If you thought paintball was just a game, think again. For some people, paintball is a sport that gives them a high adrenaline rush, keeps them physically fit and mentally challenged.

What Is It?

A strategy game that can be played outdoors or inside a special venue, the object is to hunt and eliminate competitors using paint as ammunition. When you're hit, you're out. The game rules vary from group to group, depending on the skill and organizational level of the competition.

Players use special guns, mines, grenades and other paintball accessories to outdo each other and "splat" their opponent before they, themselves, are hit. Different colors of paint are used for each team so that people can tell when they've been hit and by which team.

Team Versus Individual

The game can have many participants, either with each individual vying to be the last one standing, or with teams competing against each other to eliminate opponents until only players from one side are still standing.

For multiple individuals playing against each other, the end of the game resembles an exploding rainbow with paint splotches on the ground and all over stationary barriers used for defense and protection. Two-team matches are less colorful but just as entertaining to watch, as players assume different roles, whether attacking competitors or defending teammates from paintball assault.

Organized Play

While a game of paintball can be as simple as a bunch of friends going up the street to the paintball field for a few hours of blowing off steam, there are also organized leagues, with sponsored teams or school groups with special uniforms. Most informal playing groups will don military-style fatigues for camouflage, with special masks and padding to protect themselves from injury. The masks cover the entire face, with special protection from paint for the eyes, nose, mouth and ears.

Venues

Paintball playing fields are as varied as the rules. Indoor paintball can be simple or complex, depending on the type of facility. A large, empty warehouse can be an effective place for the game when crates, barrels and ladders are added. Variation of light changes the difficulty for the competitors. Black light can even be used to make special paint glow in the dark, so players can clearly see when someone has been hit and by which team.

In outdoor games, the play is more in a military style, as teams compete in wooded areas or on professionally designed courses. Close-up combat requires players to hide behind bushes or barriers for protection. Some outdoor games rely on teams to advance to the other side's base to capture a banner or flag without having its own team members eliminated in the process. Others are simply a matter of moving about the playing field while hitting each person on the other team with paint and avoiding the "splat" themselves.