Playairsoft – a Crowd-sourced List of UK Airsoft Sites

[shadowfacex]

 

I’ve been working on this project for a few weeks, where I’ve started to gather info on airsoft sites from all over the UK. I have built a database of these and created a website where you can browse and find information about these sites, all in one convenient place.

 

PlayAirsoft UK

 

People who want to have a website for their airsoft locations/clubs are not generally well versed in information architecture and they don’t typically have a budget to spend on professional services to make their websites or even basic information well designed and accessible. I'm hoping to take this burden off their shoulders and give them solid tools join in on the action without much fuss.

I was annoyed that there was no central place with more info about nearby sites so I could pick one for my next weekend. PlayAirsoft is an answer to this and other issues. The functionality is currently limited because I only just started, but the info is solid; I’ve spent hours scavenging and verifying all the information about the sites you'll see there.

 

There aren’t a lot locations as of right now, but I'm hoping that with your help, we can have a universal place to find more sites. If you have a favourite airsoft location that isn’t listed or know a site owner, use the link below to suggest a new site to be listed. All submissions are reviewed beforehand, as I would like to have the most accurate info on these places as possible.

https://airtable.com/shrpMw7Xx1UiVErke

 

Feel free to use this topic as a way to provide feedback, suggestions, and report issues. I’m hoping that PlayAirsoft will provide you with a reliable and accessible way to plan your next airsoft adventure.

 

Enjoy and let me know what you think!

Edited April 15, 2021 by shadowfacex
updated title and added a splash image

[hitmanNo2]

Big list of sites to scrape info from on the UKARA site

 

http://ukara.org.uk/

[EDcase]

This one too

https://airsoftranch.com/uk-airsoft-map/

 

I prefer a large scale map that you can zoom in to find your area.

 

 

Edited April 9, 2021 by EDcase

[shadowfacex]

12 minutes ago, EDcase said:

This one too

https://airsoftranch.com/uk-airsoft-map/

 

I prefer a large scale map that you can zoom in to find your area.

The map is in the works, and I started scraping some of the data from AirsoftRanch as well, but lots of this data leads to nowhere, so it's a slow process. For example, yesterday it took me about an hour to find all the info I needed for 3 sites from a single organiser.

 

As for the roadmap, I can share a little bit:

• More filtering options
• Countrywide map of airsoft sites to browse and pan around
• Support for location services to show what's near you
• Grading system to establish "recommended" sites

Edited April 9, 2021 by shadowfacex
additional context

[Albiscuit]

Good stuff. The Airsoft map was great for the short time it seemed to be running. I toyed with the idea of setting up a new one but couldn’t be arsed   

[Adolf Hamster]

looking good, hope it gains traction.

 

open source is great too as when a site moves/closes good to have it kept up to date, i know there are sites that have been closed for years still show up on google.

[shadowfacex]

26 minutes ago, Adolf Hamster said:

looking good, hope it gains traction.

 

open source is great too as when a site moves/closes good to have it kept up to date, i know there are sites that have been closed for years still show up on google.

 

I'm looking to provide the community with some reporting tools, but for now everything is static, so if you find anything that is incorrect, feel free to email me at [email protected]. I'll be happy to make amends. In fact, I've done so just today, as Anzio Camp's GPS coordinated were a bit off.

 

I'd appreciate if mods would consider sticking this in a relevant place, as it provides people with helpful and accurate information about places to play in the UK.

Edited April 9, 2021 by shadowfacex
addendum for making this post sticky

[MiK]

Hope this gets site pimped/used by as many as possible - looks super promising 
 

Just need someone with nothing on their schedule to tippy-tap more sites in
 

Locations need some fine tuning tho..... Humberside Airsoft isn’t quite in East Midlands but closer to North Yorkshire & Humberside

[ak2m4]

@shadowfacex good start indeed, have you thought about creating an account system where a site owner would register and then they can add, and then edit their site details, price, opening etc.  Saves you from having to edit the info yourself.

[shadowfacex]

@ak2m4 I did think about it, and it's something to launch when there is enough demand for self-managing airsoft sites. Right not, the site has barely any traffic (~500 visits weekly) because it's fresh, so I'm focusing on airsoft players more than on site owners, as content moderation is often a one-off (do it once and it's done).

 

It all depends on the traction and how helpful something is vs returns it brings to the community. It's hard and time consuming to build content management tools, so I'm deferring that until I am sure a lot of players are relying on PlayAirsoft to discover and engage with sites and venues. It's definitely easier for me to review and edit submissions than it would be to create a whole admin panel with all the things involved, such as security, authentication, spam/flood protection, etc.

 

That said, things can change based on what's going to happen along the way. I like the journey, and the destination is at this point less important. 😄

[shadowfacex]

I promised an update about the site, so here's something that I'm currently working on in my spare time. A highly requested feature: to browse sites using a map.

 

Well, it's coming! Right now it's early days, but as you can see there's already a few sites on here. Both, the map and the list will be in sync, so what you'll see on the map will show on the list.

 

[TheFull9]

Very much a badly needed thing after 'airsoft sitemap' decided to do PDF downloads and posters that'll be all be fairly useless within about 12 months.

 

Airbana used to be extremely good and incredibly handy but obviously whoever was running it got bored/left airsoft and it's now a lot less useful.  If you can spread the word enough to get some advertisers in order to bring in a little cash such that someone will keep it updated in perpetuity (be it yourself or someone you might hand it to if you leave the game) that'd really be a winner.  I've seen a few come and go over the years, the current airsoft ranch one seems lacking in some details too.

[MagpieTactical]

Have you seen this? 

Https://app.airtac.me

[shadowfacex]

13 hours ago, MagpieAirsoft said:

Have you seen this? 

Https://app.airtac.me

 

Nope. What is it? Seem to be hidden behind a registration wall. Can't find any info about it.

 

PSA: I have just deployed new version of the site with the following changes:

• browse sites by region
• browse sites using a map
• see which sites are open/closed at a glance
• improvements to browsing experience on mobiles

As usual, check it out here: https://playairsoft.uk

 

The next step is to feed the rest of my shortlist of 130+ sites into the system. My goal is to have 100+ sites by the end of May 2021. I have already planned additional features, so this will be a very busy year. Keep on rocking folks!

[MagpieTactical]

It's not, try clicking on the bit that says map only. 

 

Additional features may need registration. 

[Guest DrAlexanderTobacco]

1 hour ago, shadowfacex said:

 

Nope. What is it? Seem to be hidden behind a registration wall. Can't find any info about it.

 

PSA: I have just deployed new version of the site with the following changes:

• browse sites by region
• browse sites using a map
• see which sites are open/closed at a glance
• improvements to browsing experience on mobiles

As usual, check it out here: https://playairsoft.uk

 

The next step is to feed the rest of my shortlist of 130+ sites into the system. My goal is to have 100+ sites by the end of May 2021. I have already planned additional features, so this will be a very busy year. Keep on rocking folks!

Nice stuff, it's great to see the site maturing and seems like it's in a great state already!

 

Have you thought about a basic voting system for sites? Nothing special, just a 5-star aggregation system.

[shadowfacex]

1 hour ago, DrAlexanderTobacco said:

Have you thought about a basic voting system for sites? Nothing special, just a 5-star aggregation system.

 

Yes, of sorts. Initially, it'll not be a voting system, but rather a simple criteria check to see if a given site is good enough to be classified as "outstanding".

 

I'm hoping to employ the help of the community to define these criteria. If a given site meets them, then it gets a special badge on PlayAirsoft that indicates to players that it's better than most.

 

Baby steps. 👌

[Guest DrAlexanderTobacco]

Sounds good. Lemme know if you ever get a donation link up to help with costs, etc.

[shadowfacex]

On 14/05/2021 at 18:25, TheFull9 said:

Very much badly needed thing after 'airsoft sitemap' decided to PDF downloads and posters that'll be all be fairly useless within about 12 months.

 

Airbana used to be extremely good and incredibly handy but obviously whoever was running it got bored/left airsoft and it's now a lot less useful.  If you can spread the word enough to get some advertisers in order to bring in a little cash such that someone will keep it updated in perpetuity (be it yourself or someone you might hand it to if you leave the game) that'd really be a winner.  I've seen a few come and go over the years, the current airsoft ranch one seems lacking in some details too.

 

I don't plan to abandon the project. I plan to keep it growing into something more than just a handy list of sites. If I can earn a little while doing it, awesome, but it would have to happen organically, as I don't plan to plaster ads all over it, just to keep the lights on. That's not my kind of game.

 

As soon as I have 100+ sites, I'll be looking at adding a monthly/weekly newsletter which will be covering what's up in the industry, and keeping folks up-to-date about our favourite pastime, maybe a blog section for long-form content, such as reviews, news and community created content (guest posts?).

 

Let me know if you guys fancy any of that, as I don't want to sink time into something that won't be helpful/entertaining.

 

If you've got ideas, I'm all ears too! Can't make any promises, but I'll definitely listen.

[shadowfacex]

After weeks of hard work, I’m proud to say PlayAirsoft has now a search feature, along with a blog, and over a hundred of sites across UK. I’ve added a bunch of sites going as far as Orkney Islands.

 

As far as sustainability of the site goes, I’ll be looking at something more low key, such as affiliate links etc. I don’t like the idea of plastering ads all over the place just to keep the lights on, so my aim is to get a bit more creative. I want to make sure you guys will actually benefit from it too.

[Fatboy40]

On 17/05/2021 at 17:25, shadowfacex said:

Yes, of sorts. Initially, it'll not be a voting system, but rather a simple criteria check to see if a given site is good enough to be classified as "outstanding".

 

All I'd say is be cautious about rating systems that could have an effect on the public perception of a business (and its bookings / revenue), the business may expect some sort of arbitration system if a dispute over a rating occurs, it could be legally a little sticky?

[shadowfacex]

@Fatboy40 It's a good sanity check, I agree, although the idea in my head is focused around a "recommendation" system. For example, if a site meets certain criteria deemed important by the community (gathered from surveys, etc), it gets a "PlayAirsoft Recommendation" badge on their page and in search results. That's all. No comments, no reviews, no star-based ratings. At least not for now.

 

An example of criteria could be (it's just an example, not saying this is what's important to most players):

• has on-site shop
• provides free lunch options
• has online booking
• has guns/gear rental
• has toilets

If it scores 5 out of 5 it gets a badge, that's all. The aim is to increase competition for players between neighbouring sites by incentivising site owners to get better at what they offer.

Edited August 11, 2021 by shadowfacex
grammar, spelling

[TheFull9]

Gonna bump this myself because this needs and deserves a lot more eyeballs and traffic.  I know there's at least 1 site just south of Oxford (a RIFT site I believe) that's not currently listed though not sure if that's because it's not been submitted or @shadowfacex is working through stuff.

 

Would greatly encourage anyone who's not to bookmark this, start using it and recommending to friends.  But more importantly submit any sites that aren't on there right now as I don't know of a single central resource listing every UK site and I guarantee tons of people out there are missing out on finding the places to play that suit them best because of that very issue.

[shadowfacex]

@TheFull9 R.I.F.T. seem to have about four (?) sites in total, and they are on my list to verify and add. Currently, I’m working through improving region pages for faster loading and better viewing, as well as having a dedicated search/filtering page for more sophisticated browsing.

 

I do encourage anyone who knows of any sites that aren’t on PlayAirsoft to submit them, even if you don’t know all of the details. Don’t be afraid of submitting just a name and web address, if this is all you know about it. I’ll get to it and try to verify all the details anyway.

 

The hardest part is to provide meaningful descriptions for each site. Most of them have a little blurb about what they offer, but nothing specific about the site features, which would be of most help to players who don’t yet know a given site. I will be going on a little tour and visit some sites that aren’t too far from me for the sake of gathering intel, but it’ll be a slow process.

 

Anything you may know about your favourite site that isn’t mentioned, file a report through the website and I’ll take a look at it.

[Keldon]

You should check out Asmodias reviews of the southern region Airsoft sites to add some info might save you a few trips