Nerf Longshot CS-12

Zombie Strike Longshot CS-12

The repaint isn't the only thing updated in this re-release of the Longshot, originally seen in 2006 as the yellow N-Strike Longshot CS-6. Hasbro originally touted it as their longest gun yet, a sniper-rifle of sorts. They discontinued it soon after, since $35.00 - $40.00 was apparently more than most people were willing to spend at that time on an "oversized" toy. But when modders discovered that it actually had monstrous firepower capability, demand spiked for the somewhat hard-to-find Longshot. It became a sought-after status symbol, an HvZ staple. In late 2014, Hasbro noticed that supplies were running low among the Nerf Nation, so they re-released it under the Zombie Strike Z.E.D. Squad sub-series.

The hopes:
When the Nerfing community heard that the Longshot was coming back, the forums and YouTube channels exploded with speculation and glee. Since the N-Strike Elite line had repainted and improved previous N-Strike guns and Zombie Strike was, loosely speaking, a sub-series of Elite, many assumed that the internals would be significantly upgraded. Some speculated that it would come with a new, different barrel extension. A few even thought Hasbro might remove the AR for us. A far-out hope, but still a pretty cool thought.

The reality:

Ummm… Yeah.
Ugly.

Sorry, folks. Hasbro clearly acknowledged that modders are capable of modding the Longshot on their own. They left it exactly the same inside, and on the outside they just repainted it. And removed the frontgun. :( At least they gave us a more capacious clip. But they took away the bipod, leaving an ugly and uncomfortable… thing. What would you call that exactly?


Now for the pros/cons.
Good:

• Performance. Hasbro chose not to upgrade it for a reason- they probably couldn't have done so without breaking some sort of regulation. When shooting Elite or Zombie Strike darts, even the original Longshot can outshoot most Elite guns.
• Scope. If you look up "Nerf" on Ebay, half of the items that come up are Longshot scopes. They're popular- after all, they look sweet. And very tacticool…
• Clip storage. Don't see it? That's because this gun is designed with functionality and realism in mind. The stock securely holds an extra clip (not included). And when it's not holding a spare clip, no-one will even see that it can…
• Handle.   The. Best. Nerf handle. Ever.  It's universally comfortable; I can almost guarantee that you will feel like your hand just wants to hug that handle.

  

  It's like a Shrinky-Dink!

• Modability. This gun is perfect for any skill level. You can literally do almost anything to this gun, and tons of companies make mod kits for any level of modification, making it even easier for you. Not to mention that it can figuratively "shoot lasers" when heavily modded.
• Simple. Forget modding. Some Nerfers can't even figure out slam-fire. For those of you, the Longshot will be your dream. It's simple and intuitive; a baby could probably shoot it.
• Collapsibility. It can shrink quite a bit without the clip or scope. And when you collapse the stock, it gets even smaller.
• Bipod. Oh wait, they took that off. Never mind.
• Z.E.D. Squad darts. They look like they've got built-in syringe with cc measurements! How cool is that?

That's a lot of good stuff, am I right?  But unfortunately there's also a couple cons.

Bad:

• NO bipod. I'm a little put off by this. It's actually not the lack of a bipod that bugs me, per say. It's what's left over. Seriously, what is that?
• Only one tac rail. Of course, the design was from back before tac rails were even a thing, but I still wish it had another rail. Maybe where the bipod used to be?  cough*redesign*cough...
• Paint scheme. Teal and pale orange just doesn't jive with me. It's just not tactical or cool. Certainly not tacticool.

Well that's it. This powerhouse was hard to beat when it first came out, and it's still high up on the totem pole. It's well worth the price, especially if you want a good platform for a great mod. But Hasbro, if you're listening, please, please, put the bipod back on. Or just redesign it slightly with a tactical rail there instead. Please.


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