Has paintball lost it's target audience?

**autococker04** · 10-23-2025, 08:17 AM

Besides the shift in kids interests that people have talked about…

What about the combined effects of overdeveloped suburbs and nebby neighbors?

Back in my day, and this was only 20 years ago, there were at least 5 “fields” in the woods behind friends houses, 10 minutes from downtown Pittsburgh, that I could ride my bike to and play at for free.

I know two of those are townhouses now, I’m not sure about the other ones, but I imagine there are more whiny adults that don’t want kids playing in THEIR woods than there used to be. So even if the kids wanted to play, you can only do it at a sanctioned field.

combine that with the cost for “entry level” gear, and unavailability of co2 and no wonder no one plays.

the “good” gun was a tippmann A5, most people had bubble pack spyders with the included mask. With 2, 20 oz co2 tanks you could shoot a couple cases of monster balls.

A 48/3k tank will get you half a day before it needs refilled, so you kind of have to play somewhere with a compressor if you want to use an emek, which is touted as the only acceptable entry level gun.

edit: after re-reading the original question, it looks like I’m just ranting.

**Ecapnation** · 10-23-2025, 08:54 AM

Paintball is not nerf or the movie industry.

**Junglepeanut** · 10-23-2025, 09:38 AM

I don't think it's necessary the cost. Heck when I started as a kid in the early 90s there was no affordable marker options to get in the door and paint was ridiculously expensive. The Spyder changed all of that and now you can get crazy cheap new or used gear that can get you on the field.

My kids started down the paintball road then sadly their friends pulled them to airsoft. I think they just like the realism of the gear but for me (outside looking in) it's such a flawed game that is so full of cheating it makes paintball look like an honest sport. No chance I could play airsoft without losing my mind but my kids are all in and it's no cheaper than paintball.

**iamthelazerviking** · 10-23-2025, 09:38 AM

Kids not having money is why my start in paintball was rough and continued to be for a long time.

I fell on love with it after day one. I scraped together birthday and chore money to buy a new PMI Piranha with 20 oz tank, vl200 gravity feed hopper, a JT Proshield mask. Sweet! Oh but you have to keep paying money to play, and my parents weren't really in the financial position to fund such a hobby. So I barely got to play again.

Got into buy/sell/trading of gear early on, always getting a neat marker with the hopes of play but it never happened. Until I had my own jobs and own money.

**Ecapnation** · 10-23-2025, 10:33 AM

Also just to put it on an interesting perspective.....

Paintball a market where a guy in his garage can build and sell $3000 cockers and have a market but GI has discontinued the m98 and a5 due to poor sales.

**The Hobbit** · 10-23-2025, 11:12 AM

I may be repeating something and it may be irrelevant to this topic. In interviews Tom Cole has stated that he was at this event and a higher up with the stadium has approached him about hosting an event in the statdium. TCs concern was making a bad impression with the mess.

accessibility to “good” cheap equipment would have to help attract people. Walmart having spyders, co2 tanks, adequate masks, etc definitely gives that accessibility. Now, even if you don’t mind paying the price for a emek, it’s difficult to find good equipment if you don’t know where to look.

there should be a drive to get paintball back in Walmart or other physical stores. Put starter packs out that cost 100-150 bucks with everything you need to go dick around with your buddies in the woods. Then have resources to guide people to find commercial fields or other resources if they delve deeper.

**ThatBobbyjoe** · 10-23-2025, 11:17 AM

I keep circling back to the idea of stockclass speedball. I feel like seeing pro teams with some phantoms and good footage could go a long way.

Easy entry with some cheapo Er2 markers a mask and some space. Grow the sport without having to drop big $$ to start.

**Drcemento** · 10-23-2025, 11:33 AM

As a Dad with two teenage boys who fell in love with paintball immediately I count my self as very lucky. - Its been a great way to connect with them on so many levels and not just when we go play. half the fun is talking about and working on markers in the garage. its far superior to regular sports where parents are basically uber drivers and sit on the sidelines and little happens outside practice.

some observations

The connection angle is huge - we've built a pretty good crew of dads and sons now, and I put out the word whenever we go. They all really value the time spent with their kids. Turns out most all played at one time or the other and now have some disposable income and are able to aquire what was out of reach when they were kids

Parents will blow ooodles of cash on their kids almost irregardless of income level. if the kid is passionate about it and bugging mom and dad there is little to stop it.

I worked my ass off as far back as I remember - I grew up on a farm - we had little money, but my parents would always pay me decently if i was willing to work for it I try my best to keep that tradition I don't mind eating the cost of playing, and I had plenty of gear to get them started, but they earned and built out their kits from there. Sadly they have few friends with similar motivations, and I've noticed they all seem to have a complete lack of interest in something when the parent just throws money at it.

Though it does not seem to phase my kids as much as me, the fields and other players are a huge issue. When we roll into our local field and there's a crew of guys there with head to toe violence gear on, I know its going to cost me an extra case of paint to go up against them, and its not going to be much fun. they seem to be buddies with the ref because they always end up on the same team, and don't mind rolling through 15 cases of paint. they are total assholes, don't help or encourage anyone, and are completely unfriendly. Thankfully they are not always there or often offset by other regulars who we've gotten to know a little and show some good sportsmanship and hold some sway with the refs to at least balance the sides out.

Our closest field is a rare gem of a woodball field 10 minutes from our house, right on north end of the San Francisco Bay. If I had my say it would be a national paintball monument and protected. unfortunately, its also textbook missed opportunity. They crank an unbelievable amount of birthday parties and corporate events through that place on a given weekend. the best refs they have take these groups and earn a nice tip if they do well. the walk on's get a couple of stoned gutless wonders who will never check a gun or call anyone on their shit. new players that are unfortunate enough to not be in a private group likely rarely return. there is no emphasis on getting return business from any of this.

The owner is now 80. the field has been in continuous business for 40+ years. it did get downsized at one point. its a fraction of what it used to be thanks to its horrible reputation amongst regular players but It must still make money - it could not exist that long if it didn't

I could go on forever with this discussion but I need to get to work. as a lover of the sport since day one in roughly 1993 or 4 it's frustrating to say the least!

**Tinybear** · 10-23-2025, 12:52 PM

Paintball is aging I think. It’s entertainment now much like bowling or pool. Many will try it and likely have FUN. But other than the odd leagues and true fans, it is just going to be a weekend or afternoon entertaining passtime. It will likely never be a regular passionate hobby for most.

I think trying to make it any more than that now is fighting an uphill loosing battle. Paintball peaked in numbers and popularity in the early 2000s, unlikely to return to that “glory”.

Think about bowling and or pool. I’m not into either of these hobbies I have played both and had fun but never delved down into getting into them as a passionate hobby. I’d have no clue where one would buy their own bowling ball or specific shoes ect. Nore would I know where to buy or what is a good pool cue ect.

Same goes for paintball for the masses. It’s hard to envision for those passionate why others don’t feel same way.

The other flip side is generally speaking people today have far less disposable income than in past. Decades of inflation outpacing Wages has meant most hobbies suffer.

I been a LONG time motorcycle rider on and off road. And both of those are suffering with some of the biggest names in the industry failing or struggling. Harley is struggling. KTM filed for bankruptcy, Honda yamaha Suzuki and Kawasaki offer far far fewer models than in past. No body can afford toys anymore. No amount of marketing can change that sadly.

**Hp_lovecraft** · 10-23-2025, 01:05 PM

In the 80s, kids could not even play at most fields. The demo was "bored guys in their 30s with money". It was a controversial fringe hobby that didn't advertise.
In the 90s, they started allowing kids, started advertising, made smaller, faster fields. Attracted the adrenaline crowd. Prob peaked in the late 90s.
In the 2000s, tournament play started to fizzle. Lots of people switched back to old school mil-sim. That started to fade as well

I think its mostly online gaming and premier level sports. It has attracted enough of the player pool, that there is not enough remaining players to make the paintball market viable.

And I've seen plenty of ups and downs. Every town around me had a field in the late 80s. Then the 91 recession, most closed...... but eventually by the late 90s, again, most towns had a field again. Then the 2000 recession. Again, most closed, then gradually some reopened... then the big housing crash, 2008, most closed again.... and never reopened

I worked at lots of fields. You need a stable, reliable pool of "regulars" to hold everything together. The ups and downs of the economy wipes them out.
But, online gaming was the killer. You can have a similar experience, but for a fractiion of the price. And unlike paintball, you don';t really need any skill, just time or money. to be successful at online gaming

And premier sports is also a killer. By "premier", I mean non-school sports leagues. When I was young, they were mostly unheard of But today, my kids think its a waste of time to bother with "school sports". They want to play the private leages for soccer, basketball, and baseball. Its a huge commitment. I have some kids in 4-season soccer, 4-season basketball. Its no joke these premier leagues.

And, I don't know if I agree with the big box store issue. I worked at big box stores in the 90s. We started selling paintball stuff in the early 90s., and it was always kinda a disaster, because oc propellant. Let me explain, we started by selling BE Stingrays with 12gram adapters.. We sold hundres... and guess what, most came back locked up solid with paint. Who thought that was a good idea?

Then later we were selling decent blowbacks, but with disposable co2 tanks. Thats not a real solution either. and we were in no position to fill co2 or hpa tanks. It just can not be done. In the80s, for sure, when we mostly used 12grams. But paintball since 1990 has needed large refillable pressurized tanks. That Evolt was promising, as was the propane gun. But those were dead on the mrkaet

**Arthur** · 10-23-2025, 01:39 PM

I started playing in ’97 when I was 13, and I’ve spent years across scenario, rec/outlaw fields, and big games.

Speaking from the scenario or “milsim” side — paintball really dropped the ball and let airsoft take over that space. There was a clear window to capture those players, but instead, the industry and community seemed to fight against it. First Strike rounds and magfed markers should’ve been an evolution of the game, but they got buried. Whether it was insurance companies banning FS, poor R&D on magfed platforms (looking at you, Dye DAM), or fields outright prohibiting the format — it almost felt like a coordinated effort to stifle growth.

The irony is, those same fields that banned FS would host airsoft events the same weekend. Absolutely wild. Now, airsoft is thriving, and magfed paintball events in my state are practically non-existent.

**RPP** · 10-23-2025, 03:38 PM

As someone who is PRO "every form of paintball", letting FS rounds be put into regular fields walk on games is a recipe for disaster. I think locally i could play 1 day a month and super game west with FS... so i just don't get into it. I do agree with your points about insurance and design really destroying the growth that could have been awesome.

**Trbo323** · 10-23-2025, 03:48 PM

Lots of interesting perspectives in here, thanks guys. Didn't realize I opened such a can of worms

Originally posted by Arthur

I started playing in '97 when I was 13, and I've spent years across scenario, rec/outlaw fields, and big games.

Speaking from the scenario or “milsim” side — paintball really dropped the ball and let airsoft take over that space. There was a clear window to capture those players, but instead, the industry and community seemed to fight against it. First Strike rounds and magfed markers should've been an evolution of the game, but they got buried. Whether it was insurance companies banning FS, poor R&D on magfed platforms (looking at you, Dye DAM), or fields outright prohibiting the format — it almost felt like a coordinated effort to stifle growth.

The irony is, those same fields that banned FS would host airsoft events the same weekend. Absolutely wild. Now, airsoft is thriving, and magfed paintball events in my state are practically non-existent.

From what I understood they basically had to ban FSR for a while. It came out that FSR never actually got tested/approved by the astm before being sold. In turn once the insurance companies learned this they said, no FSR! And then it took idk, 6 or 9 months to get it tested/approved. I heard rumors they had to decrease the amount of fill to make them slightly lighter so they had less impact force to meet the testing requirements. No idea if that's true or not, just a rumor.

But even still, at the field level FSR had to take almost a year break because of that.

As for milsim taking the players, I really doubt paintball would have kept as many of the players long term. I've noticed the players who value the milsim look who go to airsoft it doesn't matter how close you can make a paintball marker, it's never close enough. Has a tank? The real rifle doesn't! The emf200 doesn't have a charging handle! It's terrible!

The CF20 mags only hold 20 rounds but are huge compared to airsoft mags. The first complaint would be the real rifle can hold 25 or 30, it doesn't matter that these airsoft players are using mid cap mags and are holding 140.

It's the look that matters most to these players

But. The other side is cost, look at the ongoing cost of milsim vs paintball. It's way cheaper. Paintball can't really compete with that because most of the airsoft stuff can charge up at home using mom&dads electricity bill. After that buy some plastic balls and you are good to go.

Airsoft will always be cheaper long term but I think if paintball has that cheaper entry, the Spyder victor and co2 tank for example then it can't be more accessable for players to try.

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**Trbo323** · 10-23-2025, 03:49 PM

Originally posted by RPP

As someone who is PRO "every form of paintball", letting FS rounds be put into regular fields walk on games is a recipe for disaster. I think locally i could play 1 day a month and super game west with FS... so i just don't get into it. I do agree with your points about insurance and design really destroying the growth that could have been awesome.

I've played the last 2 days of walk on with FSR.

Why?

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**Socalpumpballer** · 10-23-2025, 04:28 PM

This generation of kids doesn’t have any money nor do their parents. Paintball didn’t start as a kids game. It’s simple as that. We’re just victims of our nostalgia and the industry only exist to preserve itself and the “pros” who refuse to pass the torch because they have a pipe dream that they want to be there when paintball is finally the NFL

Has paintball lost it's target audience?

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