Blood Red Paintballs (Thread from Pbnation News)

[Lohman446]

I have seen several. Mostly large cuts from sliding on things that shouldn't be slid on.


But, I agree that the big issue here is not red paint on a paintball field masking an injury on a paintball field. The issues are as follows:

- The more red paint is out there, the more likely some schmuck shooting things/people he ain't supposed to be shooting is shooting red paint (and if they are the kind of people who would do that, even SEEKS OUT red paint for the purpose) and shoots someone who is NOT playing paintball and that someone thinks they have been shot for real.

- People with casual familiarity with the game will make, and more importantly relate to others, damaging impressions about the sport. Parents who see paintball and see people getting shot by red paint will not let their kids play. Kids who go to play who come home covered in red paint will not get to play again. Parents talk to each other, and the conversation will be "Oh, I don't want my son going to that paintball birthday party, my friend said her son went to one and he came home looking like he'd been in a gun battle."

And, to counter, that, red paint provides NO VALUE. It doesn't mark better than other colors, doesn't fly straighter, doesn't break better, the ONLY thing red paint accomplishes is letting people pretend they're causing real harm to other people. And if we're allowing that kind of product to be sold, what does that say about the 'sport'? It's not a sport anymore, it's violence reenactment. Hell, even civil war reenactors are not running around replicating wounds, because the violence isn't the point.


So:

No benefit.
Significant drawbacks.

Any rational person should be able to see that this is a bad idea. The ONLY people who benefit from this is the manufacturer making a quick buck.



- Chris

I looked at this one actually. In consideration of it I would argue that if some people want to use it it obviously provided some benefit to them.

As to those shooting at non-players...
I have played paintball (a lot), and its unlikely that if a vehicle drove by and started firing one of the "louder" (and normally cheaper wally world ones that are used for this purpose) at me that I would not respond to the threat as a serious and legitimate threat of great personal harm or death. I would not be the first person to return fire on pranksters beleiving a paintball marker was more than it was. Its idiocy to those who pull this type of prank, and should be dealt with in a swift and severe manner by law enforcement

As to the theory that parents will think there child was involved in a gun battle. It was always a paintball gun before I started playing and I still scoff at the idea of having to call it a marker. The point of paintball is to simulate a gun battle, war game, whatever you want to call it.

The more we try to move away from this aspect the more we befuddle people. I think its an identity crisis that paintball needs to address. We are shooting at each other, its part of the game, no change in terminology, no dressing up like clowns, no hiding behind balloons is going to change that.

[ghost flanker]

Yeah, it's a sport... but it ain't dodgeball.

Hmmm... what's a bigger health risk? Red paint that may initially resemble gushing blood to a moron? Or paintball guns that fire 30+ bps?

I say give the people what they want. If players want red paint, give 'em red paint. If they want 30+ bps, then give 'em that too. There's nothing wrong with making a buck.

As for suicide via pharmacudical products, I don't get its correlation to their paintballs unless you can make meth out of them. To me, the dead girl and the drugs are weird and a bit inappropriate, but some people enjoy grindcore death metal. It's morbid as hell and not my particular cup of tea, but you won't ever find me on the side of "Mothers Against GWAR" making a big stink over violent music. If you don't like it, don't buy it. Let this company's poor marketing strategy be it's own downfall.

As for all the "what if" scenarios and as-of-yet unfounded accounts of unusual paintball related injuries, such as breast feeding babies being shot in the head with red paintballs during drive-by-shootings in Hayseed, USA... just stop. A red paintball has never hurt anyone any more than it would have had it been pink, instead.

And stop putting lipstick on a pig. They're paintball "guns." A hit is a "kill." You "shoot" your opponent. An eliminated player walking off the field is a "dead man." Enough with the politically correct BS and respect the sport for what it is; a simulated shooting game.

"There's my 2 cents. Go buy yourself sumthin nice."

[WantsAMag]

I dont see a problem with this ad...

video games have far worse marketing than this and they haven't "died". In fact, video games have been growing exponentially since they were introduced.

the only way this will "kill" the sport, is by people boycotting the paint. That just means less players, and one more of the few companies down the drain. Kids that might want to try the sport will second guess themselves when they here people talking about how "dangerous" red paint is.

just play the game. embrace the sport to help it grow. let companies use whatever marketing techniques they need to to get more people in the game. there are always going to be critics. The video game industry has thousands more of them than paintball, yet it still thrives.