04 Introduction 05 Highlights of the Survey 06 Methodology 07 Survey results in detail 33 Parting words 34 About Popular Airsoft

Welcome to the Global Airsoft Survey Project Report 2008

Introduction

Welcome to Popular Airsoft's Global Airsoft Survey Project (G.A.S.P.) which is our first foray in learning more about the airsoft player worldwide. This project is an ongoing commitment by Popular Airsoft to measure the airsoft players' interest in the game, such as preferences in what types of airsoft replicas they use, brands they prefer, and types of games they play.

Since its launching in 2007, Popular Airsoft is going beyond mere reporting of airsoft news and information, delving into issues that are discussed within the airsoft communities in their countries, and aiming to understand the airsoft player. Only Popular Airsoft among airsoft publications is undertaking these projects, and the survey has created genuine insights on the airsoft player. We are undertaking more publication projects, events, and research in order to help airsoft manufacturers and vendors, and giving airsoft the recognition and study that it needs.

This survey demonstrates the continued growth of airsoft, from being an asian-centric sport, to now a growing global phenomenon, its impacts of are getting felt each day, and various issues and debates surrounding this sport are also growing. But having these debates and discussions would be useless if there is no adequate understanding about the sport, and the issues that the players and their environments perceive or feel.

We have released the condensed results of the Global Airsoft Survey Project (GASP) and the results are also revealing, with a brand of an ACM is actually now one of the most popular airsoft brands among players worldwide. The big daddy of Airsoft, Tokyo Marui, still leads the way among airsoft manufacturers as it is the preferred brand for many players in primary airsoft replicas, and the preferred brand for most players in airsoft pistols.

We had this gut feel that airsoft players are mainly in the working age-groups (25-50) and we were right, due to airsoft being an expensive hobby to maintain, and you'll need some form of income to be able to afford it. As always, it's male-dominated sport, with only 3% of respondents are actually female.

Surprisingly, a US-specific only brand came out as one of the "other" preferred brand of airsoft brands.

Our heartfelt thanks to all of those who have participated in this survey. Your participation greatly helps us understand more the airsoft player wherever he/she is.

This report now shows the survey in full detail.

4,861 respondents worldwide

Majority of respondents are between the ages of 25-50

Overwhelmingly male dominated

Automatic Electric Guns are widely used and preferred

M4/M16 variants are the most used airsoft replicas

Gas blowback (GBBs) are most used as airsoft handguns

Tokyo Marui is the most preferred brand for most primary and backup replicas

Jing Gong is the Mainland China brand that is preferred by airsoft players

Families of airsoft players are either very supportive or most supportive of their airsoft hobby

Majority of respondents have been playing airsoft for 1 to 3 years

Many players play airsoft to seek the outdoors and meet new friends

Majority of players use high capacity magazines for airsoft game play

There is no dominant airsoft game play preferred by players

Players prefer playing assault roles in game plays

Biodegradable Bbs are preferred by most players are hindered by costs

Quality or performance considerations help in making purchase decisions

Highlights

MethodologyThe survey was conducted with the FO.RECA.ST online survey tool and

conducted between 05 September and 04 October 2008. The data collected is entirely quantitative. The coverage is global due to its nature of being an internet survey. Respondents need to be using the internet in order to participate in this survey. A total of 4,861 respondents participated in this survey and the survey system only allows one survey response from each participant.

Currently, there is no actual estimated number of airsoft players worldwide. Thus, we cannot say how representative this sampling of respondents of airsoft players is. Popular Airsoft will attempt to have a census of airsoft players worldwide next year.

Location of respondents

Majority of respondents come from North America and Europe. This can be attributed to internet penetration in countries within these regions which is more extensive than other regions in the world. Another thing that we caution is that the survey is conducted in the English language and thus lower responses from regions where English is not even a second language.

Age rangeMajority of respondents are between the ages of 25-50 comprising 74% of respondents with many

belonging to the 33-50 age group (40%) which is an age group in which members are into higher income ranges.

GenderAirsoft is a male dominated sport.

Preferred Type of Airsoft Gun

Airsoft Automatic Electric Guns (AEGs) are predominantly in use as primary airsoft guns by airsoft players.

Preferred types of primary airsoft replicasM4/M16 variants are the most used airsoft replicas, with AK and MP5 variants following

respectively, as primary airsoft guns for airsoft players. “Primary” here means the airsoft gun of choice when playing airsoft.

Preferred types of secondary airsoft replicas

MP5 variants are the most used airsoft replicas, with AK and M4/M16 variants following respectively, as secondary airsoft guns for airsoft players. “Secondary” here means the airsoft gun of choice when playing airsoft when their primary airsoft gun of choice is not available.

Preferred types of backup airsoft gun

Gas blow back (GBB) pistols are the most preferred backup airsoft replicas, followed by Automatic Electric Pistols (AEPs).

Preferred types of backup airsoft replicasGlock and Colt designs of airsoft backup guns are the popular choices among airsoft players.

Submachine guns, or sometimes called as Micro-AEGs (MAEGs) are also chosen by players.

Preferred brands for primary airsoft gunsTokyo Marui leads the way among airsoft brands, with Jing Gong and Classic Army following

respectively. These brands are the mentioned brands of preferrence among airsoft players who responded to the survey. Please note that this is the first time that an ACM (All China Made) is recognised as one of the top airsoft brands (Jing Gong).

Preferred brands for airsoft pistols

The Tokyo Marui brand dominates the airsoft pistols category, with about 70.7% of players mentioning it as their preferred brand for airsoft pistols. Lots of catching up to do for other brands in this category.

Preferred brands for secondary airsoft replicasJing Gong is the preferred airsoft brand for secondary airsoft replicas as mentioned by airsoft

players. King Arms follows and surprisingly, Echo1 USA, is also one of the top preferred brands, and can be attributed to airsoft players coming from North America who comprise a big portion of respondents.

Other preferred airsoft replicasWe also asked our respondents if they prefer getting period or science/fantasy airsoft

replicas. Most of the respondents prefer getting period types, since these are used for reenactments of certain military-historical events.

Are their families supportive of their hobby?Airsoft sometimes is a hobby that generates tension in households due to its nature as a shooting

sport, and lumped with gun violence issues in other countries. Most of the airsoft players do not have issues with their families in playing the sport.

How long have they been playing airsoft?Most players say that they have been playing airsoft for about 1 to 3 years (53.1%) with about

23.96% playing for almost five years.

What are their reasons for playing airsoft?

Primary reason for most players is being able to go outdoors and meet new friends. Players also state that it is better than First Person Shooter (FPS) video games and that they love guns and able to shoot at people legally, which indicate their fascination with guns and being able to play with guns without being in harm's way.

Have they tried playing paintball?

We asked our respondents if they ever tried playing paintball. 36% said they played paintball before, but a bigger number of airsoft players have never played paintball (48%).

Would they want to play airsoft professionally?A good number of players say that they want to play airsoft professionally, though they are

outnumbered by those who said no. Nevertheless, this represents an opportunity for those who want to organise competitive airsoft events.

Are they brave enough to disassemble a gearbox?

Majority of player say that they are able to disassemble a gearbox for maintenance and repair.

What type/s of magazines do you use?

Many of the respondents mainly combine uses of high, mid and low capacity magazines.

What type of batteries do you prefer to use?Majority use NiMH at 63% with about 25% already using Li-Poly batteries. There is still low

usage of LiFe batteries and Ni-Cad use is now less than 10%.

What is their preferred type of airsoft games?There is no dominant preferred airsoft game for players. Any game will do for them (eg.

CQC, Milsim, Woodland). But milsim is one of the more specific games that players would like to play in, and thus role plays are important. If you are an airsoft events organiser, it would be useful to have a mix type of airsoft games to give some variety during skirmish days.

What is their preferred role during games?

Majority of players want to play assault roles (85%), and playing "Good Guys" since they prefer being "Counter-terrorist" roles in this age where the good and evil roles are played by counter-terrorists and terrorists. Strangely that there are some who want to play the “Zombie” role.

What influences their purchase decisions?

Performance/quality is said by players when making purchase decisions on airsoft guns.

How many airsoft guns do they own?Most players have an average of 2-5 airsoft guns in their own personal armories, a good sign

for retailers that players go for some kind of variety in owning airsoft guns.

Do they use biodegradable bbs?While many players would prefer to use biodegrable bbs, many are hindered by the costs since

bbs over time would be the most expensive expenditure by airsoft players as it is the most consumed and non-reusesable. Biodegrable bbs still costs higher than regular bbs. But a growing number of suppliers are offering biodegradable bbs which will put pressure of pricing soon as brought about by competition.

Some suggestions: The AEG is the dominant airsoft replica in terms of

primary weapons and will continue to do so. Airsoft manufacturers should innovate in improving the playing experience of players such as adding more “realism” in the handling of airsoft guns. Reliable blowback and recoil mechanisms are two of these areas. Tokyo Marui is a leader in these and still sets the standards in both AEG and Gas-power categories. Jing Gong is attempting to dislodge the leader through improved reliability and performance of its replicas and it has actually surpassed Classic Army as a popular brand.

Price is not much of a factor when purchasing an airsoft product. But quality and performance do and ACM manufacturers must take heed of this if they want to go up the airsoft food chain. Most of the brands with some respectable standings are known for their quality.

There is a market for period replicas (WW1, WW2), and is not just a specialty area. More variety of period replicas is needed as there are more reenactment events being organised.

Milsim games are very much preferred by airsoft players. Airsoft games organisers should be able to offer more milsim games where scenarios and rules provide more realism and not just shoot and scoot games. Milsim events like Berget, Groundzero, and the Lion Claws series attract big numbers of players in the airsoft world.

A growing number of airsoft players would like to try to play professionally which opens doors to airsoft events organisers to plan competitive events. Most competitive events are happening in Asia such as South Korea and the Philippines.

Biodegradable bbs are popular but have not yet reached the price point for widespread adoption. This is one area where the market has more room for additional competitors.

The results of this survey revealed some surprises, and debunking what we have perceived to be popular, especially in the category of airsoft brands preferred by airsoft players.

But can results in the preferred airsoft brands category actually translate into actual market share by the airsoft manufacturers mentioned by players? We cannot say, but these provide insights on how brands fare in the market.

The ACM guns have flooded the global airsoft market, making airsoft affordable and contributed to the growth of airsoft worldwide, and we have noticed that there are more territories and countries worldwide where airsoft has taken root.

As mentioned, Jing Gong is now a popular brand on the same level as its competitors which provide higher priced replicas. The quality and performance in respect to its price point is slowly inching forward to those of other known brands.

Tokyo Marui still sets the standards in airsoft innovations that and will remain to do so with its new releases. Its airsoft pistol dominance still remains unmatched.

Parting words

Popular Airsoft's news websiteand monthly PDF magazine bring an unmatched combinationof bringing airsoft informationto your target markets.

Now, we're expanding our products to cover areas that will be helpful for our readers and advertisers alike. Ensuring that business and customer relations are enhanced, we're bringing more and more to help in putting out the information on airsoft to the world.

We're presenting 21st Century Airsoft, online and offline.

About Popular Airsoft

Popular Airsoft is the fastest growing publishing group in the airsoft world. Launched on the 27th of August 2007, in a span of three (3) months, it has gathered readers from 80 countries and territories worldwide, with over 100,000 unique visitors and 50,000 downloads a month.

A Diverse Writers' PoolNow moving beyond its first year, Popular Airsoft has cast its net far and wide and now has writers (or “Operators”) coming from Asia, Europe, and North America. More and more people are contributing to Popular Airsoft, giving the latest news, great stories and reviews for airsoft players worldwide to read. Eventually the writers' pool will be divided into teams to write stories, reviews, and cover events around the world.

They are all in the thick of the action and their years of combined experiences in airsoft make them some of the most solid sources of information in airsoft. And we are the only publication that has the farthest reach.

Unmatched CombinationThe PopularAirsoft.com and the Popular Airsoft PDF Magazine combination gives its readers the daily news and information and monthly in-depth stories and reviews that are neglected by the competition. These cover the latest products, airsoft teams to watch-out for, and bring the human side of airsoft --- all these matter to its readers who are very discerning and opinionated. It has a very high signal-to-noise ratio in providing information on the latest airsoft developments around the world.

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