Airsoft pistols are perfect complements to any larger gun and are a necessary part of any war gamers' arsenal. Pistols are small and light enough to be carried as side arms but also pack enough of a punch to be effective in indoor or small arenas. There is an extremely wide variety of Airsoft pistols; some are quite small while others are good sized, some have a long range and powerful blast while others are quite limited. Some pistols can only shoot a single bullet at a time, some can be semi-automatic and some can even be full on automatics.

Airsoft pistols can have as a little range as forty feet while some can be effective and accurate over a hundred feet. Typically the electric AS pistols do not pack as much of a punch as the spring Airsoft pistols. However, the electric pistols can fire more rapidly and are therefore very useful in indoor combat. The gas propelled Airsoft pistols generally fire at the fastest muzzle velocity, over three hundred fps, and are typically effective over greater distances. This makes them very effective as the primary weapon in certain types of war games.

Serious war gaming requires a wide variety of weaponry, and one of the most important parts of an arsenal are the weapons used for close range battle. Because of the variety within the Airsoft pistols, the enthusiast, collector, or serious gamer will certainly need more than one pistol.