Category: disc

Nerf Vortex Revonix 360 – Taking a Look (Review)

Imagine if you will, a time back in February.

I saw this:

Recorded this:

Tried again during this: (start at 0:33)

and FINALLY, recorded these:

So after a long journey that started at New York Toy Fair 2013 to July 2013 I finally saw a full production Nerf Vortex Revonix 360.

STATISTICS:

Nerf Vortex Revonix 360

  • Available Fall 2013
  • Approx. $39.99
  • Integrated drum
    • 30 Disc capacity
  • Range:  70’ish
  • Slam Fire
  • Includes:
    • Revonix 360 x 1
    • 30 XLR Vortex discs

 And there you go.  The Nerf Vortex Revonix 360.  So what of it?

Well, I like it.  I was a big fan of the Nerf Vortex Pyragon when it came out, mainly because of the level of firepower it packed.  Sure, the reliance on magazines is a sticking point for me in protracted Nerf games, but the slam fire was smooth, it looked good, and felt comfortable with a Nerf Super Soaker Lightning Storm stock.  And the Revonix?  Worth the cost.  A big blaster (almost reminiscent of a grenade launcher, honestly) good range, and comfy to use, especially with a stock.

BUT, it takes a little getting to know.  First thing, as Adult Fans of Nerf likes to say, the thing is a blaster you can reload on the run, like the Dart Tag blasters that have integrated mags (Quick 16, Speedload 6 come to mind).  And the reload takes some practice at first but if you can manage it, you’ve got something good here.  I always appreciate a loadout where I am boiled down to a player with a pouch full of ammo and a blaster by my side (anyone see what I did there?)  One must be familiar with the feel of their blaster to keep loading while running around, while also keeping your eyes on the field.  It’s good to know where the magwell is by feel, and turrets, and so on.  Those brief seconds you spend looking down could get you tagged.  I was able to work it out with the Dart Tag blasters, I’ll have to do the same here with a little more field time.  Initially, it feels easy to fumble discs or slow down to search for the loading points (especially since the mag drum freely spins around) but just keep at it if you want this to be a primary for you.

As one of the videos above shows, the Nerf Vortex Revonix 360 loads through a divot on the left or right side of the blaster, and pumping the handle primes the blaster to fire.  Holding the trigger down while pumping the handle activates Slam Fire.  Needless to say, that’s basic nerf knowledge, I think.  But eventually you too will go “click click bamf!” when you light up your opponents.  Maybe.  Ultimately, the slam fire on the Pyragon felt just a bit smoother than the slam fire mode on the Revonix but I think part of that is the new mechanism (this loads discs vertically and pushes discs into position, the Pyragon discs were already horizontal and didn’t need any additional adjustment from the drum mag or the firing mechanism.)  However, that is practically splitting hairs.  Both blasters send out a bunch of ammo REALLY FAST, and a cloud of discs can be a scary sight during a game.  Maybe even scarier than a cloud of darts.

Should the blaster get jammed, there’s a disc release and the jam door (both pictured)  I believe Mr. K at AFON pointed out this is the first/only Vortex blaster to have one(?):


 As for the range, I was hitting 50′ – 70′ with discs.  Not unexpected, considering that is the deal with Vortex line, hitting high distances.  The only caveat here is the accuracy (as with most things Nerf and maybe especially Vortex) may lack a bit.  The videos above show how hard it is to hit a reliably accurate point the farther you are from the target, and that’s even more noticeable with the frisbee styled vortex ammo.  Not to say I haven’t had success with this blaster, but it adds a little bit more of a challenge.  However, that is also a Vortex blaster’s strength to some degree, the unpredictability when trying to avoid a hit.  A duck or sidestep that would normally get you out of the way ends up sending you into the path of a disc.

That craziness is part of the reason I really like the Vortex line.

The paintjob is striking, for sure.  While the Vortex line has a new deco for 2013, all flame-styled in a way. 

And it works for me.  I honestly very rarely go “WHOA” on a blaster’s paintjob but this does look cool all the same.  The main body is very vibrant with the white and orange accents, and the grey just works with it in my opinion. 

So for $39.99, is it worth the purchase?  If you prefer having the full 40 shots from a Pyragon, and prefer to not reload one at a time (even on the run) then you might not get a lot out of this blaster.  I find the reloading mechanism unique enough that when I am on the field and hurriedly running around collecting my ammo to reload, (if the round is still going) it is MUCH faster to just load a turret than load a mag, and slam it in.  Granted, you can carry smaller mags if you’re using a Pyragon but then that’s still additional weight you have in your loadout as opposed to just a pouch/pocket full of discs.  So, player, know thyself.  The performance was on par with the Pyragon though not as smooth on slam fire, and reloading without additional magazines is nice.  This being Vortex discs you might have accuracy questions, but the ammo output just might compensate (Spray & Pray, my friends.)

If you like your Vortex blasters those are probably the best selling points about it.  Hopefully, I’ve been helpful in making a decision.  If you have questions, feel free to shoot them my way, and good game!

nerf vortex disc, test throw!

Throwing a Vortex disc to see how it flies. There was a slight breeze. Throwing is by no means a proper test to check the flight of the discs, as the actual launch systems may be more awesome and exact than this! i will reserve final judgment until i get to look at them up close.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.7.2

Nerf Vortex Release #2!

Nerf released another look at its upcoming Vortex line this past Monday! The video above is what we saw on facebook. The highlights on this vid were: another look at the “Gear Up” N-Strike repaints, another look at some of the Nerf Vortex blasters proper, and highlights the single-shot pistol entry of the Vortex line.

Urban Taggers already has a pretty good writeup up of the video, for anyone curious. I’ll put up a few of the screen caps I’ve grabbed as well though.

Family photo – Gear Up Series

From Nerf Vortex reveals!

Family photo – (Some of the) Nerf Vortex line:

From Nerf Vortex reveals!

You can see what might be the Nitron, the Praxis, and one other blaster. The Nitron name was revealed the last video, and the Praxis is pretty much the blaster that was test-fired the last video as well. The blaster at the top has the integrated clip, while the other two blasters (one of which is at least pump-action) use a removable clip system for discs. Note, the stock!

Also, it’s a little fuzzy but Nerf’s confirmed on their facebook page that the Vortex line will indeed have tac-rails and can accomodate your favorite scopes/sights/lights.

Annnnnd the test-fire! Here’s the pistol, which could be the Proton or the Vigilon but it hasn’t officially been announced yet which blasters are which. The video starts like this:

From Nerf Vortex reveals!

and you can spot the discs, and the muzzle of blasters. As expected, the muzzle of the blasters is going to be flat to accomodate the discs. How this might affect handling ergonomics and holstering, it’s simply too early to tell without having one in-hand.

From Nerf Vortex reveals!

Here we see the priming mech/loading slide for the pistol. What I like about the vortex line so far is the release switch being situated near the thumb. To me I can see that being a lost faster mechanically to hit that, reload, and resume firing. That’s pure speculation, but we’ll see. The priming arm takes out the slot where you load the disc, primes the blaster, and hitting the switch returns the assembly back into position.

From Nerf Vortex reveals!

Very interesting stuff, I think. And the accuracy wasn’t bad either.

One final shot of the integrated clip blaster:

From Nerf Vortex reveals!

The last blaster, that has the Stampede-like foregrip.

From Nerf Vortex reveals!

Hopefully next week, we get to see what that one looks like in full functioning awesomeness!

See ya next time!

VORTEX – The Day After the Disc

Ok, are we good? You all had enough time to let it all sink in?

The Nerf Vortex big reveal has come and gone, we’ve seen the video and there’s promise that as time goes on, we’re going to see more. More photos, more videos, and more general info. In the midst of all that we still have the N-Force Vendetta double-sided sword on its way, and the Gear Up series in August. And then… 09.10.11. Vortex in all its disc-firing glory starts coming out in stores.

So what did I think of the video? What are my opinions on the Nerf Vortex blasters?

I’m intrigued. New clip system, new ammo style, and the shells look pretty cool too. The colors seem a darker color scheme I think than any previous N-Strike line, with its red and green majority, to add to the “N-Strike Vs. Vortex” business.

The first proper look they showed off was a pistol with an integrated clip, and what looked like a pistol on the ground. After showing the integrated clip opening, the video moved on to the firing test of… something? I think it was the “Nerf Nitron” firing, and uses a removable clip, foregrip, and I believe I saw tactical rails. Pump action seems to be the priming mech of choice on this as well. What I noticed most? The range! And for a disc, that seemed to fire pretty sraight out of the barrel. Normally you can expect a disc to curve a little even indoors (as far as I’ve seen) and that wasn’t the case. Revolutionary “XLR” tech? Haha, I think that might stand for “eXtra Long Range” but that’s unconfirmed. Either way, it looked pretty cool.

Here’s the thing, some of the chatter ragging on the Vortex series is about the discs, how streamlines fly better and aren’t as affected by the wind as drastically as discs will be.

Are you all on crack?

I’ve seen my fair share of stock darts get blown all over a park and knocked off course by feet because of the winds here in Chicago. It’s a moot point. Real ammo, foam, it doesn’t matter. The wind interferes with all kinds of ammo in different ways, and that’s just fact. Streamlines already were notorious for being inherently inaccurate, why are they all of a sudden flying straighter than a ruler it seems? Never mind the discs have a wider surface area, so to me that says they’ll have a better chance of grazing their targets. I figure the discs might resemble what they did with the ammo of the N-Strike Disc Shot, a tougher type of foam core.

The blasters look cool, as I’ve come to expect from these latest tacticool offerings from Nerf with N-Strike and the Nerf Nitron looks pretty sleek.

So, to sum up:

1) Nice appearance
2) Pistol, middle blaster w/integrated clip, rifle kinda blaster w/removable magazine, there has to be a fourth I’m missing. Unknown capacity, but if the discs are skinnier than darts these might have a higher ammo capacity than N-Strike by quite a bit.
3) Nice ranges from what I can tell, a lot more than they’ve allowed with darts.
4) Not worried about the discs being blown off course. Nerf ammo generally does anyway.
5) I’ve heard the terms “serious Nerf war” and “fun to just play around” tossed around a bit. THESE ARE TOYS.

I’ll definitely do a more in-depth study of these blasters once September rolls around and hopefully I can get my hands on them promptly once the release – but I’ll hold off any total judgments until I actually see them for myself.