Venture Games Paintball

This was the best field hands down. Venture Games, known as Diablo since it was on the foothills of Mt. Diablo was one of the first fields to open in the bay area back in early 1986. It was the first field I played back in 1987 and it was the 1^st field i took my 12 year old son to play. Venture Games had numerous 2^nd generation customer such as my son a start their paintball experience and there was a reason for that. Mike Leon the owner kept the best part of paintball alive, make it fun, non competitive and best of all promote honor and sportsmanship.
It’s sad what happened to venture games; you can read all about it on his sister site
. no other field in the bay area came close and that includes American Paintball in Livermore. My son still plays Paintball but he says its not as fun as his first years at Diablo Venture Games.
One other fact about Venture Games. Many of the top professional paintball players came out of this field. Bob Long, Dave Baines to Glen and Keith Takamoto to name a few. that true testament to a great paintball field… perioid!
We miss you Mike, try to come back and if you do I and my son will be your first customer.

What… Everyone read this…
It appears Mike (the owner) has been screwed over and has to officially close down everything he’s done.

It might be ok for some one who has never been paintballing before. Just don’t go if your any good at it. They may kick you out for it.

5 STAR COURSE!
5 STAR Organization!
5 STAR Experience!
I will have played here a total of 2 times.
I can’t wait to play here later today in a Conquest Scenario.
Full Rental + Course Fee: $ 35
(includes marker/​paintball gun, unlimited air refills, and a mask)
Paintball: extra /​various cost
Bummed that it closes down as of 12/​31/​2008.
If Mike the owner sets up shop somewhere new, I’ll be first in line to sign up…

Also went here for a bachelor party and had a great time. Four of us were first timers, and the fifth was very seasoned. It wasn’t too bad being a beginner, but I do think we would have enjoyed it more if we didn’t have to play against so many people who play regularly. The terrain is clearly the best part, since there are many natural and artificial places to hide and advance. The games were 15 minutes each, which was perfect. We got 7 games in (4 morning games, then lunch, and 3 afternoon games). Most people here (working and playing) were very friendly, and I would not hesitate to go back.

Went here for a bachelor party. only one of us had equipment, and the site said get in early to rent, and it’s a hike from SF (easy directions though). Turns out you don’t have to be super super early but it helps. The rental package isn’t much more $$ than BYO, specially if you get the group discount (3 or more). You have to buy ammo here but it didn’t cost so much.
Oh, if its rainy, you might need a 4wd car o get up the hill. It was a dry day though and I made it up no problem with my Prius and 5 people inside.
I like how they set up the teams. You cluster with who you came with, and they clump groups together and try to even things out number-​wise and skill-​wise. We were all noobs but I think the teams were pretty even. We had a mom and her kids end up on our team, and we had several women and a prissy gay man that came up with us, and the ‘pros’ didn’t make anyone feel excluded or picked on or anything. The advanced players were pretty open with advice and tactics and so forth too.
Remember to bring food and water. They have some hot dogs and stuff during lunch, but nothing really veg and you’ll probably need an energy boost before then anyways. and you’ll sweat in that mask.
All in all everyone had a blast and wants to go again. Especially me.

you will NEVER go back to speed ball once you play here!!!

An excellent Woods Ball field (paintball in the woods with bunkers). I am a fan of running through the woods and jumping tree trunks and inflicting pain on other paying customers sothis place is right up my alley. It is somewhat of a trek getting there but it is nice to get out of the city and get a little rustic. The five stars goes to their decent prices, fair rules and most importantly the very high quality of refereeing staff. Usually paintball places are run by a bunch of prepubescant teens with god complexes that can’t even buy cigarettes on their own. This field is not for X-​Ballers (speed paintabll as you would see on tv) but for those in to more realistic war-​like scenarios like you would see in video games (SoCom comes to mind). Its running through trenches and inflicting pain on the newbies. Anyway, it’s a great location for new players and the well organized games make playing very hassle free. Pile into the car and be adventurous — it’ll pay off as long as you show up before they close the entrance gate (you homo sapiens should be able to open the gate with your opposable thumbs) so the cows don’t wander off…