Six Steps to Prevailing in Paintball

More About Paintball

By Cathy Richey, the Cathy Factor

The paintball game has become so popular that organized paintball tournaments have been televised. Hundreds or thousands of paintball teams from around the world compete against each other in tournament style play to determine the best team. Paintball games may be played by amateur teams, college teams, or even in professional paintball leagues. Those not familiar with this fast rising sport should learn the basics of paintball games.

The origins of paintball games are somewhat fuzzy. Before the game was developed, utility companies used makeshift air cannons to fired paint-filled balls at trees that needed to be removed. This type of color marking could be done accurately from within a vehicle, so that the workers did not have to perform this task on foot. Loose livestock could also be marked in this way. This is why paintball guns are sometimes called Paintball markers.

The game of paintball is essentially a game of tag played with non-lethal guns. You can also think of it as a battle simulation. Two teams compete to accomplish a goal before the other team can, and each team uses a different color paint in their paintballs. Players eliminate opponents from competition by shooting them with a paintball, much as the early workers marked trees and cattle. Shot players must leave the battlefield while the paintball gamers continue playing.

The goal of paintball games may be to eliminate all the opponent's players, or to capture a symbolic object from the enemy's base camp, such as a flag. Accomplishing either feat usually ends the game. There are many other variations of the game of paintball, such as woodsball, speedball, and even tankball. Most of these paintball style games can be played tournament style if more than two teams wish to participate.

Players are protected by eye-protection helmets during the paintball games. This type of safety equipment is mandatory in rules-based play. The muzzle velocity of the Paintball gun should be 300 feet per second or less. That's over 200 miles per hour. You can see why many game players wear additional padding during paintball gaming tournaments.

Paintball is a fun and action-packed sport. Almost anyone can participate. If you are new to the sport you should play with others of similar experience levels. If you are interested in participating in a paintball game, many sport stores sell Paintball equipment.