 mark for a good quality one.

[BigMass]

Airsoft you can use real gear mixed with your airsoft gear and basically have your own little enjoyable role-play environment with more realistic scenarios and tactics. You don't have to worry about getting paint all over the $3000 you just spent on spec-ops gear, radios, firearm accessories, red dot sights etc. You can also set up crap in your basement and shoot at it with your airsoft gun if you want. Paint gets a bit too messy for my liking. I don't play airsoft anymore but when I did you can get into clubs and groups that set up private fields on farm land that can encompass forest, river, bush etc. A lot of fun and a good work out. More realistic and fun than paintball IMO. Paintball is kind of like laser tag, airsoft seems like something you can really sink your teeth into if you like that type of stuff. If you like military shit, gear, guns, accessories etc. I also remember they used to set up games that would last an entire long weekend where you camped out and had night raids, ambushes and crap like that.

[DSM4LIFE]

i play airsoft weekly. im on a team based out of calgary and absolutely love it. i played paintball before but as soon as i tried airsoft i havent looked back. the realism and tactics make it an absolute blast. if you decide to go the airsoft route, i am currently selling an entire loadout and could easily get you set up. as DEATH2000 stated there are currently no more indoor arenas in calgary but plently of outdoor. i have made the trip to edmonton to play indoor there over the winter, great place and i find it worth the drive but thats not for everyone. hopefully in the near future there will be an indoor arena.

[Skidro]

I used to play airsoft but I stopped mostly because I lost interest, most of the guys playing were way to serious about it. it was especially stupid when you would have guys running around with 500 round mags and then there were other people that barely had enough gear to play, and then the more experience people (aka 500 rounders) would then bitch at the new people for not playing properly.

This has happened to me in indoor, and outdoor.

No shirts paintball is were its at

[Sugarphreak]

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[Sugarphreak]

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[Dave P]

How do you know you get hit in airsoft? Like you see guys running around in full military get up. can you feel it through that?

[BigMass]

Originally posted by Dave P
How do you know you get hit in airsoft? Like you see guys running around in full military get up. can you feel it through that?

You feel it most of the time unless it's a stray shot that hits your boot or something and you honestly miss it. Usually outdoor, people use more powerful guns than indoor. Airsoft basically works on the honor system. Remember that you play airsoft for fun. It's not Wimbledon or some huge championship. There's really nothing to gain from cheating. As players get more experienced they're more likely to be honest. Noobs that are nervous and want to be in games longer are more likely to not call hits but its not a huge deal. More often than not if you ambush someone and unload into them and they're like "Owwwww!" well that's an obvious hit :p

[JAYMEZ]

I used to play Airsoft every week. Its fun to get into , but like everyone else said , it gets pretty pricey lol

[DEATH2000]

Originally posted by Dave P
How do you know you get hit in airsoft? Like you see guys running around in full military get up. can you feel it through that?

Most times you get shot somewhere where you will feel it, like your face or hands

On gear it usually makes a nice "thwack" sound.

[seaarerex]

Originally posted by Skidro
I used to play airsoft but I stopped mostly because I lost interest, most of the guys playing were way to serious about it. it was especially stupid when you would have guys running around with 500 round mags and then there were other people that barely had enough gear to play, and then the more experience people (aka 500 rounders) would then bitch at the new people for not playing properly.

This has happened to me in indoor, and outdoor.

No shirts paintball is were its at

*just realized how old the OP is*

Same bit, i tried getting in to airsoft but the community is not accepting at all i found, there are very few if any fields that allow weekend warriors.
The attitude from the players and even senior players was poor at best. if i did not play how they wanted they bashed you till you left.

No of course with anything you do there are gonna be those elitist rude attitude people but my personal experience, paintball has was more options. so you do not have to spend thousands of dollars to get in to it.

paintball is just not speedball ( air bunkers) there is milsim and it has taken quite a step from what it used to be.
check out www.ansgear.com

as for strategy. there is tons of strategy involved with paintball. it is not just simply run and gun, yes you can choose to do that, but if you want more from paintball, it is available.

+ there are fields around calgary in door and out, speedball and milsim/woodsball

eatpaint.com is calgary rampage and has a great indoor field.
i personally do not fully agree with their paint pricing compared to east canada and even tons of fields in the usa but that is just my personal opinion.


my nutshell 2cents here, tryout paintball first, go to rampage, rent a gun before dropping tons of money on gear, talk to some players there, guys are nice enough to let you shoot there guns if you ask nicely

if you really hate it try airsoft and try doing that same thing ( i dont know of any fields that have rentals though so u might have to buy or borrow some gear)

why i say paintball first is compared to my experience with airsoft, it left a very sour taste in my mouth versus paintball (being community and welcoming towards new players)

all my personal opinion,^ i am not bashing airsoft, it is great fun. i was treated like crap for wanting to try something new and not following to the dot how to call commands or walk or run. paintball was not like that and had huge fun.

hope that helps