NAF 2022 - is it worth my time?

[Biguk]

Hey guys, I’ve played many weekender events over the years but have never attended the National Airsoft Festival.

A couple of friends are adamant that it’s going to be awesome, but I’m massively on the fence given conversations that I’ve had over the years and the YT videos I’ve watched about the event. I’m concerned about the level of gameplay and the quality of the games. I’ve heard that the pace is very slow and the games aren’t marshalled with any consistency. 

What’s everyone’s opinion of the event? Is it worth my £100 investment…

 

[Druid799]

Well I’ve been to most and can happily say the gameplay absolutely sucks like a busted hoover !?‍ Really can be that bad , you have bottlenecks , blindfiring , players not taking their hits , players not pushing forward , sitting around chatting , etc , etc you name the gameday complaint and I 100% guarantee you’ll encounter it multiple times through out the day , I’ve always said there’s just too many players to be able to run an effective game BUT and this is the important bit for me I don’t see any of that as really that big a negative because when you think about it when are you EVER going to get a chance to play with 2000+ players ? ?

Me ? I don’t go for the gameplay i go for the social side of it , now don’t get me wrong I do enjoy the game(me and my mate just play our own game spending the day trying to shoot as many players as we can AND as inventively as possible!?)plus I’ll often arrange to meet up with forum/Facebook group members just to put a face to a name as much as anything , I always take a shit load of kit to sell at the ‘airsoft car boot’ sale and I always go with my best mate(we both have very high stress jobs so it’s just nice to get away from everything for a couple of day , forget about work , act like a pair of stupid kids and just generally chill out and decompress ?) plus various other friends and team mates come and go each yr so there’s always a small group of us .

For me if you go expecting a well organised fast paced Mil-Sim event then you are SERIOUSLY going to be sorely disappointed BUT if you go with zero expectations and just take it for what it is I’d say you should have a pleasant experience . Is it worth the couple of hundred pounds it’ll end up costing ? Not sure about that anymore but again it’s up too you in the end . ?

live long and prosper.?

 

[Speedbird_666]

GZ is my local site. I live 20mins away from it. In the 16-odd years I've been playing, not once did I think the NAF would be a good idea from a gameplay perspective. 

I mean, the place sucks with 200-300 players on site during a 'normal' skirmish day with bottleneck tracks, shit terrain and millions of rhododendron bushes, so the thought of it being scaled-up by an order of magnitude (with commensurate price increase) definitely does not appeal. 

BUT...... GZ are trying something new with a two day Milsim-ish (battlesim??) event in May - Operation Green Sceptre

That seems to be a much more compelling event in my mind - the site itself would probably work quite well in the ammo-limited, Milsim scenario-driven context.

Less likely to see the gameplay completely stopped by a kiddie with a drum mag hidden under a bush at the top of a track seemly invulnerable to BB hits.

 

[Merchant Lord]

Hey guys, I’ve played many weekender events over the years but have never attended the National Airsoft Festival.

A couple of friends are adamant that it’s going to be awesome, but I’m massively on the fence given conversations that I’ve had over the years and the YT videos I’ve watched about the event. I’m concerned about the level of gameplay and the quality of the games. I’ve heard that the pace is very slow and the games aren’t marshalled with any consistency. 

What’s everyone’s opinion of the event? Is it worth my £100 investment…

It really is a personal choice. If you are looking for a serious mil-sim event then this wouldn't be for you. If you are looking to socialise and engage with players from around the world with a shared interest in Airsoft then without a doubt the best place to do this. Remember its a festival not a skirmish weekend so my advice would be to look at it like that. Myself and my team do a lot of mil-sim and serious skirmishes throughout the year. So we use NAF as a chance to kick back relax and we generally spend more time at the bar then we do out in the field. But it really is a personal choice. 

 

[Shamal]

Hi ?

I would echo what @Merchant Lordhas said.

it's a festival weekend. Camping,good food,cold beer and a fun and friendly atmosphere.

plenty of carboot type of side stalls selling whatever you need at a good price and sellers open to offers. I've picked up some great bargains.

The main arena is brilliant. Food outlets,competition stalls where you can put your aim and reactions to the test and big names selling new gear and showcasing the latest toys.

There is a kill house where you can run the course and register your times for chance of winning a prize and also a shooting range with reactive targets out to 80 meters to tune your gun and get your sights sorted.

Oh and as an added bonus there are the games.you can take them as seriously as you like or play in a more relaxed,casual style. Your choice. Missions and objectives for the weekend are all explained fully in your player pack.

Saturday evening there is a night game which is great for tracers and lasers or you can just chill out in the arena with a cold lager and listen to the live music and just talk Airsoft untill the early hours.?

Regards 

 

[Cannonfodder]

Over £100 to sit in a field getting pissed, while trying to avoid all the annoying kids pissed up on half a shandy who won't take the hint that im not interested in their bullshit? I'll pass thanks

I could probably put up with all that if the games were half decent but they're not