POLL: Should paintball be in the X-Games?

[EsPo]

i would hate to see paintball in the x games. if it were to be showed on the x games, thousands of people would start playing. i like to think that im in on a big secret or something you know?

[RetroEclipseMan]

I'd like to see Paintball on TV once a way is developed to film it and make it interesting rather than just showing closeups of players snapshooting. I just don't wanna see it in the X-Games. I think that it may bring a better image to the sport but I think that can be done in other ways rather than just sticking it in the X-Games. Also I would like to know what is so extreme about paintball. Sure it is my favorite sport and a huge adrenaline rush but what makes it so extreme as the events in the X-Games like Skateboarding or Freestyle MotoX where the chance of injury is great. I mean paintball is one of the safer sports out there. Just my opinion on the matter though.

[digitard]

I think if they did they should use that XCam they used in that failed XFL thing, it sucked for the XFL but the hovering cam would work great in a paintball match.

Sincerely,
Dave K

[personman]

Originally posted by Vegeta
Think about it.
It's like kindergarten. you and 2 friends ask the teacher to get out a toy. She says yes, if you be quiet. So you pull out a puzzle and start peicing it together. Some idiot comes along and says "Hey I wanna play!". So it's like.. ok.. sure.. but the, a few more peopel come, then more. Before long the entire class has a peice of hte puzzle in their hand wanting ot put it in. No fun.

Look at hte amount of feilds right now. I do not know abotu those who live in more populous areas, but the nearest feild to me it about 50 miles. You would need more feilds to accomodate the new players. And if you got 10 new kids with pumps who haev never played before, and are playing cuase they saw it on TV.. well.. thats trouble. Some don't have masks.. some don't know safety rules.

Yet, it would bring new players and new feilds eventually. I would love to see it on TV, to be honest.

Those are exactally my feelings on this topic.
Of corse its already edging to that point here in Atlanta..
Everyone knows about paintball, if you say paintball in my school people will start stating facts about it and arguign over whats the best gun when they have only played one time and dont know half of them.
In Atlanta its every 10 year old's dream to play paintball, and some fields here even allow 10 year olds in.
Sure it brings publicity, sure its easy eliminations, but its just these annoying little kids marching around talking about paintball and entering tournaments and winning when he owns a BE Talon..
I just dont think paintball should be over publicisized..
I guess its the fact that every kid thinks its 'shooting up' people and thats why they like it.. I just think its a great game with a nice idea behind it..
I dunno, I dont think paintball is ready for the Xgames..

[TheJester]

Originally posted by PigSweat
paintball isn't the most thrilling spectator sport.

i only some what agree, but i'm not 1 to like watching tourney clips or what ever, don't know why, but if i love sitting out and just watching a few games, but then again, i know what's goin on, i get control of the "camera"....cause they're my eyes, not sure how the generel public would feel towards it, but i know every adult i've shown clips to say, wow that looks like fun

[ogre55]

Originally posted by personman
In Atlanta its every 10 year old's dream to play paintball, and some fields here even allow 10 year olds in.
Sure it brings publicity, sure its easy eliminations, but its just these annoying little kids marching around talking about paintball and entering tournaments and winning when he owns a BE Talon..

Ok, so whats the problem? If ever y 10 year old wants to play, maybe a few of them will. And maybe a few of those will like and take it up as more than a one time thing. That means more players, and there is no problem with that.

As for kids playing tounries and winning with BE Talons (not that I don't thing that most of the products that BE makes are not useless) if they play in tounries, GREAT. And if they win with such inferior equipent, I can't wait to see what a kid like that can do with a real pump gun (Talons are pumps I believe) or perhaps even a Mag?

Ogre

[ogre55]

Re: Well...

Hey Chris:

Great post, but I have a couple of comments.

Originally posted by raehl
If people will watch golf, they'll watch anything.

I saw woodcutting on ESPN the other day. Yes, people will watch just about anything.

There are plenty of ways to play paintball that are more TV friendly. I actually have a set of rules on the drawing board that I've put up on r.s.p. at least once to get some feedback on.

I would think multiple cameras on the field with a two or four way split screen to keep people tuned into as much of the game as possible.

Soccer gets very little TV time, yet it's probably one of the most popular youth games in the country along with Baseball. If paintball really is going to hit the "big time" (in terms of participation at any rate) it'll be because we take it out of hiding in the backwoods and make it accessable and acceptable to people at a fairly young age. (I'm not saying woodsball is bad, just that you need to at least get people aware of how to get to woods fields - they're not exactly things you tend to drive by on a day-to-day basis. People drive by soccer fields all the time.) As it stands, I can count the number of officially recognized High School paintball clubs in this country on my fingers. That there are any at all is the result of the NCPA stepping up to get some going, four months ago there were none. College clubs are still a wee bit shy of 100. Those are DISMAL numbers in comparison to pretty much every other sport - including Rugby, Badmitton, Volleyball, Bowling, Skiing, Cross Country, even Fencing - you name it, that sport is doing a better job of cultivating young new players than Paintball is. Interestingly enough, they're all on TV too. Connection? I'd say so.

There is one major difference between all the sports you just mentioned and paintball. The playing costs. With all the other sports you mentioned, to play it recreationally requires a minimum of equipment. Usually only a ball and a place to play.

Paintball, on the other hand, has one of the highest start up costs and playing fees of any sport. As a minimum, you need a marker (at least $50 per player) and a mask (at least $20 per player). That's $70 per player (and at the prices I qouted, that's very low end equipment, not including paint air and field fees. These costs can be very prohibitave to many people.

Ogre

[FESTUS33]

Originally posted by PigSweat
The real question is will there be paintball in the X-Games, paintball isn't the most thrilling spectator sport.

Go to Skyball And tell Me it isn;t a Thrilling spectator sport
Even for Noob's
It can be done right in the Right Venue{SP}
Rick

[rxpbr]

I would hate all the cursing wiping and cheating to show up on National TV.

[�.C.]

Well the way we play paintball is too spontaneous to have it in the X games. A game could last for small amounts of time and large amounts of time. I don't think it should be in the X games. Think about watching Tony Hawk do all his fancy tricks and people doing insanely spectacular things and then when paintball comes on people see it as a whole bunch of fat people shooting back and forth until they finally hit each other. Sometimes we'll get lucky and something exciting happens like someone getting bunkered or lit up. It's just it putting paintball next to some really cool stunts makes paintball look kinda weak. I know people want paintball to spread but what we really need is a good show that really shows what paintball is all about, not something like splatter factor.

[Automaggin2]

To me, paintbal dosnt progress enough. everything in the xgames progresses. The reason why Ski Blading was takin out of the winter x games is cause it wasnt progressing. Paintball wont progress, its the same thing over and over and over again.

[Mag O Holic]

You guys remember that one year... i believe 2000, when they announced that extreme scootin' would be in the x-games, people ran to the stores to buy scooters, then no more than 2 months after the x-games, the fad died. Same wil happen to paintball if it ever makes it to the x-games. It'll be great for the sport while it lasts, prices will fall, new (shiny) guns will appear, and more newbs at the fields that want to eat my paint, what could be better? But then again, in come the rish folks, wanting to be cool, with thier dark angels, and their falshy lcd's, what could be cooler then being able to tell the tempature with ur gun? hell, why not stick a cell phone in the guns while ur at it. Good and bad for the sport... is what i say.

[Automaggin2]

Originally posted by Mag O Holic
You guys remember that one year... i believe 2000, when they announced that extreme scootin' would be in the x-games, people ran to the stores to buy scooters, then no more than 2 months after the x-games, the fad died. Same wil happen to paintball if it ever makes it to the x-games. It'll be great for the sport while it lasts, prices will fall, new (shiny) guns will appear, and more newbs at the fields that want to eat my paint, what could be better? But then again, in come the rish folks, wanting to be cool, with thier dark angels, and their falshy lcd's, what could be cooler then being able to tell the tempature with ur gun? hell, why not stick a cell phone in the guns while ur at it. Good and bad for the sport... is what i say.

I dont ever recall seeing scottin in the x gams? lol.

[who_311]

To be honest, paintball gets kind of boring after awhile.

[bryceeden]

I think that the way X-Ball is set up it could and should be in the X-games, but normal tornement speedball would be boring for anyone who dosn't have paint in their blood.