Airsoft fields vs playing in the wild
The beginnings of airsoft in Poland took a place mostly in local woodlands and were organized by players for players and by small groups of passionate, that have discovered a new activity. Over time, there were more and more new players, better (and easier accessible) airsoft replicas and the range of games expanded with more complicated scenarios. The WMASG site was developed and it still runs today. More and more specialistic airsoft shops have risen for large scale and their offers contained almost everything available on the worldwide market. Our hobby has been seen many times on the TV, which increased the interest in airsoft even more. Now we also have our YouTube stars! It was a matter of time that there will be commerce airsoft fields - the expansion of airsoft is almost identical to the expansion of paintball at its best days.
Airsoft fields vs playing in the wild
The commercial games are quite different from the classic player-for-player arrangements, I would even call them different worlds. They have different rules, different target, and type of games and payment (yes, non-commerce games require whip-round for materials). However, it is interesting that in opposite to Poland, some countries don't allow playing anywhere but in the commerce fields.
Price
Frankly, for the majority of players price of a game is one of the most important aspects. Airsoft fields are higher than whip-round. Why? Because owning a field comes with some costs. You need workers, you need to pay bills, you need to get the equipment, service, and kilograms of plastic ammunition. Not to mention that it is the business and must generate an income.
The terrain
It depends on the one's preferences. Commercial sites are obviously smaller than typical woodlands and they offer something more like speedsoft - the terrain cannot be huge. When playing in the wild, the size of terrain depends only on what players are organizing - from milsim with 15 km patrols to a quickie you-go-there-we-go-there game. You won't sneak and flank the enemy with a map in hand on the airsoft field - everything will be there about the intensive firefight.
Development of the terrain
In the private area, which is an airsoft field you can do whatever you want - place car wrecks, build walls, make some climatic props. In wild woodlands, the possibilities are severely reduced - leaving any "obstacles" there would be considered as littering and awarded with a proper fine. Even if you have a permission to build constructions etc. in the forest, there can always be random people who will destroy or steal the props during the week.
The gameplay
Gameplay style strongly depends on the size of terrain. Fields are smaller and contain a whole lot of obstacles for speedsofting, so you should expect a dynamic round based games like TDM, Capture the flag, VIP rescue or planting the prop bomb. Airsoft fields are made to serve multiple groups every day so leave your expectations for long actions at home. If you go to a building-based airsoft field you can also play games that are mixed with the escape-room elements - it's a nice solution for activity with your non-airsoft friends. Games that happen in the wilds will often be a bit more ambitious - like milsims or longer HQ games. However, less complicated scenarios like the TDM etc. still take place in the wilds, especially when there are no milsim players around.
Referees
It is most likely to be no referees in the non-commercial games, because of the trusty group of players where practically everyone knows each other. In commercial games there are new players or people who just wanted to try airsoft with their friends - some of them may try to cheat and here are the game referees for them. They also look after players to make sure there won't be any dangerous injuries or fights (more about the safety here).
FPS limits
Wildlands games that take place in huge terrains can be a paradise for snipers and high-velocity assault airsoft replicas users. In airsoft areas often there will be no place for them because of the small area and strict fps (350-400 fps) and bb weight limits. The second one can be very annoying for players that use hop up modifications like r-hop or flat-hop because they require a much heavier bb's in order to work properly and effectively.
What are your preferences?
In this article, I've mentioned the most important aspects that distinguish playing on the commercial field and "in the wild". These are completely different worlds with its own sets of rules. Does it do any harm for us? Absolutely not! It gives everyone an opportunity make a choice what suits them best. What is yours?
Author:
Paweł "Fishbonee" Napieralski
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