The United Kingdom Airsoft Players’ Union (UKAPU) will get down to business immediately at the start of 2019 as they call for their Annual General Meeting on the 12th of January 2019. To be held at The Grange in Birmingham, it’s a reunion, meeting, and an airsoft game at the same time.

The UKAPU has been working hard to protect and advance airsoft for airsoft players since it was founded by Matt Furey-King. We always encourage airsoft players to band and work together to prevent any efforts to ban or mitigate the hobby. UKAPU is fervently working on it, the more members they have, the more they can work even harder for airsoft players in the UK.

I’ll let Jon Hill, UKAPU Press Officer, give the details of the UKAPU AGM 2019:

UKAPU Annual General Meeting 2019

2018 is fast coming to a close and the new year is soon to be upon us again and so we'd love to invite all of our members to the 2019 Game Day & Annual General Meeting - hosted on Saturday 12th of January, to be held at the Grange Live Gaming in Birmingham. Doors will open for 8.30am, and we will hopefully start playing at 10.00am.

Cost for attending this UKAPU exclusive game day is £25 (£5 deposit and £20 on the door). The venue itself has no parking but, there is very reasonably priced parking around the venue.

Link to pay deposit/secure attendance to game day: https://www.ukapu.org.uk/agm-2019

Three important notes to make:

1) Not a member? You can join UKAPU today for free - please visit https://www.ukapu.org.uk/join for further details.

2) The nomination period is open for all positions (as it is every year), so if you wish to join the committee in either a vacant position, or challenge someone who already holds a position and is up for re-election, please contact us.

3) We are still accepting points to discuss at the AGM/management meeting, please forward these to us if you have any.

We at the UKAPU committee look forward to your attendance!

Erratum: We previously announced it was on the 1st of January. We have corrected it to the right date. Our apologies.

If there is something in the airsoft world that is worthwhile to watch to end the year with a real good bang, then the three musketeers from The Chairsofter Show, Airsoft Nation, and The Floperator Podcast got something that we should all look forward to each year --- the Unpopular Airsoft Awards livecast!

This show is in no way connected to us but we do highly give our endorsement to this. It is also not connected to the Airsoft Players’ Choice Awards which is ongoing right now, but if there is a The Golden Raspberry Awards or the “Razzies” in airsoft, then this show is the one that can lay claim to it.

We got in touch with Graham Hoffman of Airsoft Nation and asked him how they came up with this livecast. Here is what is he said:

It started while talking with fellow podcasters about a show collaboration for the end of year show. We discussed show topics and ideas, and then the Popular Airsoft Award nomination process opened, planting the seed.

Let's take a formal Awards ceremony and have fun with it. The Razzies of Airsoft, our Christmas special where we can all collaborate together.

It was decided, the Unpopular Airsoft Awards hosted by Airsoft Nation, The Floperator Podcast and The Chairsofter Show. 3 hosts, 1 joint show and the entire goal was to provide a fun, light-hearted and entertaining awards event.

We immediately worked on the script and came up with categories, nominees and then a final winner. Each winner was contacted, we wanted to get them involved and show them that this is all for fun - no need to burn bridges.

Of course, we also had to laugh at ourselves - putting on skits between award segments, just like the real awards ceremonies. We joked about with Eye-Pro when using poppers, had suits with chest rigs and even had no trousers on to finish the awards ceremony (first time you see below the waist).

The support from the winners was awesome, most of them contributing and getting onboard, seeing the funny side. Kevin Pierre putting on a motivational 'trailer' video was epic and completed in 2 days.

The launch night was fabulous and we're very proud of this. I hope anyone watching sees the funny side, and aspects of Airsoft that bring us together. A refreshing way to finish 2018.

Indeed, watching the video is refreshing. With the winners also playing along and accepting whatever valid criticism, it is a no drama, two thumbs up affair.

With that first awards out of the way, the three gentlemen should also plan for the red carpet moment in the next awards livecast next year, and we hope they don’t forget to invite us. We are now making a list of couturiers who will design our outfit for the awards.

So hopefully next year if they do get to have the red carper treatment, we get to be asked, “Who are you wearing.” It can be Caleb Crye, Patrick Ma, or Dan Costa. Bu we’re getting ahead.

Now, find out the winners of the First Unpopular Airsoft Awards! Don’t forget to share this video to your airsoft teams and communities:

With the release of Operator Zero in Call Of Duty: Black Ops 4, player complaints became a deluge as the latest specialis is just too powerful, especially with Icepick ability that hacks an entire team, able to take control of the killstreaks and more.  As one Reddit user says, “Zero's Icepick is literally an autopilot to getting free streaks.”

In one massive update from Treyarch, the following fixes were made to balance the game when Zero is in play:

In today’s update to Multiplayer, we’ve implemented our first balancing pass on Zero, our new Specialist. As with all new features in Black Ops 4, we’ve been paying close attention to how Zero plays into the overall Multiplayer experience and have tuned some of her abilities accordingly. This includes an increase in the time it takes to earn her Ice Pick, varying increases to the time it takes her to hack Scorestreaks and Torque’s Barricade, preventing her hacks from freezing enemy healing cooldowns, and more. Take a look at the full patch notes below for the full list and let us know what you think.

The update also comes with private games, allowing teams to explore a map and practice herein before going into full multiplayer battles. This will initially support up to 12 players. But overall, here is the exact list of updates to Zero according:

Now available on all platforms with Operation Absolute Zero:

• Zero unlocked at Tier 1 in the Black Market for use in MP and Blackout
• Hijacked, ARAV, new weapons, and IX Zombies Character Missions in Blackout
• Revamped Black Market with 100 Tiers
• Balance tuning for Zero in MP.
• Half Off Heist Featured Playlist in MP.
• Reactive Camo requirement tuning in MP.
• Stability fixes related to Zero in MP.
• Vehicle audio improvements in Blackout.
• Map improvements in Blackout.
• Gameplay and stability improvements in Zombies.
• Global Auto Sprint option added (all modes).
• All Specialists unlocked and “The Numbers” outfit reward added in Blackout (PS4).
• Limited-time Contraband Stashes added to Blackout (PS4).
• Daemon 3XB weapon balancing (PC).
• Custom Emblem fix (PC).
• Improved Auto Mantle (PC).
• Black Ops Pass content this week (Xbox One and PC):
  • 2 new MP Maps: Elevation and Madagascar
  • New Zombies experience: Dead of the Night
  • New Blackout character: Reaper

There are other fixes for Playstation 4, but we’re more intested in the updates to all platforms for this story. Hopefully, with this update, all is well now in the Black Ops 4 community and it’s rock and roll time again during the Holiday break.

Capcom, in cooperation with Militaryblog.jp, previously released the “Black Command” mobile game app in which the player takes command of a Private Military Company (PMC) group to conduct missions. The players gets to recruit mercenaries and other aspects of running a PMC.

Apart from maintaining a PMC organizationally, Black Command also lets the player decide when to strike, choosing how his/he teams approach and objective and raise funds in order to become the most dominant PMC in the game.

Available for iOS and Android, it’s free to play in its basic form and has in-game purchases. For the latest update, which was dropped yesterday, the 20th of December, is called “Rivals Arena” and the player gets to battle other commanders from around the world. Competing in rank matches, the player gets to make full use of his/her tactics and team.

When entering the “Rivals Arena” the players gets into a group of 30 people. The ranking battle is carried out in a weekly cycle and a players goes up the ranking by the total number of points obtained by winning a mission.

To be effective in the battle, the player has to dominate map objectives, take over mortars, sniper posts, and more! Winning is by strategizing and having the ability to anticipate the enemy’s actions. The caveat here is that once the player has determined the strategy it cannot be changed it once the game starts, and player needs to trust the troops to execute the plan. The good thing is, support can be called upon to help turn the tide of battle if need be.

Once you get into the “Rivals Arena”, the players has only one thing to do, defeat the enemies and be at the top of the rankings. So good luck commander!

In our first event in the Philippines since 2009, the RATRATAN 2018 aims to start anew the relations between Popular Airsoft and the Philippine Airsoft Community one of the biggest and oldest in the world. Our growth was without a doubt also helped by this community as it provided some of our earliest stories and news and established our international network of contributors.

Thus, last 15 December 2018, we held the RATRATAN 2018 event. Organised together LZ Delta Airsoft Game Site in Las Piñas City and supported by 6mm TV and Spartan X Airsoft Store, this is a mix of the usual skirmish and some milsim-style components just to have both veterans and new players enjoy yhe game. It was a good thing that we were able to avoid some of the traffic on the way to the game site as it is situated in one busiest thoroughfares in South Metro Manila.

It was a quick setup, given that the game management led by Mike Ponce, already got that patted down. As soon as we have an initial number of players in, we started the registration and chrono. By 0900H, players were all ready to go and start the hostilities so after a brief introduction, we started a warm up game of attack and defend. It was a quick one though that the laid down the mood for the day.

The second game came and it can be exhausting as the attackers need to eliminate the defenders of several buildings to achieve their objective. With the defenders well entrenched that they were hard to be dislodged. After a grueling game, the players were left exhausted and drenched in sweat that we decided to have an early launched to have them rested and rehydrated as the next scenario was even more exacting on their capabilities.

By 1300H we started the highlight of the day which was another exfil scenario for “Elias Morales” who was the HVT in the Ratratan series. “Elias Morales” was played by the same character, Maximus Pola of Hammerheads and Red Wing Milsim group. He had to escape protected by close-in security but had to go through several waypoints before reaching his exfil and escaping. But along the way there were shooters at each waypoint and there was a fast moving pursuit team behind. Even with such an overwhelming opposing force, “Elias” managed to escape in good time even if the firefights along the route were vicious.

At 1500H, a modified capture the flag scenario was executed by the LZ crew, which proved to be as exhausting as the other scenarios. There were roaming blocking forces to prevent the retrieval teams from getting their flags, and just to get the flags, they were guarded tightly indoors and thus, the teams had to do some close quarters fighting.

By 1600H, it was masks up for everyone. We asked the players if they still wanted to do another scenario, but instead they said they were ready for the raffle draw. So we allowed them some time to stow their gear away before 1700H, we started the raffle draw.

Each player got to win a raffle prize, be it a morale patch, a sticker, caps, small items, and more swag that came from regular Popular Airsoft supporters. Some players won more than one item as there was something for everyone.

By 1730H, we started a small fellowship. The LZ hosts put out some liquor and food to share to those who remained at the site. As I had to wait until the traffic in the area got to moderate levels, which meant that I had to go later than the rest, I stayed and shared stories with the LZ Delta crew and other players who remained as well.

By 2000H, I decided that the traffic was manageable for my trip back, which I expected to be two hours given that it’s traffic all over the Metropolis as Christmas shoppers do their late night shopping. I was right, I arrived home by 2200H.

Ratratan 2018 was a smaller version of the original series in which there were hundreds of players joining in the game. We expected it to be such and happy that a good number of players showed up. The game scenarios executed by the LZ Delta crew made the players sweat thoroughly. We are planning that for the next Ratratan, we’ll have it done on a bigger scale. As they say, small steps at a time.

Many thanks to LZ Delta Airsoft Game Site, 6mmTV and Spartan X for their support. Also thanks to Kevin Venzuela Octa of PMC and Cary Regaspi of Regaspi Tactical. Photos of the event can now be viewed on the Popular Airsoft Facebook Page.

(Advisory: No news and stories on Popular Airsoft from the 24th to the 26th of December as we take our Christmas break.)  Christmas is the time to cease hostilities in the airsoft field and partake in the holiday cheer. We all head home to spend the day in the company of those dearest to us. So take time to enjoy this day within the warmth of homes and the smiles of those familiar to us through all these years.

Whilst in the midst of celebrations, do not forget to think about those who cannot be in the company their loved ones since circumstances of their jobs and situations do not allow them. With them, they ensure that we get to spend the day in bliss, be they the police keeping the peace, the soldiers keeping the enemies at bay, the medical workers who patch those who are injured and care for the sick, and those who run the transport networks to bring us home. Be thankful for what they do as they perform some of the most vital roles to get our communities going.

We wish you all a Merry Christmas.

(Credits: U.S. Air Force photos by Senior Airman Gregory Nash)

We all hope that you enjoyed the Christmas break. We’re still nursing headaches from the all the liquor we drank and savoring what was on our plates that was shared by our friends and families. It is still not over though as the festivities continue as we look forward to ushering the New Year in a few days.

But before that, we all have to remind our dear readers and the general airsoft community that the Nomination Period of the 9th Airsoft Players’ Choice Awards is about to close. If you have not nominated yet, then better click the button below to submit your nominees:

Please remember that only the top 5 nominees in each of the 25 categories will advance into the Voting/Finals Period. These are the nominees that have gathered the most number of nominations. So if you are rooting for a particular nominee or nominees , this is your last chance to help push them into the top 5.

The Nomination Period ends on the 28th of November 2018 by 2400H PST. Take note of this as once the Nomination Period closes, it will stay shut as we wait for the commencement of the Voting/Finals Period.

Please take time to visit our sponsors as without them the awards project would never happen.

By 2400H PST today, the Nomination Period of the 9th Airsoft Players’ Choice Awards closes. There will be no extensions and considerations as we need to collate all the nominees immediately. If you and your team mates have not submitted your lists yet, then better do so now before it’s too late.

Click the button below to immediately go to the Awards page to submit your list of nominees:

No need more us to send you reminders as this is the final day. After the Nominations Period ends, the Voting/Finals Period will commence on the 7th of January 2019 and the top 5 nominees per category will be announced.

Good luck to you as well as the nominees prospecting to be the finalist for the awards.

Please do take time to visit the sponsors supportive of this endeavour:

(Advisory: No news from 31 December 2018 to 1 January 2019 as we take our New Year celebrations break. We’ll resume on the 2nd of January) 2018 is a year of mixed blessings; though overall, it is something that we would rather put behind quickly and moved on to 2019. With the state of current affairs around the world, we are actually surprised that there is still some sanity left.

Hopefully, 2019 will bring more that, sanity, to the world and bring us some normalcy in our daily lives.

But in airsoft, it is actually not a bad year. We have seen the community growing and more airsoft innovations being introduced. From boutique airsoft shops to the big airsoft brands, innovation is being introduced. In matter of choices, we are spoiled. Many airsoft guns to choose from, even if most of them are M4s, but we can opt  for power sources --- spring, electric, gas and HPA. In each these, a number of companies compete for our money and attention.

With such competition, we get even more quality airsoft guns and entry level prices. It’s something we welcome as it will introduce new airsoft players to better airsoft guns than what we have been accustomed to.

We hope that trend continues and with airsoft companies now working harder to improve the playing experience, we expect more of these next year.

But apart from that, what we sincerely wish for everyone, especially our dear Popular Airsoft readers, is good health, prosperity, and happiness come 2019.

Happy New Year!

We all know by now that Classic Army and Airsoft GI have been working close together in the North American airsoft market. In recent times, the Hong Kong based airsoft company have been working hard to bring new products to the market as well as re-introducing old classics that have been updated with new internals, especially with the ECS. Some of the interesting ones are the Micro Gum, Nemesis Line, and soon to be released DT-4 “Double Trouble” Double Barreled AR-styke AEG.

Now Classic Army will be more aggressive in handling their global sales with the Classic Army USA spearheading this task. An already familiar face in the industry is coming on board to head. Frank Chu, known as the top tech guy at Airsoft GI, sent us an email that he will be heading the team. He brings with him over 20 years of airsoft hobby experience as well as 15 years involvement in the airsoft industry. His F Chu line of custom airsoft guns are some of the best made pieces available in the airsoft market.

Now, with his new role, he will be bringing his airsoft industry business experience in a more global scale. His team will be handling most of the sales of Classic Army with the exception of France, Taiwan, Japan, and Denmark. Thus, we will be seeing more of Frank at major trade fairs such as SHOT Show and IWA Outdoor Classics.

So, what can we expect from Classic Army this year? We’ll let Frank give us an insight on how the Classic Army Global Sales will be doing its tasks:

Since 2016 the release of the Classic Army Skirmish polymer based airsoft rifle, we sought to revamp our previous Sportline series to include the latest in airsoft internal technology with the addition of a MOSFET and exterior styling with a billet style receiver along with our own polymer based rail systems for some much-needed updates to our affordable airsoft rifle line.  The Skirmish line has been very popular for us due to its price point vs. features.  However,  we did not stop there in 2018 we decided to up the ante and decided to update our value-packed Skirmish line with even more features.  The ECS Skirmish series received both internal and external updates.  Internally we decided to move away from the MOSFETs and included Classic Army ECS digital programmable trigger.  The ECS unit is a digital trigger that allows users to select from 5 programming modes on the fly via input from the trigger.  We found the stability of the ECS triggers to be light years ahead of the previous MOSFET units.  The motor has been updated with our proline grade 23K motors.  External wise we have added our toolless motor grip, flat triggers, and ambidextrous charging handle.  We have also added a few configurations to the Skirmish line including ML10, ML12 ( M-Lok ),  and AR4 SBR.  New for 2019 we will be adding a polymer version of our 9mm AR the PX9.

Classic Army Nemesis Line of Electric airsoft rifles will replace our Proline series as the flagship series of Airsoft Rifles.  The Nemesis series will include upgraded gear boxes with our ECS Digital trigger system along with upgraded internals to handle the stresses of use.  The Nemesis rifles will feature aluminum cylinder heads, aluminum piston head with ball bearings, full metal teeth pistons, Ball bearing spring guides and steel CNC wire-cut gears.  We updated the old 31k motors to have increased torque for increased trigger response.  Nemesis rifles are full metal constructions and will include our BAS / BAS PDW stocks (depending on model).  We constructed the BAS stock to have plenty of battery capacity and ease of use.  The Nemesis X9 is the first airsoft gun to receive all of our Gen 2 updated to the Nemesis series.  Nemesis X9 is Classic Army's entry into the 9mm ar carbine segment of AEG which was again a big hit for us.  we will be expanding on the Nemesis X9 line with the X9 Raptor and X9 T-REX in early 2019. 

Lastly, Classic Army will be ready to release the Nemesis DT4 after almost a year of additional design and development.  The Nemesis DT4 will add a new dimension to the airsoft hobby.  DT4 is a double barrel M4 Carbine operated off a single set of fire controls and trigger.  What this is equal to two bbs flying down range side by side.  The Nemesis DT4 will offer the same updates that the rest of the Nemesis Gen 2 line will receive excluding the cylinder section which will be special to the DT4.  The gearbox will utilize two separate barrels, hop-ups, and magazines with one gearbox driving and firing the BB's.   Look for availability of DT4 in early Jan 2019.

As you can see we have been very busy here at Classic Army.  These are just a few of the changes Classic Army has been working on.  We look forward to working with each and every one of you to bring Classic Army products to our customers and fans.

It will be an exciting year in airsoft with Classic Army being more aggressive than even before with the addition of Frank Chu, serving a heads up to competitors that they are here to stay. Classic Army has some of the best received airsoft products over the years and was previously touted to be the next Tokyo Marui given the quality and performance of its products.

Will the company bring airsoft to greater heights? We sure hope so with their intention to out-innovate and outperform the competition. That also signals the others to be on their toes and try to out compete Classic Army. The signs are good and we will be looking forward to more innovation and better airsoft playing experience in 2019.

It looks like the Glock airsoft makers have a lot of catching up to do as there are more Glock Pistols to make available to the airsoft market. Whilst we are waiting for the G19X, there is another series that might merit the attention of airsoft players and wish that there are airsoft versions.

Glock just announced the Silver Slimline Series, with the introduction of the G43X and the G48 Slimline Pistols. Both pistols are chambered in 9X19 and theyfeature a compact, slimline frame with silver nPVD finish and a 10-round magazine capacity. The G43X is the same size as the G43 at a subcompact size of 6.06 inches, the G48 is at 6.85 inches.

Since there compact and slim, they are more suitable for concealed carry or for those who prefer more compact pistols, especially shooters with smaller hands. The compact slimline frame is combined with a a fuller size grip length with a minimal profile of around 1” for a balanced, versatile grip which they company says is perfect for a variety of users. The width is similar to the G43 but it is slightly wider to allow for increased round capacity therefore, the G43X and G48 magazines are not interchangeable with the G43, which is unfortunate for owners of the G43.

The G43X and G48 also feature the silver nPVD finish on the slide. According to Glock this finish is a variation of what is seen on the G19X and the latter went through intensive military testing during he Modula Handgun System (MHS) program.  Both pistols have a similar height as the G19 and their slimline width is for increased concealability. They feature front serrations, built-in beavertail, reversible magazine catch and a match-grade GLOCK Marksman Barrel. They come with 10-round capacity magazines that have high-visibility orange followers.

Both pistols will be released on January 21, 2019 and are priced the same as the G43 at US$580.00. If you will be attending the SHOT Show 2019 in Las Vegas this month, better head to their booth to check them out.

Some good news for the airsoft businesses in California two days before Christmas day which should be a fitting gift to them and a warning to those thinking of stealing airsoft merchandize that they cannot escape the long arms of the law. Police teams from Atwater and Merced in Sacramento County teamed up and seized stolen airsoft, shooting sports, and training equipment worth US$60,000.00.

According to the Atwater Police, the items belong to American Airsoft, which is a Galt area company. The company reported the theft last December 12, 2018 in which they lost an estimated US$100,000.00 of merchandize and was being investigated by the Sacramento Sheriff’s Department.

The Merced Police were actually investigating an unrelated case when they stumbled into the stolen goods which they contacted the Atwater police. These were then photographed and returned to American Airsoft.

Below is the official statement from the Atwater Police Department on the case as takem from their Facebook Page:

As always, airsoft players are admonished to be on the lookout for stolen airsoft goods as it happens in many places. If anyone is selling airsoft items at “too good to be true” prices, they should always check the news and even Facebook groups discussing about stolen airsoft products. Sometimes the items stolen are described so that they can compare to those that are being peddled. If they match, then they better report it to the authorities or to the affected business so they can take over and proceed with the solution of the crime.

Top photo: Atware Police Department (Source: Atwater PD Facebook Page)

We are undergoing another scheduled maintenance this weekend as we prepare the Popular Airsoft website for the year. It’s an old website design, we admit, but it has served us well all these past years. We intend to do an upgrade soon as possible and we are reviewing some proposed website redesign.

The website will remain online so our readers will be able to view this weekend stories as well as other news and stories. There will be some instances the site will go offline but for most of the weekend it will be mainly up and  running.

We are also preparing for the bigger traffic when we post the finalists list for the 9th Airsoft Players’ Choice Awards when the Voting/Finals Period on the 7th of January. We know many of you are expecting this, so stay tuned. By Monday you will find out if your favourite made it to the finals.

Enjoy the weekend whilst we check under the bonnet.

It’s the moment many prospective nominees and their fans have been waiting for --- the Voting Period of the 9th Airsoft Players’ Choice Awards. From today up to the 4th of February 2019, airsoft players and readers of Popular Airsoft from around the world will be voting and determine who wins in this awards edition.

The top 5 nominees which are nominees who received the most number of nominations during the Nomination Period advance into the Voting Period. If you want to vote right now, click the button below to start voting:

You can vote in one more categories. Whilst we prefer you cast your vote in all categories, you have the freedom to choose which categories to vote in.

Here is the most awaited part of today’s announcement, the finalists of the 9th Airsoft Players Choice Awards:

Best Airsoft Retailer for North America

• Evike.com
• Amped Airsoft
• Airsoft GI 
• Airsoftjunkiez
• MiR Tactical

Best Airsoft Retailer for Europe

• Airsoft-Rus
• Gunfire
• Landwarrior Airsoft
• Taiwan Gun
• RedWolf Airsoft UK

Best Airsoft Retailer for Asia

• eHobby Asia
• First Japan
• RedWolf Airsoft
• WGC Shop
• Impulse 101

Best Gear Retailer for North America

• Evike.com
• Military 1st
• Amped Airsoft 
• Airsoft Megastore
• Airsoft GI

Best Gear Retailer for Europe

• Military 1st
• Tactical Kit
• Specshop.pl (www.specshop.pl)
• Gunfire (www.gunfire.com)
• Landwarrior Airsoft (www.landwarriorairsoft.com)

Best Gear Retailer for Asia

• RedWolf Airsoft
• eHobby Asia 
• First Japan
• Laylax
• EB Airsoft

Best Airsoft Magazine (Print or Digital)

• Airsoft Action Magazine
• 0’20 Magazine
• Arms Magazine
• Airsoft Addict Bille de 6
• Airsoft International Magazine

Best English Language Airsoft News Website

• Airsoft & Military News Blog
• Airsoft Nation
• 020 Magazine English
• Arnies Airsoft
• Airsoft News EU

Best Non-English Language Airsoft News Website

• Red Army Airsoft
• Hyperdouraku
• WMASG
• Новости страйкбола от Tactical Fun Boys
• Airsoft News

Best Airsoft Blog (Regardless of Language)

• Red Army Airsoft
• Airsoft & Milsim News Blog
• Femme Fatale Airsoft
• Hyperdouraku
• L'Antre du Dingo

Best Airsoft Community/Forum

• Airsoft Verzeichnis
• Airsoft Forums UK
• Reddit /r/airsoft
• Airsoft Nation
• Sniperland

Best Airsoft Video Posted Online in 2018

• OVL2018 - Dawn of The Iron Beast
• The Joy of Painting Airsoft with BB Ross
• Border War 10 – by Silo Entertainment
• OP Chernobyl: Resurrection
• World's 1st Smart Airsoft Grenade: Avatar - RWTV

Best Airsoft Event (Over 500 Players)

• Warzone Brazil
• Border War 10 – The Beast Slayer
• Protector
• TSTOS18/Battlegroup18
• Сутки на броне XIII

Best Airsoft Podcast or Video Channel

• Airsoftology
• Evike.com Airsoft
• The Chairsofter Show
• Red Army Airsoft
• Marty Airsoft

Best Airsoft Upgrade/Parts Maker

• Laylax
• SHS Airsoft
• Retro Arms
• PDI
• ASG Ultimate Parts

Best Airsoft KABOOM (Grenade/Mine/Mortar/Rocket/Pyro) Maker

• Airsoft Innovations
• Enola Gaye
• Tactical Game Innovation (TAGInn)
• Strike Art
• Avatar Grenade

Best HPA Airsoft Engine

• Wolverine Airsoft Inferno Gen 2
• PolarStar Airsoft F2
• Proteus 2
• Wolverine Airsoft  Hydra Gen 2
• Redline N7

Best Airsoft Pistol (Regardless of Power Source)

• ASG CZ P-09 CO2 Pistol
• EMG Arms SAI Blu
• Tokyo Marui Glock 19 3rd Generation
• Tokyo Marui SOCOM MK23
• Tokyo Marui M&P 9L PC Ported

Best Airsoft Gas Blowback Rifle

• Umarex/VFC Umarex HK416 A5 GBBR
• Tokyo Marui M4A1 MWS GBB Rifle
• Tokyo Marui MTR16 GBB Rifle
• EMG SAI GRY AR-15 Gas Blowback Training Rifle
• GHK 553 GBB Rifle

Best Airsoft Shotgun

• Tokyo Marui M870 Tactical Gas Shotgun
• APS CAM MKIII
• Maruzen CA870
• Tokyo Marui SGR-12
• Tokyo Marui M870 Breacher

Best Airsoft Sniper Rifle

• Silverback Airsoft SRS-A1
• Tokyo Marui VSR-10 Pro Sniper G Spec
• Tokyo Marui M40A5
• Novritsch SSG24 Airsoft Sniper Rifle
• Ares Airsoft Amoeba Striker AS-02

Best Airsoft Automatic Electric Gun (AEG)

• Tokyo Marui HK416 Delta Custom NGRS
• G&G ARP9 AEG
• EMG Demolition Ranch F-1 Firearms UDR-15
• ASG Evo Scorpion Evo 3 A1
• Krytac KRISS Vector AEG

Best Airsoft Manufacturer

• Tokyo Marui
• Action Sport Games
• G&G Armament
• ICS Airsoft
• Krytac

Special Airsoft Player Award (Male)

• Mach Sakai
• Novritsch
• Marty Airsoft
• Kicking Mustang
• Jet DesertFox

Special Airsoft Player Award (Female)

• Femme Fatale Airsoft
• P90 Girl
• Peanuts Airsoft
• Unicorn Leah
• Airsoft Caroline

Please do take time to visit the sponsors supportive of this endeavour:

Oh yes! The Voting Period of the 9th Airsoft Players Choice Awards has gotten off with a flying start. On the first day of voting, thousands have already cast their votes and there is still more than enough time for everyone to vote.  This should encourage the finalists to rally their fans to invite other airsoft team mates to vote if they haven’t done so.

If you want to cast your vote right now, click on the button below. But you can read on further to learn more about what we have to tell you:

As always, our sponsors have contributed some cool raffle prizes for voters to win. If you have nominated during the Nomination period and voted during the Voting Period, you will be entered twice in the raffle, giving you twice the chance to win a prize. For this year, the prizes are even cooler so better vote now so your name will be entered into the raffle draw which happens after the closing of the Voting Period.

Airsoft guns from Tokyo Marui:

TOKYO MARUI MTR16 GAS BLOWBACK RIFLE

TOKYO MARUI JGSDF TYPE 89 GAS BLOWBACK RIFLE

TOKYO MARUI M&P9L PC PORTED GAS BLOWBACK PISTOL

For the Europe-based airsoft player, raffle prize sets from Gunfire and Specna Arms:

SET 1

SA-V26 Assault Rifle Replica Specna Arms - RED EDITION
Buff Armored Claw
Patch Specna Arms RED GUN
Patch Gunfire

SET 2:

Carabine Replika Specna Arms SA-C09 CORE - HALF-TAN
Buff Armored Claw
Patch Specna Arms RED GUN
Patch Gunfire

SET 3:

Blast Plate Carrier Tactical Vest Primal Gear
Buff Armored Claw
Patch Specna Arms Carbine - tan
Patch Gunfire

Military 1st also sent in two raffle prizes:

HELIKON RATEL MK2 BACKPACK SHADOW GREY

PENTAGON KYLER BACKPACK WOLF GREY

Overall, the Airsoft Players’ Choice Awards won’t be successful without the support of your supporters. Please do visit their websites and online stores by clicking on their logos:

With SBRs and compact AR-style guns being the rage nowadays in real steel and airsoft, SIG Sauer just went even more ultra-compact. Their MPX line, which they revealed a few years ago, already feature compact versions, but with the announcement of the MPX Copperhead, they have a very compact 9mm that we sure would like to see an airsoft version.

The SIG Sauer MPX Copperhead is 8 inches in height and has an overall length of 14.5 inches. The company says it features a monolithic Elite Series Cerakote finish upper receiver that has an integrated stock knuckle lower. The barrel is 3.5 inches with integrated muzzle brake. It comes with the new SIG SAUER Pivoting Contour Brace (PCB) installed with the aim of giving pistol users a brace. This brace easily adapts to the movement of the shooter’s arm with a patented swivel operation for rapid deployment.

“The MPX Copperhead considerably reduces the length, width, and size of the MPX platform making it the most compact addition to the MPX family of firearms,” said Tom Taylor, Chief Marketing Officer and Executive Vice President, Commercial Sales, SIG SAUER, Inc., in a press release. “The Copperhead is the perfect combination of the features and performance our consumers expect from a SIG MPX in a compact package.”

Back to the stabilizing brace found in the rear of the MPX Copperhead. It rides on two rails and can be adjusted for just two positions: fully extended or fully retracted.  It has full ambidextrous controls and can accept current MPX magazines. This gun operates from a fully-closed and locked rotating bolt, providing enhanced reliability and is safer to use. The  short-stroke gas piston allows the SIG MPX to run all weights and brands of 9mm ammunition with no adjustments to the gas valve.

Here are the specs of the MPX Copperhead:

• Total length: 14.5”
• Barrel length: 3.5”
• Barrel Twist: 1:10”
• Weight: 4.5lbs
• Finish: Cerakote E190
• Caliber: 9mm Luger
• MSRP: $1835.00

For the airsoft community in the Philippines, it’s time to stow their airsoft guns away as they will be in for a period of an election gun ban in preparation for the National and Local elections that will take place on the May 13. The gun ban, which will also cover airsoft as defined by the Philippine Commission on Elections (COMELEC) Resolution No. 10446, will take effect on January 13 and ends on June 12, 2019. That’s five months of no airsoft for players in the country.

The gun ban usually takes a toll on airsoft as airsofters take up other hobbies while the gun is in effect and sometimes a number of them don’t go back to airsoft after the ban is lifted, preferring to stick with their newfound hobbies.

In the Definition of Terms in the COMELEC Resolution No. 10446, airsoft is covered in the Firearm definition:

p. Firearm, as defined in R. A. No. 10591, refers to any handheld or portable weapon, whether a small arm or light weapon, that expels or is designed to expel a bullet, shot, slug, missile or any projectile, which is discharged by means of expansive force of gases from burning gunpowder or other form of combustion or any similar instrument or implement, wherein the barrel, frame or receiver is considered a firearm.

The term shall include airguns, airsoft guns, and replicas/imitations of firearms in whatever form that can cause an ordinary person to believe that they are real, including the parts thereof, as defined under pertinent laws.

Imitation firearm, as defined under the same Act and as used herein, refers to a replica of a firearm, or other device that is so substantially similar in coloration and overall appearance to an existing firearm as to lead a reasonable person to believe that such imitation firearm is a real firearm. The term shall include airsoft guns.

Thus, during the period of the Election Gun Ban, airsoft players are advised not to transport their airsoft guns as they may get caught in checkpoint. Doing so shall result into an election offense as based on Section 43 of the resolution, and the penalty is severe as provided for in Section 44:

SECTION 44. Penalty for Election Offenses. -- Any person found guilty of any election offense described in this Resolution shall be punished with imprisonment of not less than one year but not more than six years and shall not be subject to probation. In addition, the guilty party shall be sentenced to suffer disqualification to hold public office and deprivation of the right of suffrage. If he is a foreigner, he shall be sentenced to deportation which shall be enforced after the prison term has been served.

Is there a work around so that airsoft players can play? Players in the Philippines will need to verify first with the local Police and COMELEC office before doing this. There are airsoft game sites that allow for players to store their airsoft guns and gear during the gun ban period. Players can play in such sites being private properties and since their airsoft guns and gear are prepositioned there is no need to transport these and be caught in a checkpoint. I will have to reiterate that they will need to confirm first with the local authorities if they allow for this before doing so.

Overall, it’s time to hunker down again for airsoft players in the Philippines, it’s going to be a long five months of watching and listening to politicians making promises, doing sing and dance, and kissing babies. Another political circus is about to begin.

The race of the first combat-ready exoskeletons just got a bit more crowded. Whilst we expect such developments from developed countries and the big three (U.S., Russia, and China), sometimes we get surprised by developments from where we least expect it. In this case, from the country of Ghana a middle income country in Africa, also a football powerhouse in the continent.

According to Graphic Online, during the 38th annual Technology Exhibition of the Kantanka Group in Accra last 6 January, the group paraded what looks like to be the largest and perhaps the tallest armoured vehicle in the world and is equipped with a laser rangefinder.  But what is more interesting is a trio of troopers that are wearing what look like to be Iron Man suits.

These suits, or more  known as exoskeletons, are designed to augment the capabilities of their wearers, allowing them to carry heavier loads and go to longer distances without causing any injury and protect the body. The Kantanka Group “Exoskeletons” show more heavily armoured men as compared to the exoskeleton projects in other countries such as the U.S. wherein the exoskeletons are more contraptions to augment rather than act as armour for the soldiers.

The soldiers in the video fromm Trends GH can sure walk with the load but they are not as agile as expected for soldiers to go into combat. They raise further questions about the armour qualities and armament as we see rifles slung to their backs. They also have helmets though they may not have HUDs (Heads Up Displays) much less have Jarvis as their personal digital assistant. Apart from the parade, there is not much information about these exoskeletons.

It’ll be interesting to know about their capabilities and if they are as formidable as they look, they can be game changers in the battlefield. But for now, Tony Stark can rest easy.

The armoured vehicle in the background is just massive, like a land battleship. It is cavernous inside that it might be able to squeeze in a platoon of fully armed soldiers. It is fully airconditioned though it does not have a turret so a gunner can safely fire from the inside.

It’s profile may not make it tactically viable when military vehicle designers always opt to go for a lower profile look. It might just be a magnet for RPGs and anti-tank weapons as it can be easily spotted from afar.

Nevertheless, it is interesting to see efforts of countries such as Ghana to develop their own local military industries. Their designs may not meet NATO requirements but they may just be more than enough for their local requirements, which is usually going against insurgents, terrorists, and coup plotters.

Of all the Call of Duty titles, for me, the Modern Warfare series is the most epic given the scale, story, and characters. It is the series where we saw airsofters and gamers immersed themselves, bringing the characters’ loadouts to the airsoft field and the callsigns Soap and Ghost  were popular in airsoft forums. But the most compelling character is Captain Price who has survived through all the titles, watching Soap die in his arms in Modern Warfare 3.

With Ghost and Soap gone, will Captain Price be back with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 which is rumored to be the COD title for 2019? It will surely bring back a lot of excitement especially with the older lot of COD players who were engrossed with the Modern Warfare story arc.

Infinity Ward will be the lead developer for this year’s Call of Duty title, and it is the same outfit that was behind the Modern Warfare until there were differences between their directors and Activision which bought Infinity Ward in 2003.

Infinity Ward senior communication manager Ashton Williams tweeted a skull leading fans to speculate that the next title will be Ghosts 2. But others point out the skull is the signature of the original Ghost in the COD franchise, Lieutenant Simon Riley, famous for the balaclava with a skull print and who died in Modern Warfare 2 with Gary “Roach” Sanderson.

For Activision to revive the sales of the COD Series, as the sales have been on a downward trend, is to fallback to Modern Warfare with Modern Warfare 3 being the best selling COD title of all time, and hope that it will turn back the flagging sales even if Black Ops 4 was the best selling title in 2018.

Other rumor tidbits is that Modern Warfare 2 will be having a Battle Royale mode just like Black Ops 4 and may not have a single player campaign too. For those who want to Modern Warfare story to still continue this will be a big disappointment as the storyline is what we think to be what made the Modern Warfare still very much fresh in the minds of older COD players the strongest selling point of the series.

Gaming Intel was first to report about Modern Warfare 4 to be the 2019 title in May 2018 and if what their exclusive sources say that it will have campaign, multiplayer, and zombie modes, then we can rest easy. But we won’t mind a Battle Royale like the Black Ops 4 Blackout is also added to the mix if that’s what gamers nowadays want.

When we were expecting that this Voting/Finals period of the 9th Airsoft Players' Choice Awards will the number of votes will be the lower than the previous year, it looks like we were mistaken for now as it’s still too early to say. Thousands of votes have been cast in the first week, so it’s looking good that airsoft players from around the world are active in casting their votes.

That makes the job of the finalists in each of the 25 categories even harder as they are not sure if their names are in most of those of thousands of votes or the competition. But for you our dear reader, if you have not cast your vote, then better click on the button below to start voting now:

The task for the finalists in the awards is simple: get as many votes as possible and top the votes in their categories to win. But then, they will have to utilise a number of tools: social media, videos, email, newsletter, and the old fashioned cajoling. Whatever tools in the arsenal, they better utilise them.

We have been monitoring social networks and the efforts of some finalists to rally their supporters and vote for them is tremendous. Such efforts usually ensure the possibility of winning as compared to doing nothing at all.  We appreciate these as they means that thus Players’ Choice Awards is taken very seriously by the community and industry, making it the most sought after recognition in the airsoft world.

But of course, the awards got its motivational tools as well to make the readers and airsoft players cast their votes: RAFFLE PRIZES! And they are listed below:

Airsoft guns from Tokyo Marui:

TOKYO MARUI MTR16 GAS BLOWBACK RIFLE

TOKYO MARUI JGSDF TYPE 89 GAS BLOWBACK RIFLE

TOKYO MARUI M&P9L PC PORTED GAS BLOWBACK PISTOL

For the Europe-based airsoft player, raffle prize sets from Gunfire and Specna Arms:

SET 1

SA-V26 Assault Rifle Replica Specna Arms - RED EDITION
Buff Armored Claw
Patch Specna Arms RED GUN
Patch Gunfire

SET 2:

Carabine Replika Specna Arms SA-C09 CORE - HALF-TAN
Buff Armored Claw
Patch Specna Arms RED GUN
Patch Gunfire

SET 3:

Blast Plate Carrier Tactical Vest Primal Gear
Buff Armored Claw
Patch Specna Arms Carbine - tan
Patch Gunfire

Military 1st also sent in two raffle prizes:

HELIKON RATEL MK2 BACKPACK SHADOW GREY

PENTAGON KYLER BACKPACK WOLF GREY

Please always take time to visit our sponsors as their support is very much valuable in making the awards possible:

Bettere get those votes coming in and help us find the winners of the 9th Airsoft Players' Choice Awards.