This, sadly, is another disappointing Sakar product with the Nerf name on it. About 6 months ago, this popped up online in vague pictures and descriptions as the ‘Nerf Blaster Cam’. I managed to find one earlier this week, and well, a blaster cam it is not. It’s just a shitty camera (320×240 video resolution, and 1mp photo) that Sakar has been allowed to put the Nerf logo on.
It’s time for another review from outside the world of Nerf. With the release of the movie The Dark Knight Rises coming to theaters soon, it’s probably time we talk about the Triple Barrel Grapnel Blaster that is in stores now.
This is the second Mattel Batman Dart blaster I’ve had the opportunity to own and test out, and the quality isn’t all that bad. As far as plastic goes, the overall construction is solid, although the trigger feels a little loose especially when not primed. The dart construction(comes with 3) is very similar to a Nerf Sonic dart. Quality of foam in the body of the dart is pretty good, however the tip seems to b glued onto the body in a way that could lead to falling off after time. (more…)
It’s about time we finally give some face time to the other brands that make contributions to fun with dart blasters. There are some pretty cool things out there that aren’t made by Nerf, and sometimes they get forgotten. We here at AFoN enjoy dart blasters of all brands, and here’s one of my recent favorites; the Briefcase Blaster from Jakks Pacific’s Spy Net line.
I’ve always liked the concept of a briefcase machine gun, and this is about as close as I’ve ever seen in toy form. In briefcase mode, all of the blaster bits are hidden save for the priming handle. It looks pretty cool, albeit a little small in scale for an adult. The handle is large enough for adult hands and overall the briefcase has good weight.
Now let’s talk about ammo. The Briefcase Blaster comes with a 6 round clip and uses darts that are almost exactly the same as Nerf’s Streamline or Clip System darts. Though the clip itself is made out of a slightly thinner plastic than Nerf’s clips, it is still sturdy. It uses a stronger spring, which holds the darts firmly but does compress them over time. (more…)
Hey guess what, it’s the Lumitron! Nerf added a new blaster to the Light it Up series recently, and while it’s basically a repaint of the Vortex Praxis it has those wonderful little features that set it apart from its darker green counterpart.
Let’s talk about the paint on the Lumitron first, because this is the only real thing that sets the Lumitron apart from the Praxis. I’m going to call this new almost neon green color shared by the Lumitron and Rayven “Light it Up Green”, I like the hue more than the darker alien green of the Vortex series and think it looks really sharp on the Lumitron. (more…)
I know we’re all a little bit sad about Nerf’s recent Facebook announcement of no NTDL for 2012, but there’s still good stuff being released for the blaster line so it’s not a total loss. The first 2012 Dart Tag blaster I have to review for you today is the SpeedSwarm.
The Speed Swarm is a beefy 10 round pistol. It feels like you’re wielding a futuristic version of Hellboy’s Samaritan. The overall weight of the blaster makes it a little off balance, mainly attributed to the battery load. However, since the SpeedSwarm only uses 6 “AA” batteries the weight could be a lot worse. The blaster fires at the pull of the trigger with no on/off switch. Because of this there is a half second or so delay from initial trigger pull to first round firing, but this is really not that big of an issue as the SpeedSwarm unloads pretty quickly(as seen on The AFoN Show). (more…)
Nerf keeps throwing us firsts. We like it, keeps the game fresh, keeps people talking. There has been lots of talk about the first blaster released from Nerf’s new Light it Up series; the Rayven. I’ve heard the comments, this design isn’t very popular right now. Let me assure you, this unique blaster is worth every penny.
The Rayven’s design is a major cause for concern throughout the community, the bullpup idea not sitting well in the stomachs of many a fan. The bullpup puts the clip and firing action behind the trigger saving on space and weight. I like the feel of the Rayven, it fits nice against my shoulder and the angled foregrip out in front makes the blaster very stable while aiming. This design doesn’t differ much from that of the original glow in the dark blaster; the Firefly, which can’t technically be called bullpup as the firing action was on top of the trigger, not behind. That being said, the Rayven is a lightweight, compact fly wheel powered blaster of awesomeness. It really is. Aside from the green paint job which I don’t really care for this thing has all the right things going for it. It uses only 4 AA batteries, making it as efficient to power as the Barricade and stole my favorite feature from the Nitron; a second trigger on the grip to activate the fly wheels only when needed, not only saving battery life but keeping stealth a factor in play.
My least favorite thing about the good old Firefly was the giant flash that went off when you fired, it was annoying and totally gave away your position which is not ideal when dealing with a night fire situation. Thanks to the Rayven’s new clip which charges darts individually as they move up the 18 round straight clip using 4 UV lights mounted at the top of the dart slide(where you load the darts into the clip) there is minimal risk of alerting your enemy to your presence. The clip itself uses 3 AA batteries making the Rayven a total battery load of 7 AA’s which isn’t that bad. The blaster is comfortable in both right and left hands and is not too difficult to dual wield if you so desire(it kinda makes you feel like a badass). (more…)
2011 has come and gone. In its wake we have a lot to reflect on, it’s been a BIG year in the world of Nerf. Not to leave anything out, we’re not going to do a “best of” for the year. Instead, we’re going to break down all the Nerfy goodness of 2011(in no particular order) and throw it all on the chopping block for one last year end review. There’s a lot of material to cover so sit down, strap in and prepare for takeoff!
Super Soaker
Summer fun got a big shot of awesome in 2011 with some major overhauls to the Super Soaker line. Not only did the entire lineup get a frosty new paint job, but some new blasters changed the face of modern Super Soaker play. There were a few impressive additions to aqua warfare coolness, most basic of which being the Point Break and Scatter Blast. (more…)
Anticipation is building as the release date for the Vortex series grows ever closer. Ever since Nerf held their exclusive media event in New York but a short couple weeks ago, we have been buzzing over our experience with this innovative disc blaster series. Now that we’ve seen what these blasters can do, it’s time to spread the word to one and all with a preview review of the remaining 3 blasters of the Vortex series. Check out our full review of the Vortex Vigilon by following this link.
The Vortex series oozes SciFi goodness from every inch of their highly detailed forms. With their out of this world designs, toxic neon color scheme and a dramatic naming convention adding to the alien allure, the Vortex series stakes its claim as an entity far removed from the very familiar N-Strike series. Add the introduction of new mini frizbee inspired ammo in the XLR Disc, and it is clear that Nerf can do pretty much anything with some plastic and a bit of foam. (more…)
The Vortex series is set to launch on 9/10/11, and we at AFoN have a special invitation to attend the pre-release media event in New York. In preparation for the event, our friends at Nerf have gifted us a little sneak peak with the Vigilon, the first blaster in the series.
The Vortex series is unique in many ways; not only do they use a completely new ammo in the Vortex disc, they utilize an innovative new firing mechanism. I was expecting the discs to feel like a cut down ballistic ball, man was I wrong. The discs are composed of foam wrapped around a squishy rubber or plastic center making for a sturdy, bouncy thing that really looks like a mini frisbee. (more…)
Summer is officially here! It’s time for some fun in the sun and for me that means one thing; the POOL! I am a huge fan of bringing my water blasters along when we go outside to our pool, I mean, what’s more fun than splashing about in water above your head while blasting my family with a Super Soaker. I wouldn’t recommend doing this at close range, trust me, getting temporarily blinded by a point blank ShotBlast shot to the eye is just as painful and hilarious as you might believe.
Today I offer to you the Super Soaker TornadoStrike, another of the new Super Soaker line to utilize the water clip system. The blaster has a rotating 6 nozzle cylinder fired by pumping the slider on the bottom of the blaster’s body, there is no trigger. The TornadoStrike also comes with a detachable butt stock which is a redesign of the N-Strike Raider’s butt stock but if it isn’t broke and all that. (more…)
