Nerf?

[Gnoblar]

I've seen it a lot and I've gathered that it means to reduce the effectiveness of a certain game element, but where did it come from?

[Platehead]

bump

Pretty sure it's decrease.
Origin?  I don't know.

[xurich]

As Platehead pointed out, it actually means a reduction in power or strength of a certain game element. Wikipedia lends some insight as to its origins:

The first established use of the term was in Ultima Online, as a reference to the NERF brand of toys which are soft and less likely to cause serious injury.

[LtKillroy]

I always thought it  was relatively obvious, but then I played with Nerf footballs when I was a kid. I.E. Turn a sword (ultima online exampe, could be gun or something) to be made out of nerf, or foam.

[Gnoblar]

Oh. I got it wrong. It means decrease. I stand corrected. Trust Wikipedia to have something on Nerfing.

[poopdogg]

come to think of it... I don't like of what it sounds "nerf"

[Brock]

I wish I had a Nerf gun as a kid, those thing kick ass