The Future of Gaming NOW

Author:	Jason Jacobs
Date:	1999.12.31
Topic:	gaming
Provider:	Hard Knocks
Manufacturer:	Hard Knocks

Combat Sports Gaming

The Future of Gaming is Now

We have all seen LAN centers, heard of both paintball, airsoft, and laser tag and a few of us have probably tried each of these options. All have their pro's and con's and we as consumers are left selecting the option which suits us best. Lets take a closer look at all of these options:

	Pro's	Con's
Paintball	Realism Outdoors and Indoors Real time team strategy Run N Gun doesnt work Difficult to Cheat	Expensive Equipment Safety Equipment requires full body protection PAINTBALL HURTS (I.E. Projectiles!) Air/Paintballs are expensive Difficult but not impossible to cheat Finding good areas in which to participate is difficult Equipment can make teams off-balanced
Airsoft	Realism Outdoors and Indoors Real time team strategy Run N Gun doesnt work Equipment is cheaper than Paintball Gun Magazines carry in the hundreds of rounds Kills Rely on Honor System	Equipment is too realistic for parents Airsoft can hurt and projectiles resemble BB's Guns shoot very fast (not realistic) Magazine's allow for ammunition that is again unrealistic Kills Rely on Honor System Safety Equipment requires full body protection
Laser Tag	Unique atmostphere Gameplay means movement and involves strategy and teamwork Dark environment can be fun	Game must be played in dark to be effective Equipment is not realistic Equipment is bulky and not reliable Cannot fire long distances Must have access to Laser Tag facility to participate
LAN Gaming	Nearly unlimited selection of games to play Your ability to play is only limited by your computer and your hand eye coordination	Most expensive initial equipment purchase, upgrades to PC require additional investment Gameplay is not realistic (I.E. You never move from your chair) Your ability to play is limited by your computer. Gameplay is often off balanced Cheating is rampant Multiplayer means you must connect via the internet or gather in a large group which requires setup Bunny Hoppers (C.S.)

As you can see each of the options above has pluses and minuses. Most who have tried paintball dislike the cost involved but enjoy the adrenaline rush and the gameplay. The probability is also if you live with your parents that your mom and dad dont like the idea of you having the paintball gun and don't like seeing the resulting bruises after you have been playing. Airsoft is much like paintball but less expensive and with similar and worse consequenses regarding the guns which often look too real. Laser tag is no longer really an option as many of the facilities have closed as this sport relies on aging technology and small arenas. LAN games will continue to be around as long as their are computers but the reality is that the games are not real and that I could weigh 1000 pounds and run like Sarge in Quake 3 and still win. The additional complications of computer setup and wiring pose problems for any LAN event.

Introducing Combat Sports Gaming at Hard Knocks

Think of this as the bastard child of Airsoft and Laser tag and your getting close. Hard Knocks describes this as:

This is not paintball or laser tag we are using sophisticated replica firearms to run mock missions in real urban environments. Our guns have authentic look, weight, size, sound, muzzle flash with no projectile. Our customers will execute missions that challenge them to defuse bombs, rescue hostages, protect VIPs and various other military / law enforcement scenarios.

What you have here is the ability to use realistic weapons in real environments where strategy and teamwork are your key to survival and all without the need to purchase expensive equipment, wear face masks, or worry about walking home with bruises.

Want a FREE Hour of gameplay. Download this PDF.

Let's take a look at whats involved.

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