Wow, I really let this one get away from me! A few months ago I helped out the Des Plaines Park District (thanks for the referral, Basic Nerf) by providing them prizes (directly from NERF, thanks for the support!) and an extra pair of hands at their tournament back in July. It was just myself and TrekkieB47 but it was a great time and a lot of fun was had by all. Given the community, it gets tough to remember that these are still kids’ toys, but something like this is a nice reminder about where we all may have started when we first picked up a blaster. Thanks to the park district for putting on the event!
See some of the fun here, but I can provide some pics too –
The above sites provide a proper listing of all the Black Friday deals to expect at Toys R Us! I consolidated the Nerf deals here, but the articles have a bunch of other great offers on Transformers, Skylanders, Kids electronics, and so much more. I am assuming these deals apply in-store only and in the U.S. but if I find any Cyber Monday deals I’ll be sure to post those as well. Take note, and happy hunting!
Toys R Us Black Friday Nerf Deals – wanna see? (All deals are limit 2 per guest)
THURSDAY 5PM – SATURDAY CLOSE (WHILE SUPPLIES LAST) Nerf Rebelle Guardian Crossbow – $11.99 (40% off) Nerf Rapidstrike CS-18 – $27.99 (20% off) Nerf, Hello Kitty, or My Little Pony Walkie Talkies – $9.99 (50% off) Nerf Rebelle Sweet Revenge – $9.99 (50% off) Nerf Vortex Pyragon or Praxis Blaster – $14.99-$19.99 (Save $20) Nerf Dart Tag – $24.99 (doesn’t specify much more than that…?) FREE Dart Tag Jersey when you buy any exclusive Nerf Dart Tag Item (save $20)
My Little Pony, Hello Kitty, or NERF Walkie Talkies: $9.99 (50% off)
Apologies, everyone. Sorry about the delay on well… everything! Let’s get right to it. I purchased (not samples like usual) the Nerf Hammershot from the Zombie Strike line, and the Nerf Rebelle Sweet Revenge Mission Kit. Both revolver-styled blasters, but the big question I received was, do they get similar range?
Per usual, here’s the video – I set up the cone at 30′ out, and the main target at 50′.
For this review, I tested out both blasters, as they were functionally identical. Review continues after the break>>>
Stats:
Nerf Zombiestrike Hammershot Price: Approx: $15.99 Available: NOW Includes:5 ZombieStrike bright green darts Special Feature: Fan fire Target exclusive (U.S.: might be a different store in other countries.) Nerf Rebelle Sweet Revenge Kit Price: Approx. $19.99 Available: NOW Includes: blaster x 1, 5 Rebelle darts (green), safety glasses, and clip-on holster Special Feature: Fan fire No exclusivity
AESTHETICS (how it looks):
Honestly, I think I preferred the Sweet Revenge. They both felt like great grips, but if I had to choose, the sleek and smoother feel of the Sweet Revenge made drawing and handling the blaster a bit nicer. The Zombiestrike faux bandage feels a bit more grabby, if that makes any sense. To be fair, it’s designed with a young girl’s hands in mind and not an adult male. Though the Hammershot might have designs for a larger boy.
The orange on the Zombiestrike worked for me, but that lower orange part under the barrel took away from the streamlined look you could see in the blaster itself, almost unnecessary. The Sweet Revenge went totally along with being sleek, smooth, streamlined, and it made drawing/holstering a breeze for me, after some practice.
Heck, the holster it comes with was surprisingly sturdy and held onto my waist and pockets very nicely. If you have a more “gymnast” play style though, you should be careful, as the holster isn’t tight enough to hold the blaster when inverted. Sadly, the Hammershot doesn’t fit the Sweet Revenge holster either. A Firestrike did, but I do not recommend that as it stretches the holster out considerably.
PERFORMANCE:
I’ve been a fan of the Sweet Revenge and the use of a proper “hammer” mechanism since I first saw the blaster at New York Toy Fair. In addition to the new mechanism, the fan fire is an interesting (though totally inaccurate) feature, and with the already inaccurate nature of Nerf darts, shooting darts in quick succession like that is more bluster than substance. Or great cover fire. One noticeable thing for me is the hammer is definitely easier to manipulate on the Sweet Revenge than the Hammershot, and you can hear it in the video. But, the Sweet Revenge and Hammershot got comparable ranges and if I didn’t dual I would most likely just use the Sweet Revenge based on how much I prefer its handling.
My darts landed anywhere in the 40′-50′ ranges, and 75′ is likely if I angled my shots. I did battle test these at MAW 2 with Adult Fans of Nerf and they were a lot of fun to play with, win or lose. I’m curious to see though how well these fire other types of darts, and will have to revisit that at a future date. While this isn’t a totally semiautomatic blaster like the Snapfire, I think it can certainly come close to one. And the trigger is much easier to pull than the Snapfire’s, no matter which blaster you get. Was the performance and feel worth the money? Yes. Many times yes.
THE TRIMMINGS:
Besides the blaster and holster, Sweet Revenge also comes with eye protection. The glasses are pretty typical of what you can expect, simple frames that don’t fold, but they do the job of protecting one’s eyes. The pink shading of the lenses might be a little disorienting (I certainly felt that way, when I tried them on in the name of science), so maybe use clear or the orange glasses, which I had no problem with.
Overall, I’m very happy that I not only bought one, but both blasters. They’re a lot of fun stock, and the new mechanism is hilariously fun to use. While the accuracy lacks, it just means you would need to get closer 🙂
Questions? Did I miss something? Let me know! I’m a little tired, so I’m sure I missed something.
Requires 4 “C” batteries (Not included, thank you to Lord Damian for catching the original error.)
Flywheels
Includes:
1 x Nerf N-Strike Elite Rapidstrike CS-18
1 x Clear 18 round magazine
18 Nerf N-Strike Elite Streamline darts
Range
50′-75′, depending on dart quality, battery power, angle, etc.
Special features
Flip-up sight, extendable stock, various tactical rails and sling points (though I really think there’s only one)
ANALYSIS:
Let’s take a quick look at where we’ve been. Nerf Stampede video from the VERY FIRST release party, so many years ago.
Yikes. Nice to see the quality has (kind of?) improved since then.
The Nerf N-Strike Elite Rapidstrike CS-18 (as seen in the video at the beginning) is a vast improvement over the Nerf N-Strike Stampede from about 3 years ago. The Stampede had a direct plunger, but it was big, bulky, hit only 30-40′ maybe, and it was a bit back heavy if you were a younger kid (6 D batteries!) and a bit slow on the rate of fire. Personally, I found that I’d lead a target using half a magazine (9 shots, and the blaster was stock) before getting a hit.
The Rapidstrike doesn’t have that problem. It hits Elite ranges, is smaller, lighter, and fires faster. Even though the Rapidstrike uses flywheels, I can pinpoint a bit better with this and waste less ammo. Streamlines being streamlines, I don’t expect super accuracy out of them (even Elite ones) so that’s not a concern for me. But the groupings seem pretty decent all the same, even with full auto. I found the trigger pull responsive, and no lag like there was waiting for the Stampede to prime and fire. It’s a fraction maybe faster, but Nerf tag is a game of inches and seconds in Rate of Fire. Every little bit helps. Swapping out mags was smooth, and I recommend 18 round straight mags.
That being said about magazines, here’s the thing – I ran into some issues with reliability. It got some actual gameplay (hi Des Plaines! More on that in another blog post) I used primarily 18 round straight magazines (like the clear one it came with and 3 others. 2 worked (includes the clear) and the others did not. Further testing is required to see how far the rabbit hole goes about this, so expect a response video to my initial firing test. I’ll also update this blog post. Need to test drums, and different generations of the 6 round mags too.
Also, adjusting my grip, I hit the mag release once unintentionally. When things are moving fast, that might be an issue for some people and they will lose the magazine. Typically the magwell has been strong enough to not drop the mag on me, but it did once so far. Depending on your mag, it might drop. Depending on your mag, it might jam. In this instance, the location of the release is cool, but the classic orientation on the sides might have made more sense.
Mag release is right behind the magwell. You might hit it trying to avoid revving the accelerator trigger.
Does that justify a $39.99 purchase? Considering the fun I’ve had using this (when it works) and that stores have a return policy, maybe. It really is a ton of fun as a blaster and having something full auto is a welcome function I’ve missed with the Elite line so far. Slam Fire just isn’t quite the same. Hopefully my videos are a bit helpful in making a decision, but ultimately it rests on you as a player to see if this is your style.
Aesthetically, this blaster made me think of the carbine from “Aliens” and the adjustable stock made it either comfortable or usable for closer quarters. Also… the accelerator trigger means dual wieldings 🙂 And that makes all sorts of things awesome:) Happy hunting!
Questions? Comments? Did I miss something? Need more info? Shoot me a message!
Foam From Above 