It’s Nerf darts or nothing for these slick new blasters

Jun 06, 2024 07:00 PM - 5 months ago 53383

When I was a kid, “It’s Nerf aliases nothing” meant you couldn’t find a amended dart blaster. Starting today, it intends you’ll person to bargain Hasbro’s ain overpriced darts if you bargain Hasbro blasters for your kids.

The institution is revealing its caller Nerf N-Series lineup today, and a caller “N1” dart it’s calling “the future” of nan Nerf marque — a early wherever Hasbro blasters for 8- to 14-year-olds only occurrence Hasbro darts that costs 3 to 5 times nan competition. Lose a dart? That’ll beryllium 25 cents, because only charismatic darts person nan patented nub that pushes a information system retired of nan way.

Nerf says it virtually built 1,000 different darts to get nan range, accuracy, and information it wanted.

The integral nub astatine nan back. If you compression it, aerial comes retired nan hole.

The blasters themselves are cool, but is it Nerf’s derided Ultra each complete again? Not quite, for 3 important reasons.

First, while today’s caller blasters for kids won’t support immoderate existing dart aliases magazine, nan institution says nan Nerf Pro marque — which does — will unrecorded on. “We are expanding connected nan [age] 14+ blaster statement we launched pinch the Stryfe X,” Nerf merchandise creation head John Falkowski confirms erstwhile I ask. “I deliberation you’ll beryllium pleasantly amazed pinch what you spot erstwhile those items are announced.”

Second — spot assemblage supra — nan caller N-Series blasters are big, bold, mostly satisfying designs that sprout darts notably further than Hasbro’s erstwhile kid-friendly options! By making nan caller N1 dart shorter, wider, and squishier, Nerf tin now occurrence them retired astatine 90 feet per second, compared to 70fps for nan Elite darts they’re replacing, without expanding nan dart’s weight (still 1 gram) aliases their effect connected a kid.

I measured 4 of nan caller blasters pinch my chronograph, and they’re all averaging 90fps — isolated from nan secondary tube of nan two-shot Ward pistol, which deed 83-84fps. The darts do still alert disconnected target pinch nan slightest crosswind, I instantly find, but galore alert rather consecutive without it.

Nerf’s N1 dart (orange), compared to nan Elite (deep blue), Ultra (black), Mega and Mega XL (red, ray blue), and a Worker short dart (purple) favored by nan nerf community.

Safety is the logic Nerf is breaking compatibility pinch a decade-plus of Elite darts, explains Falkowski. The caller dart’s wider and shorter truthful it tin beryllium softer and safer, and nan proprietary nub is location to “maintain nan integrity of nan Nerf brand” by guaranteeing a definite magnitude of information astatine that speed. As a result, Hasbro won’t vessel information glasses pinch these blasters.

“There’s ever pros and cons to a closed system,” admits Nerf world trading head Patrick Schneider, hinting I should look retired for caller blasters this autumn that entreaty to an older property group.

The 3rd logic this isn’t a repetition of Ultra is nan prices — they aren’t outrageous for these caller blasters. While it does consciousness a tad ridiculous to vessel a two-shot blaster pinch conscionable 2 darts (you request to bargain much if you suffer moreover one!), $40 for nan flagship Infinite, which comes pinch 80 darts, is much kid firepower than Nerf has offered astatine that value for rather a while. The derided Ultra statement shipped pinch a acold little absorbing blaster for $50.

Me, holding nan Pinpoint. They’re each large capable for adults, pinch comfy grips.

None of this intends Hasbro’s pulling up of nan competition: rival companies person proven you don’t request to break compatibility pinch complete a decade of Elite-sized darts successful bid to summation scope and accuracy while satisfying requirements for safety. While Hasbro says these darts are amended than its ain Elite successful each way, that’s an incredibly debased bar, and nan squad dodged my mobility astir really they stack up to rival darts that costs acold less.

But I can’t contradict these blasters look and consciousness beautiful awesome — speech from nan occasional jam connected my Infinite reappraisal unit, not judge what’s going connected location — and that I would person enjoyed them backmost erstwhile I was a kid.

A leaked image of nan Sprinter.

In nan US, Target will additionally get 2 exclusive blasters: nan pump-action shotgun-like $25 Strikeback, pinch a six-dart soul clip and broadside panels that outpouring guardant to supply a consciousness of recoil erstwhile fired; and nan $30 Shadow Storm, a top-priming pistol pinch an eight-dart soul clip that comes pinch attachable barrel, stock, and sight.

Walmart will get nan $30 Sprinter, nan only motorized blaster successful nan line, which takes six AA batteries and has a 16-dart detachable mag and semi-auto firing.

The first N-Series blasters will get successful June and July.

Photography by Sean Hollister / The Verge

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