There are six primary rules that must be followed in any airsoft games.

If the gear or body is hit, the player is out. Hits to the weapon do not count. When the player is hit, he yells out “I’m hit” and raises his arms up high. After hit the player must walk straight to the safe zone. Friendly fire does count as a hit. After hit, talking to other players is not allowed.

Since, unlike in paintball, no visible markings are left by the pellets; honour system is often used to determine a hit. The pellet’s impact usually is felt, but at times, when over a great distance, or when the player is distracted or moving, the player may not notice being hit, thus marshals or referees are needed in the game.

The major forms of airsoft games are:

Team Death Match, in which two teams play to eliminate each other out. Players must keep track of the number of their kills. At the end of the game, teams must combine the number of their kills and whoever got the most wins.

Capture the Flag. Teams must retrieve their opponent’s flag. Whichever team manages to bring the opposing team’s flag to their base wins.

Assassination. Two teams of equal number of players must select a captain. The captain is tied to an immobile object such as trees or fence. The objective of the game is to eliminate the other team’s captain.

King of the Hill. One team will be the attacker, while the other defends the hill. The game ends when the base is successfully defended, or if the attackers conquer the hill.

The players may use their own airsoft guns, magazines and armours and other equipments, but there are also play scenarios when the type of equipments to be used is provided. These guns fire non-metallic pellets either through spring power, compressed gas or electric means.

Spring-powered guns operate by pulling back back the slide (pistols), bolt (rifles), or the grip on a shotgun, which in turn compresses the spring and makes the gun ready to fire a single shot. One of the major advantages of using this type is that it can be fired without depending on an external source of power, unlike the gas and electric models.

Electric guns come in many forms such as automatic and hybrid guns types. Electric-powered guns work using a rechargeable battery, driving internal motors to shoot a pellet.

Gas-powered guns, or “classic airsoft guns”, use a gush of C02 gas to power the gun’s mechanism, enabling the gun to fire in fully automatic mode.