Star Wars: The Force Awakens doesn’t premiere for about a mo
nth and half but the toys are already available and they are selling out. I can understand the mad desire to have toys based on new characters but I am surprised how hard it is to find some of this stuff, particularly the rifle for the First Order Stormtrooper. These appeal to two specific groups, the Star Wars fans and the Nerf fans. If you draw a Venn diagram there is an area of overlap for the two groups but that still is a large number of nerds looking for a toy.
Yes I am one of those nerds, thank you, and it took weeks to finally get my hands on one. Based on the photos and trailers released the Nerf blaster is almost (if not) a 1:1 scale replica of the movie prop. Great, now we have to add cosplayers to the Venn diagram. The first thing you notice, other than the look, of the First Order Stormtrooper blaster is the price. This Nerf blaster retails for 39.99 (depending on where you find it the price may be more) which is overpriced in my opinion. Throw a few more bucks out you can pick up the more versatile Modulus System from Nerf.
The orange and white color scheme of the blaster isn’t completely gaudy but toy blasters can’t look too real these days. The movie blaster is white so you are halfway to coolness. The Star Wars: The Force Awakens First Order Stormtrooper blaster (say that 10 times fast) comes with 6 Star Wars branded foam darts, 6 red darts, a removable scope, detachable stock and a magazine (or clip if you prefer). The blaster’s tactical rail works for other Nerf scopes and lights to personize your blaster.
When you first take your blaster out of the package there is some assembly required before you can even load the darts. To fire your blaster you must first prime it by pumping the under barrel slide. Holding the trigger in and pumping the mechanism gives you “slam-fire” action which gives you a rapid fire assault on those pesky rebels. You can also do a single shot at a time if you prefer. The test firings fell a bit short of the 65 feet advertised on the box. The furthest shot was approximately 47 feet with the short shot being 32 feet. The “slam-shot” method feels a bit flimsy, like the pump will break. I don’t think I will be using rapid fire again.
The First Order Stormtrooper Blaster is really one of those toys that is looks over substance. The cost of this blaster really makes it something you should pass on since there is really nothing special about it. Sure you may need it for your costume (or your kid’s costume) but there are better Nerf blasters out there. The blaster is light, weighing in at a little less than 2 lbs.
Save your cash even if you are planning on saving the galaxy, or taking over it over.
