Like there are many different cars available, like pickup trucks, SUV’s and hybrids that all do different jobs, different paintballs exist to do different things. .68 caliber paintballs have been the backbone of the game since that caliber became the industry standard not long after the game’s creation. These paintballs are used for everything from high-level tournament paintball to recreational paintball with friends on the weekends.
However, the paintball industry identified the need for a paintball that would allow new and younger players to try paintball and fall in love with the game with as little worry about how paintballs might feel on-impact as possible. .50 caliber paintballs fill this need very well, as they fly straight and break on impact like their larger brothers, but weigh much less, so they transfer a great deal less energy to their target on impact. .50 caliber paintballs, now sometimes referred-to as “low impact” paintball, are now used alongside .68 caliber paintball at many paintball parks and playing fields for use with younger players, first-time players, birthday parties and church outings, etc to allow new players to experience the game and all its fun and adrenalin, without worry for how it might feel to be struck by a paintball.
.50 caliber and even smaller, .43 caliber paintballs are also used in tactical training by law-enforcement and the military as it allows for safe, cost-effective force-on-force training with magazine-fed rifles and pistols that closely resemble their real-world firearms in terms of size and handling.