Another stupid Tiktok viral challenge is happening and this one may prove to be even more dangerous to those who are doing it instead of the victims. Teenagers are being arrested by doing the “Orbeez Challenge” which see them shooting at innocent bystanders with water beads or something that we call gel balls in airsoft.

The Orbeez Challenge in itself is a harmless game as kids can play with non-toxic water beads. It can also  be used as a stress ball, fidget toy, vase filler etc. But in a new turn for the game, this Tiktok challenge in which teenagers load the water beads into gel blasters and even airsoft guns to spray them at people who are just going about with their daily lives.

In a report by the NPR, Spin Master, the manufacturer of Orbeez, seems to be unaware about this challenge and upon learning about it, issued a statement:

"Children's product safety is paramount at Spin Master, and we are committed to providing children and their families with the highest quality toys, games and activities. Spin Master does not manufacture or sell gel guns.

Orbeez are designed for educational, creative, and sensory play and are not intended to be used as projectiles or inserted in mechanisms."

Incidents in which police responded to in the U.S. are an Amazon delivery driver shot at with a the water bead gun, another were hit with a drive-by-style shooting, and kids shooting with each other with water beds got involved in car crash.

Should the airsoft community be concerned?

Water beads or gel balls can be loaded into gel blasters that look like real firearms that work on the same principle as airsoft guns. If teenagers get access to the more realistic ones and go on a shooting spree just for the sake of doing the “Orbeez Challenge” they might just find themselves in the gun sights of police officers who might take their gel blasters as real firearms. This can lead to serious injuries or deaths if they don’t follow the instructions of the police or much worse if they point their water bead guns at them.

It may not be last of the stupid challenges on Tiktok, but it might be the most dangerous.

Top photo: Water Bead Gun (LaGrange Police Department photo)