Nerf Arena Blast

Overview

Nerf Arena Blast, known in Europe as Nerf Arena, is a non-violent multiplayer-focused first-person shooter developed by Visionary Media and published by Hasbro Interactive (under the Atari label) for Windows PCs on November 3, 1999.

Built on the Unreal Engine and based on arena-style games like Unreal Tournament and Quake III Arena, Nerf Arena Blast features twitch-based multiplayer combat utilizing virtual Nerf Blasters (toy guns that fire foam darts). It is the first game based on Hasbro's Nerf toy license, and was sold as a non-violent "family-friendly" alternative to the games its based on.

Most of the nine Nerf Blasters are based on those from the actual toy line, each with unique gameplay characteristics and alternate firing modes, and players who are "killed" are instead "tagged out". Along with multiplayer modes, the game features a single-player campaign where players play as a member of an amateur Nerfing team (the Twisters) and compete to become the "Nerf Champion of the World".

The game features brightly colored arenas with various themes, including arcade-style laser tag arenas and futuristic space stations. The game includes a variation of the UnrealEd level editor, called NerfEd, which has been used for community-created levels (including a custom Capture the Flag game mode).

Game Types

• PointBlast - Similar to the deathmatch mode of other games, but instead of "kills", players earn points by damaging opponents, tagging opponents out, collecting tokens dropped by players when they're tagged out (with higher-ranking players leaving behind higher-scoring tokens), and hitting special arena targets.

• SpeedBlast - An objective mode where players race to be the first to collect all seven flags in the arena in order. Tagging an opponent out sends them to the last flag they touched.

• BallBlast - An objective mode where players fight to collect different-colored balls throughout the arena and launch them into targets scattered throughout the arena, earning points based on the ball's value. Once a player has scored all six balls, a seventh "golden" ball appears, which ends the game once its scored.

Blasters

• Secret Shot - Default sidearm with infinite ammo and no reloading. Fires yellow darts at a slow rate, with the secondary fire using the "secret" barrel to shoot stronger red darts at an even slower firing rate.

• WildFire - Fires green darts at a rapid rate. Secondary fire shoots a ten green darts in a single burst.

• Triple Strike - Launches foam rockets that explode on impact. Secondary fire launches a three-rocket burst, at the cost of slower reloading.

• Pulsator - Fires a double-ball shot in a straight line, which can cause opponents to drop their weapon on impact. Secondary fire alternates each barrel to rapidly launches balls.

• Ballzooka - Fires bouncing balls in an arc. Secondary fire launches green goo that can immobilize those who come into contact with it.

• Scattershot - Fires a shotgun-style burst of foam pellets, with the secondary fire shooting exploding pellets that can damage the wielder if not careful. Unlike most other blasters, there is no real-world counterpart to this one.

• Whomper - Launches a giant ball of energy (after a "charge-up" sequence) that tags out everyone in its blast radius. Secondary fire makes the blast radius even larger, but makes the weapon volatile, causing it to detonate on the wielder if they hit during the charge-up sequence. Unlike most other blasters, there is no real-world counterpart to this one.

• Hyperstrike - Fires powerful long-ranged rockets at a slow rate. Despite the lack of a scope, players can zoom-in using secondary fire. Unlike most other blasters, there is no real-world counterpart to this one.

• Sidewinder - Launches yellow explosive discs that bounce around the arena. Secondary fire fires a powerful disc that automatically tags out players it hits, but must be controlled directly by the player with an on-board camera, leaving them vulnerable.

Arenas

• Amateur Arena
• Sequoia Arena
• Orbital Arena
• Barracuda Park
• Asteroid Arena
• Skyscraper Arena
• Moonlight Arena
• Championship Arena