Thoughts: Australian Elite VS American Elite: Which is better?

(Link) As the loyal Nerf Nation followers know, us Australians are getting 'nerfed' versions of the upcoming N-Strike Elite blasters (such as the Retaliator and Rampage) slightly decreased in ranges, due to our rather, umm, strict laws about projectile weapons, while our American friends are receiving the full, un-touched versions of the blasters.

In a way, I see this as a good thing, and a bad thing. The bad thing is for us dedicated collectors, such as myself, is potentially paying more money for an Elite blaster, when in truth, there are cheaper and more powerful versions out there. I don't know that much about our laws about guns, but in the end, Nerf is a kid's toy, and they are taking precautions to reduce potential massive injury. Why, just one shot from my Swarmfire (Blue Trigger) could take an eye out.

But in the end, if there is a more powerful version of a blaster than the ones we are destined to get, then it would make much more sense to import, since:

A. I don't mod, and probably never will. These blasters are getting the ranges I want, without cracking them open.
B. I'm a collector, and I love collecting rare gear as a hobby.

With the new Elite gear, I'm definitely excited for the all-new blasters and crazy ranges, but I need to know how 'reduced' our versions are gonna be. Anyway, looks like Amazon will be an option. Enough with my thoughts, what about yours on the upcoming Elite gear? :)

Where are we? :P

If you guys have been wondering 'where the hell are we?' I've been hard at work at my new Uni course, and planning a few new video features. Hopefully, it'll be a nice Tassie day to make some videos tomorrow. Thanks for staying tuned, fans! :D

Enter the Second-in-Command...

[Alex] Well, as a new Admin to this blog, I suppose it is high time I showed my face and introduced myself here, rather than just on the Facebook page :x *leaves comfort zone, takes one small step for a new world of blogging…*

So to begin with, my name is Alex and I currently co-admin the Hobart Nerf Squadron social group on Facebook. In this role I mostly organise local Wars and bulk order purchases, and share my developing modding projects and advice.  I am looking forward to helping expand both S.O.F.T’s growth, as well as sharing my own experiences and advice with Nerf :D 

I guess a little bit about my Nerf history and how I got into this awesome hobby wouldn’t go astray either :P What got me hooked into Nerf was rather sudden to me. Previously I had never really played with *projectile-based* toy guns like Nerf, but that was about to change when I went to my 2010 Family Christmas Day lunch party. After the usual ‘meet and greet’ with the rellies, I discovered my boredom meter was on the fritz. So I decided to go outside to the backyard where the kids were playing with their new toys (Santa was forced to use them as a diversion to escape this kid-trap).

I was not expecting to see what lay ahead, nor knew it would have such an impact on me. Before me I beheld a gloriously yellow toy machine gun. As I walked nearer to this beast of plastic, I merely assumed that this was one of those ‘makes loud noises and flashing lights’ types of toy guns… but it was HUGE… and what was that big ammo chain for? Just for aesthetics and an extra ‘wow’ factor, perhaps?

Well... let’s just say that I soon learned that looking down the barrel of a fully-loaded, fresh-battery filled Nerf Vulcan with a young kid on the trigger wasn’t the smartest idea I had that day. And before I knew it all the other youngsters had popped out with other brightly coloured guns, promptly firing off rubber-tipped foam cylinders of mayhem left, right, centre and anywhere else that could occupy the flight path of a Nerf dart!

I was drawn to this… chaos. Inside my tiny walnut-sized brain, a devilishly squee-worthy scheme began to hatch; get payback on that kid who shot me with that Vulcan. Recruiting my brother into the fray, he wielded (what I now know to be) a Maverick, and I a Nitefinder. After dodging many bullets and avoiding collisions with hungry adults crowded around the BBQ, we stuck the Vulcan-eer at his right flank from behind the garden shed.

My brother drew his fire but soon succumbed to the full-auto might of the Vulcan Menace. As I strafed out from the shed and took aim at the youngster’s forehead, he pointed the monster blaster at me.

We both pulled triggers...

I shot first...

Before his Vulcan motors could whir into life, a whistler dart screamed from my Nitefinder’s muzzle and roared towards my target. However, due to my lack of battle-knowledge regarding Nerf dart physics at the time, the dart made a dive away from the enemy’s face, and before any of us knew what had happened, the Vulcan grinded to a halt, and stood silent.

Upon closer inspection, my dart had instead landed right down the gullet of the Vulcan’s barrel, blocking the next shot and jammed the ammo chain from moving.

Epic. Win. Fluke. Shot!

For a month afterwards I couldn’t stop thinking about how much fun it was. After some ‘research’ I stumbled upon many blogs like Urban Taggers, forums like OzNerf, and YouTube channels like LordDraconical and Coop772. It took me by surprise just how widespread this Nerf craze really was; the communities built around it, Humans versus Zombies events, and even the nature of modding (which particularly appealed to me greatly). I caught up with some of my friends and mentioned Nerf to them. Before we knew it we had run out to the nearest toy shop and came home with two blasters each! :D I obtained a Longshot and a Stampede, and although the Stampy is certainly impressive being Full Auto, it was (and still is) the Longshot that has won my inner child’s heart. Since that point on, I’ve been an avid Nerf Herder since January 2011 and, thanks to the Hobart Nerf Squadron, a fellow Foam Fighter since March 2011.

­Well... I do believe this is becoming quite a lengthy wall of text, so I might wrap it up here for now. But to reward your eyeball's hard work of getting this far, expect to see more from me in the near future, including (but not limited to) the following:

-          Adding my own thoughts and suggestions to existing reviews by Link

-          Helping write new reviews (two in particular are planned after this coming fortnight! >:P)

-          General house-hold cleaning of typos and answering any of your questions / comments

-          Additional media, such as videos and extra photos for blasters, including the aforementioned 360 degree views of blasters.

-          Down the track I’ll organise my own separate ‘modding’ corner where I’ll display some of my weird and wonderful designs and contraptions. We shall also discuss some creative suggestions and experiments for modding.

-          Taking Nerf outside of the house, I will also endeavour to make some mini-videos on how certain blasters / mods can perform in Nerf War conditions, maybe throw in some handy little tips and tactics I’ve learned :P

It is an honour to be on board with Mr.1835 Link here at S.O.F.T. and I hope you enjoy not only what I now bring to the table, but the bright future of S.O.F.T that lies ahead! :D

News: S.O.F.T. Twitter!

S.O.F.T. now has an official Twitter account! If you would like to follow us, here is our name: @1835Link I'm all new to this Twitter stuff, so bear with me :P Just another way to reach out into the community.

S.O.F.T.'s Melbourne Trip - A Photo Essay :P

(Link) Hello all, you may know that I recently betrayed our great homeland, to go to Victoria to do a little Nerf stock scouting, as part of a competition I won through a local sporting club. And lucky for me (and you) I took a couple of photos to show what sort of gear 'mainlander Nerfers' get over there. Some of this gear I had never seen before in person, so it was very worthwhile.

Highpoint Toys R Us

I was glad to see that Element, I'm planning to buy one.

No way I was going to fit this into my suitcase :P

I am a major fan of box art, just so you know. :P

Highpoint Big W

Oh yeah, I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw this area. :D

(tongue drools :P)

I also found the DT jerseys, which was a pleasant surprise.

Highpoint Target

Highpoint Myer

So much for Spectres being a Target-exclusive... :P

 Back in Toys R Us... :P