Category: gadget

Marshmallow Shooters Dressed up as the Ghostbusters – Happy Halloween!

Marshmallow Shooters and the Ghostbusters 30th Anniversary – in Time for Halloween!
Vas The Stampede

Happy Halloween! Back at Toy Fair I saw that Marshmallow Shooters had managed to get the Ghostbusters license, and while I normally don’t like repaints, I thought the Ghostbusters scheme (Stay Puft Marshmallow Man and all) looked pretty great. It fit, with the lines and the shapes of the Shooters being very reminiscent of the Ghostbusters own proton pack.

https://photos.gstatic.com/media/slideshow.swf

As it so happens, 2014 is also the 30th Anniversary of the original Ghostbusters film franchise, starring Bill Murray, Harold Ramis (rest in peace), Dan Aykroyd, and Ernie Hudson. Thirty years, a sequel, a cartoon series, a comic book, and many other forms of media later, the franchise still has a huge following and is even in talks to get a reboot for a new generation of Ghostbusters.

Marshmallow Blaster – MSRP: $28.00 (final price depends on vendor)

Marshmallow Shooters was kind enough to send along some samples of their “Stay Puft” Ghostbusters Shooters, and they look just as good as I remember. The Shooters are functionally the same, as they tend to be with every new skin. Same ranges anywhere between 30′-40′ depending on the shooter you have, whether it is classic, or the blaster. I’ve always enjoyed the satisfying “POP!” from shooting the blaster, personally.

Some new products are the orb “Slimeball” and the “Snap Dragon”

Orb “Slime Ball”- MSRP: $16.00

Snap Dragon (note, the ammo holder in the handle) – MSRP: $11.00

And I don’t remember seeing Straight Shooters before, but they’re blow gun type shooters –

Not pictured in Ghostbusters colors:

the Mini Bow, the Bow & Mallow, and the Double Shooter (I have a firing video of the original Double Shooter here).

Gameplay wise, I’ve used Marshmallow Shooters to great hilarity during games, usually resulting in someone running up and stealing my ammo for a snack or trying to catch my ammo mid-air (NOT RECOMMENDED.) And while I’ve found a lack of separately available hoppers/inline cartridges affecting my reload time (as I have to stop, detach, reload, and then keep firing) the Marshmallow blaster is probably my favorite (followed by the Snap Dragon) because it doesn’t require a tube to to load and fires pretty well. The Snap Dragon is not vulnerable to marshmallow build up (as happens with the breech loading shooters) interfering with the functioning of the blaster and the ammo holder is a really nice touch.

All the same, a great look from Marshmallow Shooters for the Ghostbusters. If you’re a fan of the movies (and even if you’re not and want Marshmallow Shooters) these would be a fun buy… now who ya gonna call?

REVIEW: Scorpion Gatling Blaster: Dart Zone/Prime Time Toys

Scorpion Gatling Blaster: Dart Zone/Prime Time Toys
By: Vas The Stampede

Size Comparison: Scorpion vs. Nerf Barrel Break and Zing Legends Bow

My firing video:
 


Basic Info:

Price: $19.99 (Wal-Mart Exclusive)
Range: Up to 70′ (angled)
Includes:
“Super Darts” x 20
20 Dart Ammo Belt x 1
Instructions
Scorpion Gatling Blaster x 1

Prime Time Toys keeps the hits coming with one of their latest entries, the CovertOps Scorpion Gatling Blaster. A Wal-Mart Exclusive, this blaster is obviously inspired by some earlier similarly styled “gatling” blasters like the Punisher and Gatling Blaster. This fully automatic, 20 shot blaster proves itself a pretty good value for 20 bucks.

It requires 6 AA batteries, and that spins the barrel (purely cosmetic effect) and also powers the flywheels. There’s no accelerator trigger here, once you hit the “on” button the flywheels go and all you have to do is hold the trigger down. It’s pretty easy to shoot in bursts, or just empty the entire belt for maximum hilarity. The blaster is small, probably smaller than either of the earlier gatling blasters. This does make it a bit easier to carry and move quickly, although the chains do swing about, nothing new if you’ve ever run with a Nerf Vulcan. Unlike the Punisher, there is no ammo box, so there’s a loss in aesthetic as well. Oddly enough, while the line is called Covert Ops, once this blaster is on, there is nothing covert about it. If you didn’t like the noise level of a Barricade, you will definitely not like this blaster. As I suggest with any of those complaints, just wait until you’re about to shoot and flick the power switch then, don’t run around an entire game or scenario with your flywheels running (unless there’s a strategic reason for it, as I’ve done in the past).

The Covert Ops line is a green and orange mash of colors, crossing toy safety and a color scheme reminiscent of the movie, “Predator.” While this isn’t the total minigun that some folks may want, it does pretty well all the same. To me, the plastic and build feels pretty sturdy and that it might take a drop or 2. That is only descriptive of the blaster body, though. I can’t attest to the strength of the electronics and the motor if you dropped this blaster. Bottom line, it feels solid.

The amount of clearance to fit other brand darts through the Scorpion.

 I repeat, the size proves deceptive as you might not expect the power you get out of this. I was able to hit almost 50′ flat and angled my shots hit about the advertised 70′ range. And this was with both the proprietary “super” darts and other leading brand darts. This blaster shot just about anything I put in the ammo belts. The accuracy did leave something to be desired, but with foam ammo that tends to just be the reality of the medium. And if you’re sending out about 20 shots at a time, maybe accuracy isn’t your main concern!

That being said, I can’t comment if chains from the earlier gatling blasters will work with the Scorpion, as I don’t have either. And if I had any real complaint about this blaster, it’s that additional chains aren’t available to use this as a proper defensive or offensive weapon. Extra chains and the fast reload (with some practice and preloaded chains) would make for a good time in a stock blaster game. As far as I know, separate chains are not sold anywhere so you have one 20 shot belt and that’s it with the Scorpion. Either check your fire or get ready to reload the same chain frequently. For $20 and only 6 AA batteries, I definitely think this blaster is worth the trip to a Wal-Mart (in the US) and adding to your inventory. It’s a great price for a 20 shot blaster that hits its range and fires pretty quickly.

Thanks so much to Prime Time Toys for the sample, and to you for reading! If there’s anything I missed feel free to use the contact form or make a comment below (comments are moderated, so they may not appear right away.

Don’t forget to check out “Foam From Above” on Facebook. and I am also on Twitter (@vasthestampede) & Instagram (@blasterbot1984)!

BREAKING UPDATE: Nerf Rhino-Fire Press Release! Full info!

Nerf Blaster Tops 100…. Dollars! Say Hello the Elite Rhino-Fire
By Vas Stampede
Nerf N-Strike Elite Rhino Fire. 90′ range. MSRP: $100.00 Available Fall 2014.

UPDATE: Here’s the full press release straight from Nerf:

NERF N-STRIKE ELITE RHINO-FIRE Blaster
(Ages 8 years & up/Approx. Retail Price: $99.99/Available: Fall 14)
Dominate the competition with the biggest, baddest NERF blaster yet! The N-STRIKE ELITE RHINO-FIRE blaster is the first fully automatic NERF blaster featuring rapid-fire, double barrel blasting, an amazing 50 dart capacity and two N-STRIKE ELITE dart drums, turning ordinary battles into extraordinary ones. The epic RHINO-FIRE blaster sends darts soaring impressive ELITE distances of up to 90 feet, and features both a front handle for mobility and tripod to ensure awesome accuracy. Includes 50 N-STRIKE ELITE darts.  Six “D” batteries required, not included. Available exclusively at Walmart.

Nerf Rhino images came off Amazon Spain, but nothing really solid to go on yet except the name and box art (which might change as well.)
Have fun!
 
  Whew! Ok, so if I may chime in… holy carp.
Back at the Nerf All Access event (videos are posted at click click bamf and AFON so far) we were informed there was one more big blaster coming. I’m guessing this is it. If anyone experienced a letdown with the Cam CS-12 being revealed, hopefully this is more your speed?

The story so far:

Available Fall 2014 (most likely around the holidays)

Wal-Mart Exclusive
MSRP: $99.99
Range: 90′
Includes 50 Darts, a tripod (I’m assuming 2 x 25 round drums)
Requires 6 D batteries (!)
While I’d prefer to wait for the actual product, here’s some of the chatter:
Flywheels
Pistoning barrels (like the Pulsator)
Tac-Rails (of course)
I’m sure it’s only one trigger, but the early speculation also says maybe selective firing capabilities.
I already thought $80 was a bit high for the Cam, but this one tops out at $99.99, definitely for the holiday shopping frenzy. With dual barrels and who knows what else by release, this is a huge gambit to see just how much people are willing to pay, especially around holiday splurging. For the cost and the range, and the ultimately big bad feeling to come with a blaster like this, I wonder how fast it will be snatched up. If the Centurion sales (lots of people DID buy them, regardless of the performance) this just might be a big beast during the holiday season. Personally, I’m very interested to see the final product, as impressed as I am with this hype and promise at the moment. Only one way to be sure!
Anyway, thoughts?

Mattel’s Blaster Line – BoomCo – Summer 2014

As has been heavily covered already (seriously, I’m basically the last one to post about this), Mattel’s jumping into the blaster market (again!) with a product called BOOMco. I heard rumblings about this at New York Toy Fair, amidst other companies and apparently the group at dartblaster.de heard about it during the International Toy Fair Nürnberg. Not having anything solid to go by, I haven’t been able to say much at all about it. Mattel was also booked solid by the time I found out, so I wasn’t able to bug them.

Proper news broke on Reddit – MarcusH26051

ANYWAY, here we go.


“Twisted Spinner Blaster – BOOMco. Blasters – Mattel 2014”


“Rapid Madness, Twisted Spinner, Farshot & Clipfire – BOOMco. Blasters – Mattel 2014”

Much EXTREME, such stunt. Wow.

The incoming available product line can be found here on Amazon.

Clipstrike – Cause it has a carabiner! A belt clip! Geddit? It also looks like it folds up, no?

The Farshot (shield deployed)

No cross-branding here! Dart refills (w/Smart-Stic Tech) look longer than Nerf darts, most likely not compatible.

Dual Defender pack

Rapid Madness!
Additional targets & other accessories (see below) will be for sale

Twisted Spinner blaster – NOT to be confused with a dilophosaur.


First things first. No relation –

 All joking aside, I’m a bit surprised and really interested at Mattel even getting near blasters again. I want to expect a knock-down, drag-out slugfest of innovation in blasters now that 2 of the top toy makers out there are on a collision course. They rule the roost with Barbie and Monster High, have some great games with Uno and Apples to Apples, but blasters and playing with blasters has been synonymous with Nerf. The other brands (not necessarily blasters) on the market are carving a great niche (Zing, Marshmallow Shooters, Power Poppers, Tek Recon come to mind) but admittedly, a blaster brand/company with the resources and deep pockets like Mattel has been long missing. Nerf, long synonymous with blasters for many years might have that challenger.

One thing I can tell, not all the blasters are triggered. The Twisted Spinner blaster isn’t, and has a… different kind of rotation mech.  The Rapid Madness does have a trigger though, but it also uses a clip reminiscent of a Powerclip/Magstrike (additional clips are sold separately).

Some quick specs:

– Blasters should hit around 70′ (not sure if this is for all of them, but it’s claims are close to N-Strike Elite)
– Darts use “Smart Stick” Tech to show hits, supposed to be used with the shields/targets that also stick to surfaces. As shown in the videos, the targets can be worn on clothes to optimize stickability.
– Eye protection, 2 in 1 bandolier, extra darts, targets, and clips will be sold separately.
– The shields are used to protect and collect, catch your opponent’s darts so you can fire them back. I guess that helps cut down on dart sweeps…. maybe? The shields are fixed to the blasters via tactical rail.
– Interesting bit, if you watch the videos from the pros in their interviews, one of them mentions how you don’t really know where the darts are going, adding to the satisfaction when you DO get a hit. Testament to the accuracy? Who knows. Honestly, that won’t be a confirmed thing until these come out Summer 2014.
– Mattel looks to be going big – Nerfnation meet the BOOMco League (and win a “Boom Box” while you’re there.)

Mattel has a reputation for putting out strong, quality products. Can’t attest that the reputation upholds though until these are out. The videos however make a good number of promises, and I will admit with Mattel’s name involved, I am just a touch less skeptical than I would normally be. Given the past incarnations of sticky ammo from other brands though, I wonder how those new darts will work on cloth and skin. But wondering is about all I can do, along with the rest of you, until these come out and hopefully I can get my hands on them. BUT, with the possible competitiveness between these two powerhouse toy companies… I truly hope it’s us the consumers who win out. With each trying to outdo the other we might see some of the best blasters to date in performance, quality, and features.

Lock and load, things just might get interesting.

Nerf Cam ECS (CS?) 12 POV Camera Footage – F2A First look

Nerf Cam ECS (CS?) 12 Footage is live!  This looks a bit better than the engadget post from a month or so ago, in that the video isn’t as pixelated (seemingly) as one might expect, and the camera seems to be insulated from the flywheels whirring much better than before.

And ICYMI:

NERF N-STRIKE ELITE NERF CAM ECS-12 Blaster
(Ages 8 years & up/Approx. Retail Price: $79.99/Available: Fall 14)
Epic NERF shots live on way past the initial blast with the N-STRIKE ELITE NERF CAM ECS-12 blaster! Giving NERF fans the innovation and connectivity they crave, the NERF CAM ECS-12 blaster allows them to capture and share footage of epic battles and missions. The first NERF blaster to feature a built in camera, the NERF CAM ECS-12 blaster sends N-STRIKE ELITE darts flying up to an impressive 90 feet, records awesome NERF missions and lets NERF fans display them instantly on the playback screen or download them to share with friends for major bragging rights. Blaster includes a 4GB memory card which can hold up to 2,000 photos or 3 hours of video, 1.77” color screen, 12 dart clip and 12 N-STRIKE ELITE darts. Eight AA batteries required, not included. Available at most major retailers nationwide and HasbroToyShop.com.