25 replies to this topic

[Blue]

Prepared for closing.. Thanks to those that helped.

Edited by Blue, 13 April 2010 - 01:04 PM.

[TantumBull]

Discussing and glorifying weaponry in school is almost never a good idea. Just be careful with subjecs like these.

Edited by TantumBull, 10 April 2010 - 12:59 AM.

[nerfsharpie6]

Nerf is a game played with foam dart shooting blasters, where as Airsoft is played with plastic BB shooting guns. In both game types, shooting is involved, but Nerf is a glorified game of tag where as Airsoft is better described as military simulation.

NERF is a hobby game played with plastic blasters, where Airsoft is a 'simulation' game played with replica military equipment. In both games the object is to 'tag' out the opposing players while trying to stay alive on your team. There are many differences to the games, and each have their own list of pros and cons. In this article I will be discussing the pros and cons of each hobby.

NERF blasters are generally available at any major retail giant, whilst Airsoft is sold in Sporting Good stores (i.e Dick's Sporting Goods, Sports Authority, Gander Mountain etc.) or specialty stores located in the US, China, or Japan. The cost difference in NERF compared to Airsoft is quite noticeable with the cheapest blaster (the Nite Finder) costing around eight dollars, and the most expensive (The Vulcan Chain blaster a hefty fifty dollars). Airsoft is generally more expensive but have a wide range of qualities. The cheapest (price and quality) is around five dollars or ten dollars respectively. The higher quality an item is, the more it costs. Two extreme examples are Classic Army (Produced in China) and WELL (also produced in China). Classic Army replica weapons cost any where from $200 to $600, because of their high quality standard. WELL is on the cheapest side of Airsoft ranging from ten dollars to thirty dollars.

There is also an age factor in both NERF and Airsoft. NERF has no age limit. You can be as young or old as you can handle the game. Blasters are readily available and you don't need to be a specific age to buy a blaster. Airsoft does have an age requirement, and is that you have to be Eighteen years or older to buy a replica gun. The reason being Airsoft guns have higher velocities and range compared to a NERF blaster. With out eye protection in Airsoft you can loose an eye, or tooth because of the velocities from the gun. A NERF blaster has a lesser chance of putting out an eye, but there still always a chance given the type of hobby these games are.

With NERF blasters you fire foam 'darts' propelled by slightly compressed air. Factory darts cost around thirty-six cents each. But there is a home made option for NERF. a dart called a 'stefan' created by a NERFer, Stephan Moor. The darts are made from a material called Foam Backing Rod (its real purpose is to seal gaps in windows). They are roughly the same material density as factory made darts, but are mad eat home for a fraction of the cost. The foam backer rod is cut to a desired length, heat straight and then tipped with a weight and hot glue. The darts are just as safe as factory darts, but increase range compared to factory darts. Airsoft guns fire a six millimeter plastic ball at high velocites (ranging any where from 200 feet per second to 600 feet per second). The balls used in Airsoft are made in different weights to increase range or achieve a desired velocity (ranges are in the ball park of eighty feet to 300 feet). The production cost of ammunition for Airsoft is a fraction of a penny, but you cannot create your own ammo. With NERF how ever you can pick up your darts you just fired and keep playing.

The game play for NERF varies greatly from Airsoft. With NERF you have a set number of lives (usually three). After those three lives are expended you must count to fifteen and announce you are reentering the game. In Airsoft you have only one life and once its used you must wait for a medical officer on your team to heal you, or you must walk back to your team designated spawn point and wait a set amount of time (usually ten minutes but it depends on the event you are attending). There are also major clothing discrepancies in both hobbies. With NERF, its a casual game where you can wear just about anything and still be comfortable while playing. In Airsoft players usually wear Military surplus uniforms in their teams designated color (most common are greean and tan [substitute brown on occasoins] but blue and black are used).

The differences are many in the hobby types with one crowd favoring one game type over another. I prefer NERF because its more relaxed and inexpensive compared to Airsoft where there are strict rules to adhere by.


Check that over. If you like it good, if not then tough shit. I just basically wrote your essay over in about 5000 words. It should get you an A. Your welcome.

[Whisper101]

Tantum brings up a very good point. On topic; nerf encourages creativity. How? Well, form most modders' perspective, nerfing is more about the modding than the warring. My parents are cool wiht me nerfing because really, it's engineering when you think about it. It's educational!!! I have learned all sorts of fine motor skills and general construction methods from my tenure here at the haven. Nerf allows changes. I know people do mod airsoft guns, bust most certainly not to the extent that we mod and paint, and love our WNDs (weapons of nerf destruction). Hope this helps and good luck!

[death by cheez]

Well I shall soon be testing the differences in the 2 sports

[zaphodB]

Also, parenthetical statements should be avoided in formal essay writing. Use footnotes if it's truly parenthetical, or find a way to work it into the essay. Otherwise cut it out completely.

Also also avoid the first person.

Also also also, Blue, I'd advise you to pretty much disregard nerfsharpie's reworked essay entirely. He is clearly a much better writer than you, and if you turned that in for your english class your teacher will know you didn't write it.

Edited by zaphodB, 10 April 2010 - 11:51 AM.

[nerfsharpie6]

Your welcome.

That's never a good sign on something that's for an English class.

Not to be added . After I wrote that last night, I was dead tired and a little confused why some one would want a community of strangers to proof read, and grammatically correct his essay. Plus of all the essays I wrote during my most active days here, I never asked you guys to proof read or correct my essays.

Edited by nerfsharpie6, 10 April 2010 - 11:55 AM.

[pinz321]

I just basically wrote your essay over in about 5000 words. It should get you an A. Your welcome.

Try 747 words. Inaccurate much?

[Flaming Hilt]

Actually the cheapest blaster, I believe, is the Secret Strike Pocket blaster. They are hard to find nowadays but I found a few at Fred Meyer for $3/each a few weeks ago. You may want to emphasize the quality of the SSPB or NF, as you mention the lack of quality in the $5 airsoft guns, and how much you pay for how much you get would be a good comparison to make.

In both games the object is to 'tag' out the opposing players while trying to stay alive on your team.

Disagree. In most cases, yes, but you could also be playing something like "Defend the Core." You could say, "both games revolve around 'tagging out' the opposing players."

I would also add more in about something you started on with "losing" and something nerfsharpie6 seemed to eliminate in his essay -- the attitude. You highlighted how the play style of airsoft is more military replication, but I think you could put more emphasis on how much nerfers shove aside their dignity when they walk through the checkout line (or, how much they have to not care what other people think. Or something like that -- maybe a more veteran nerfer can phrase it better than I have). I think there's an essay floating around about this by one of the mods. You could include a photo of one of Baghead's fluorescent blasters, if he's okay with that.

Edited by Flaming Hilt, 10 April 2010 - 12:56 PM.

[Hi Yah]

If I were you, I wouldn't even be talking about nerf or airsoft. I would probabaly be suspended or maybe even expelled from my high school if I wrote something like that. Try to focus on how nerf is about modding and try not to talk about the game play. This will make nerf seem more about engineering rather than about simulated warfare. I don't think you should be worried about the nerf part; but rather, the airsoft part.

[nerfsharpie6]

I tried the best I could to rewrite the essay to the best of my ability t0 not sound one sided on the subject. Hence why I left some things out. Its hard to truly write an essay comparing and contrasting two games, one of with the OP never played in the first place.

Yes I left things out, yes I added more to on subject than the other. Truth is I've played more Airsoft than NERF so I know more about it. What I wrote could only be considered a base line for the essay.

And who ever said 748 words. Wow. Way to nit pick. 4784 Characters in total in the entire post.

If the OP wants to use my essay as a base guide and add to it, he can. If he wants to use the one he has, he can.


Now I remember why I don't come here any more.

[death by cheez]

Well here's the 2 differences: Airsoft hurts like crap, nerf doesn't. Airsoft is long-ranged, nerf isn't. I know the pain of both, and I have the airsoft welts to prove it. Not any welts from nerf guns, even from a 10 foot shot from a singled titan.

[pinz321]

I tried the best I could to rewrite the essay to the best of my ability t0 not sound one sided on the subject. Hence why I left some things out. Its hard to truly write an essay comparing and contrasting two games, one of with the OP never played in the first place.

Yes I left things out, yes I added more to on subject than the other. Truth is I've played more Airsoft than NERF so I know more about it. What I wrote could only be considered a base line for the essay.

And who ever said 748 words. Wow. Way to nit pick. 4784 Characters in total in the entire post.

If the OP wants to use my essay as a base guide and add to it, he can. If he wants to use the one he has, he can.


Now I remember why I don't come here any more.

You did say 5000 words. Characters and words are completely different. Words can be 12 characters long. Each space, comma, and line skip is a character.

[Blue]

..

Edited by Blue, 13 April 2010 - 01:04 PM.

[TantumBull]

This feels a lot more like a 7th grade prompt than a compare and contrast essay. And that's not because of your writing style, but rather the subject and content. I would strongly suggest you go deeper, if your hell bent on making this about nerf. Possibly turn this into an essay comparing and contrasting the militarizing our youth, with reference to airsoft guns and the n-strike line, in comparison with a more light-hearted 90's when some of the goofier blaster's were released. You could really go far with something like that. This really needs a complete overhaul in subject, regardless of the path you choose. I understand how one can get carried away when writing about something enjoyable, but the reader doesn't really need to know how one can use cpvc and hot glue to modify a blaster.

Now I know my editting may seem a bit harsh, but remember that I am critiquing your work, and NOT you as an individual, so please don't take offense. Just trying to get you a better grade.

[canuck]

The problem is, you have no way of proving that nerf is the "glorified game o tag to other people" like it is on this forum. Some people use nerf in MilSim, so unless you can back up your statement, you can not compare nerf and airsoft by it (the statement). There is no best way to play nerf. Whatever floats your boat.

[nate the great]

Oh, by the way in airsoft you also get scars from the BBs. I got shot down by a_sniper_and it left a nice scar on my arm that I still have. I also have one of my friends a lot of welts from a grenade launcher and some of them turned to scars that he still has. The worst thing that happened in Nerf is my friend getting a bad bruise from my +bow.

[death by cheez]

I don't know about them leaving scars, but then again the most powerful gun in the 380fps CO2 my friend has, and my welt hasn't gone down enough to tell if it'll leave a scar.

Just turn the darn thing in, I don't even know why you're asking the INTERNET and people on the INTERNET to help you with this, it's like cheating on it.

[durka durka]

This feels a lot more like a 7th grade prompt than a compare and contrast essay. And that's not because of your writing style, but rather the subject and content. I would strongly suggest you go deeper, if your hell bent on making this about nerf. Possibly turn this into an essay comparing and contrasting the militarizing our youth, with reference to airsoft guns and the n-strike line, in comparison with a more light-hearted 90's when some of the goofier blaster's were released. You could really go far with something like that. This really needs a complete overhaul in subject, regardless of the path you choose. I understand how one can get carried away when writing about something enjoyable, but the reader doesn't really need to know how one can use cpvc and hot glue to modify a blaster.

Tantum has some very good points. You probably could get away with an ok grade with your topic, but english teachers just love depth because it signals that you have put a lot of thought into your work. Tantum is right in saying that the reader does not need to know much more about modding other than that it exists. It's easy to go overboard with detail when you're writing about something that intrests you.

You could also compare the crime and violence rates of the two periods, and finish off your essay describing any effect this militarization has had on youth.

[Blue]

..

Edited by Blue, 13 April 2010 - 01:04 PM.

[Hipponater]

I'm hopping in kinda late, so I don't have words about the topic or content, but I'll look at the grammar, teachers love to strip off points.

I suck quite hard at writing, so I turned Tantum's suggestion into a paragraph instead of the whole essay:

There is also an issue of being realistic. Back in the 80's(no ', it is not possessive), there was no law about orange tips and toy guns were made to be exact replicas of real guns, the perfect example being the Larami Tec9, which even shot rubber pellets the exact size of a 9mm round. This led to some police shootings of kids carrying toy guns, and more youth violence because of the small difference between a toy and the real thing. Kenner stepped in in the early 90's (again, just 90s) with toy guns designed to be... Animals. Nerf gave them their name to use,( ; ) since up until then Nerf had only been making foam toys that were safe to throw around inside. The toys were a huge hit, and more designs came out with a series that was SciFi themed, and then a series with clear halves so you could see how the toys worked. Airsoft started from this issue of banning realistic guns too, only they went the opposite direction. Following the new laws, tips of guns were painted orange, and the realistic amunition was changed to plastic balls. In recent years, however, Nerf has tried to make more realistic blasters, but still keeping them parent friendly. Bright orange clips started being used in blasters, and in 2008 the drum clip came out. Using bolts similar to real guns, most nerf guns have the feel and performance of real guns, but the color and looks of toys.

Edited some grammar. Nazi like, yes, but it's for a grade.
This paragraph wasn't too bad, I can look at other parts if you want.

And here is my lamesauce conclusion:
Both airsoft and Nerf can be fun, but it all depends on what you want. If shooting plastic toys at each other, and doing work in your garage is your idea of fun, you'll like Nerf. If giving your buddies welts is what you like, then Airsoft is for you.

Too sarcastic, really. Doesn't feel comparison and contrast-y enough. It has a (drastically) different tone than the rest of your paper.

Edit to fix a ; turning into a smile.

Edited by Hipponater, 11 April 2010 - 09:46 PM.

[zaphodB]

Now go back and get rid of all the fucking first person tense you use, and then learn how to make concise paragraphs. Your paragraphs are a page long. That is shitty essay writing. Every time you change topics or ideas, you should make a new paragraph. Don't drag shit on until reading your essay is like trying to find a quarter in a bucketful of organs.

If you turned this paper in to me, I would give you a D at best.

[Lynx]

At a good public school with a good teacher, the process will be broken down for the most "ing'nant" students so your topic and thesis/conclusion will be approved (I am taking a non-AP class since I couldn't fit it into my schedule).

I am assuming your teachers will grade at that level, but didn't baby you.

Meh... If you normally write fairly well and this is just practice writing, you'll get a b to a minus. However, if the teacher doesn't like you, you had the opportunity to get it edited, or it is being graded by a rubric (and the teacher follows it), you'll get a c to a b.

EDIT: Oh, yeah: *ahem* zaphod, you apparently are smrt enuff to red and writ so da intertubes dont need to halp u. *cough cough* that hurt a bit

Basically, if you want us to help you on this sort of shit, have it be on fact checking. And if you want to check facts, JUST GO THE THE WIKI!

It is Stefan Mohr and he isn't a Moor. He is a Canadian and quite white.

Edited by Lynx, 11 April 2010 - 11:45 PM.

[ilzot]

Not to sound like an asshole, but duuuude. Work on your run-on sentences.

You have a lot of sentences like this:

This is a run-on sentence, because after some of these thoughts, I don't divide them into seperate sentences, and it all runs together, and it looks like this.

Hopefully this isn't for any grade above a freshman in high school?

EDIT - I just caught a glimpse that the drum mag was released in '08. Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't it '09? 9/9/09?

Edited by ilzot, 12 April 2010 - 09:39 PM.

[Blue]

..

Edited by Blue, 13 April 2010 - 01:05 PM.