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A Brief History of the Nerf
Nerf is a famous brand of children's toys worldwide.
It is mainly known for its foam blasts dating back to the late 1980s.
But where did it all start and how did they dominate the toy market?
This is a brief history of the Nerf.
The NERF started off as the world's first indoor ball.
Nerf started life as a football game in 1969, designed by a game inventor based in Minnesota, USA.
Reyn Guyer introduces his in-house soccer game concept to American toy maker Parker Brothers.
Parker Brothers are not interested in the game;
Guyer invented the 4-inch (10 cm) polyurethane foam ball that is suitable for indoor use as it is soft and doesn't break anything.
Parker Brothers saw potential with this and in 1970 decided to market the ball as the "Nerf Ball", the world's first indoor ball.
Their marketing motto for the Nerf ball is;
The ball has become a popular toy because it meets the child's need to be able to play indoors without damaging objects or injuring the family.
At the end of the first year, more than four million Nerf balls had been sold.
Following the success, in 1972, "Super Nerf Ball" was released alongside products such as "Nerfoop", a basketball game using Super Nerf Ball.
The word "Nerf" is a slang term used in terrain sport.
The history behind the Nerf name is very simple.
The ball that Guyer designed is made of polyurethane foam.
Nerf is a slang term used by the off-road community to describe the foam padding used in sports.
Non-expansion recreational foam (NERF) is wrapped around support bars used in off-roading to prevent damage to cars, they are known as Nerf bars.
So the ball's name became Nerf, according to its material similarities used in terrain equipment.
The first Nerf gun was released in 1989, 20 years after the company was founded.
Although the Nerf is most famous for its shotguns and guns, it was not until 1989 that production began.
20 years after releasing the world's first indoor ball, Nerf decided to launch the first Nerf ball, "Blast-a-Ball".
It was the first portable foam weapon designed by Nerf to use a pump motor to shoot the ball.
A year later, Nerf released its upgrade, "Blast-a-Matic" and this is the beginning of the Nerf gun.
1991 saw the release of the Bow ‘n’ Arrow, the first Nerf gun to fire arrows and the first of its kind to resemble a bow.
The first series of Nerf blasters were released were labeled "Original Nerf", however this was changed in 1994.
In 1994 the Original Nerf was discontinued and a new brand for the gun was called "Nerf Action".
Nerf has categorized each series of guns under a different name to help identify each series within the Nerf range.
In the 1990s, Nerf was taken over by many toy manufacturers.
It was not until the late 1990s and early 2000s that Hasbro completely acquired the Nerf brand.
It was originally founded by Parker Brother in 1969 and then transferred to sister company Kenner Products in 1991.
During the 1990s, Nerf was adopted between toy industry subsidiaries OddzOn and Larami before Hasbro took over the market.
In the early 2000s, Hasbro acquired the majority of toy makers in the market and through this they acquired the Nerf brand.
In 2013, Nerf launched the first product line aimed at girls.
In February 2013, Nerf released the “REBELLE” line, which includes products specially designed for girls.
The sub-line created toys with female-related colors such as pink, purple, and teal.
Rebelle's first are based on Nerf explosions and these include Angel Aim, Cool Camo and Femme Fire.
The first series consisting of more than 10 different products was released in the fall of 2013.
Nerf continues to release products for girls for the next 5 years.
Sadly, due to no sales, this line of products was unofficially discontinued in 2018.
Nerf has won awards for their well-designed products.
In 2011, at the annual American International Toy Fair in New York City, Nerf won two awards.
Nerf Super Soaker Shot Blast won the "Outdoor Toy of the Year" award and Nerf N-Strike Stampede won "Boy of the Year Toy."
In 2014, Nerf went on to win the third prize at the UK Toy Fair with Nerf Zombie Strike Crossfire Bow awarded "Best Action Toy".
It's hard to imagine that Nerf started out as an indoor ball and is now one of the world's most famous shooters.
Nerf has continued to dominate the toy market by rolling out upgrades and improvements to its explosive models.
Shooters are so loved that the Nerf market has expanded to video games as well as real life.
