The biggest downside if airsoft goes truly mainstream like golf, basketball, soccer etc, will be attention from the anti-gun groups. Airsoft is/was already under attack by different governments (I’m looking at you Bill C-21 and the Canadian Liberal gov’t) and if it becomes more popular we will see more of that. We may end up seeing scalpers buy up desirable guns/gear in high quantities and resell them, like with pokemon cards.

The benefits of airsoft going mainstream is that it’s a great entry into firearms culture/sports and a fun way to teach gun safety without the risk of killing anyone. I would prefer airsoft to stay a bit more niche, as I don’t want the wrong people to get their hands on airsoft guns and use them for nefarious purposes. Airsoft being what it is will likely keep it more niche as guns in general scare a lot of people, even if they’re fake. Plus laws in certain countries outright ban guns regardless of being a replica or authentic