Down to Earth Day - Super Soakers

I used to chime in about Super Soakers every now and then... but, from the looks of Nerf's 2014 lineup, I'll probably sitting this one out.  I was reminded today, being Earth Day, of the new look for Super Soaker by their post on their Facebook Page today.

Commence Rant Mode!

For the past few years, the Super Soaker lineup had taken on a bit of a "Tacti-cool" look to them.  Previously, the Thunderstorm, Tornado Strike, and Shot Blast had N-Strike compatible accessory rails and even had removable stocks, too.  They were fashioned much like their dart-firing brothers, but their performance wasn't too earth-shattering.  Lets be honest.  Half the reason these blasters sold was so you could ALSO get a cool accessory to put on your Nerf blaster!

The new lineup, while it still has a few recolored versions of previous models, has this odd white/blue/green look to 'em.  It makes the blasters look more like the goofy bright colors you see from other water gun manufacturers.  They've also done away with the accessories and such.  The designs in general (aside from those recolored from before) don't really fit the look the previous years had.  I understand why they've done this... to further differentiate the lineups from eachother.  ZombieStrike looks different from N-Strike Elite which looks different from Rebelle which looks different from Super Soaker.  But, in making the Super Soakers look more like the other funky colored water blasters out there... now I think they've shot themselves in the foot for one reason: cost.

Nerf Products always cost more than competitors.  If you ask me, the cost is justified because they do make a quality product that works well.  The "Nerf or Nothin" slogan explains why it's worth it to go with a Nerf Product over something else... and even the N-Strike lineup has picked up the "Elite" name to further shine marketing dominance over their competitors on the shelf.  But you can SEE the difference between the products.  So, in making the new Super Soakers look like your average run-of-the-mill water guns that are already on the market... but still have them more expensive, buyers are less inclined to give the triggerless pump-to-fire Super Soakers the sale if something just as goofy-looking can be purchased for less.

There's less of a pull for buyers to get a Super Soaker.  They probably get the same mediocre range as they have since they put the "Nerf" logo on 'em.  There's no cool accessories to pimp your dart blaster out with.  They've got goofy colors.  They lack a trigger (except those electronic ones).  They're still more expensive than most generic water blasters.  I can't be any more down-to-earth about this!  The new Super Soaker lineup has no real pull in my books.