My Nerf Doomlands the Judge Review

By: Jeremy Alden

In our last review, we covered the Lawbringer, a Nerf Doomlands 2169 blaster that brings the element of intimidating into every battle.

As we stated before (and we most likely will state again throughout our various other Doomlands reviews), we love this line because of its unique blaster choices and qualities.

What is clear with the Judge is that the team over at Nerf clearly looked at some of their other options and said, “this isn’t enough”.

Although it can be hard to imagine, the Judge outdoes a lot of other Nerf Doomlands 2169 series weapons. Put simply, this blaster is a monster and will certainly bring the punishment to anyone who dares stand in your way!

If you’re looking into the Nerf Doomlands, The Judge as your next blaster, continue reading the review below to learn more about this blaster and how it performs.

My Nerf Doomlands the Judge Review

Style and Design

The Nerf Doomlands the Judge features one of the best futuristic designs we have seen in the series, topping the list when it comes to looks.

Because of the sheer size of this gun, the details found throughout the blaster are very intricate, with added features that you can’t find on most other Nerf guns, such as clear outlines of pipes connecting the from the handle to the large barrel and small, gear-like pieces near the back of the gun (which all serve to add to the awesomeness of this blaster).

The best way to explain the body of this blaster is to imagine a typical Nerf blaster with a rotating barrel, then expanding its body to 10x its original size, resulting in a massive handgun.

In fact, this blaster is so large that it requires two hands to operate, which is easy to accomplish as it contains grips on the front end of the barrel.

Because the Judge does belong to the Nerf Doomlands 2169 series, we do still have the fun transparent casing that enthusiasts have grown fond of. Due to its size, this transparent casing is actually located more towards the center of the gun as this is where most of the firing action occurs.

However, this change still makes it visible for users, which can be fun for younger Nerfers who want to see what’s going on inside their favorite toy.

Ammo Capacity

There’s never been a more important time to discuss the ammo capacity of a weapon as the Judge will absolutely blow you away.

Featuring a 30-dart rotating barrel, the Judge strategically fires three darts at a time to improve your chances of hitting your enemies.

What’s really important to highlight, however, is that while you will be receiving a 30-dart ammo capacity, you will really only be able to fire your weapon 10 times with a full gun.

Still, considering the large ammo capacity and the ability to fire three darts at your enemies with each shot, the Judge certainly separates itself from its competition.

Firing Style and Range

We’re used to seeing the hammer-blasting mechanism being attached to the blasters in the Doomlands 2169 series, but the Nerf Doomlands 2169 Judge decides to go with a pump-action priming mechanism instead, which is better for this weapon given its massive size, which would make it hard for users to reach the hammer mechanism.

Although the range is not excellent, you can still expect to reach distances of approximately 60 feet with this blaster, which is fair given all of the unique features packed into this weapon.

While you can hit enemies farther away, this weapon is better for close to medium-range combat.

What We Like

• Great Ammo Capacity and Firing Capabilities - It’s true that the Nerf Doomlands 2169 Judge blaster is large, but the fact that it is capable of holding up to 30 darts at a time is still a feature that blows our mind for a weapon that uses pump-action as its priming mechanism.
  
  Beyond that, however, we love the unique firing action that you get with blasting three darts at a time. It’s an all-around great weapon in terms of ammo storage and use!
  
  
• Scrapped Hammer-Action Firing for Pump-Action - For most Doomlands blasters, we love that they stick with hammer-action firing as this mechanism can often be easier to use.
  
  That said, the Judge is such a large weapon that we can’t imagine someone trying to reach the hammer, let alone support the gun while they use their other hand to prime the weapon.
  
  Thankfully, Nerf decided to use pump-action on this weapon instead, which makes it possible to use the weapon with both hands.

• Improved Chances of Hitting Enemies - With most Nerf weapons, being able to hit your enemy with one dart is fairly easy.
  
  However, we know that you are definitely going to increase your odds when you fire three darts at your enemies at a time, a feature that we believe makes this gun a valuable asset on the battlefield.
  
  If you have trouble hitting your opponents with just one dart, the Judge makes your chances of reaching your targets that much easier.
  
  
• Open Face Makes Reloading Easier- With almost all blasters that have rotating barrels, the act of reloading your weapon can be difficult due to the fact that there are often plastic pieces or protective covers over the barrels of blasters.
  
  This makes it hard for you to successfully place your darts into their slots quickly and leaves you vulnerable to enemy fire. Fortunately, the Judge has a wide-open face that makes it easy to put your darts in when you finally run out of ammo.

What We Don’t Like

• Long Reload Time- The reason why motorized blasters have become so popular is due to the fact that you can load a clip system in, begin firing, and replace your clip when you finally run out of ammo.
  
  With guns that have a large amount of ammo, this is a vital feature. Unfortunately, the Judge requires you to reload all 30 bullets and to do so in a manner that requires you to go through each of the three slots in the face and then move onto the next.
  
  Overall, this can leave you open to fire for a long period of time. Make sure to keep this in mind when you are looking further into the blaster.

• Large Size Can Make It Hard to Carry Into Battle- The Nerf Doomlands 2169 the Judge is by no means the largest Nerf blaster out there. That said, it isn’t exactly the lightest or the easiest to carry either.
  
  For older Nerf enthusiasts, this gun should be fairly easy to handle. Younger Nerf enthusiasts, however, are not going to be easily able to carry and fire this weapon without getting tired somewhere along the way.
  
  In Nerf wars, being able to hold and use your weapon throughout the entirety of the Nerf battle is vital.
  
  
• You Will Run Out of Ammo Fairly Quickly- Many people look at the Judge and love the fact that it has a 30-dart ammo capacity.
  
  While it does have a 30-dart ammo capacity, it is important to note that you only get 10 shots out of this weapon, with each shot launching three darts at a time.
  
  While this is still great, especially for a Nerf gun with a rotating barrel, it is important that you do not expect to fire 30 darts before you will reload.
  
  Going in with these expectations can ruin your Nerf experience with an excellent blaster like the judge!

Our Verdict

There are very few Nerf blasters out there that manage to put a unique spin on the blasting experience without limiting the blaster’s capabilities. It seems like the more features you add on, the less likely a blaster is going to function optimally.

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