AK Interactive Playmarkers Review — A whole new way to paint

There is nothing better than a hand-painted miniature at the table, regardless if you’re playing Dungeons and Dragons, an OSR, Warhammer, or even one of the many board games that comes with minis, we can all agree, it’s awesome.

However, not everyone has the ability to paint a mini. There’s plenty of reasons, ranging from the expense of the hobby, the time someone has to devote to the artform, or even the ability to hold a brush - they can all serve as blockers to an otherwise pleasant hobby. Not to mention that due to social media, someone might be intimidated by seeing so many great pieces, and may never try the hobby to begin with.

AK Interactive has a product which might solve the majority of these. I’ve spent the last few weeks trying out their Playmarkers, and I think they are an interesting tool, and while I don’t see them replacing my brushes anytime soon, I can’t help but see the practicality and usefulness of them. Let’s dig in.

AK Interactive’s Playmarkers are effectively paint markers. They sent me their entire range, which consists of 34 colors running many basic & useful colors: Leather, Desert Ochre, Ultramarine, Dark Green, Red, Black, White, and metallics such as Brass, Gunmetal, Bronze are all included. The basics, plus more.

The design of the markers are very simple. Each marker is made of durable plastic, with paint and a mixer inside of each marker. As you can see, the tips are a brush similar to a size 4 or 5 , and a button on the other end of the marker which helps release paint into the tip. Using the markers is deceptively simple. A shake, a button press, and when the tip is full of paint, you’re ready to go. I say “deceptively” because more times than not, you’ll oversaturate the brush, which will cause paint drips. I highly recommend wiping the marker on a paper towel or shop towel, so you don’t flood your model with paint.  Storage of the markers is easy too, as they’re just markers, so there’s no worry about spilling a paint pot or clogging up a tip.

I tested every marker in the set, and they all offer the same quality of paint, same consistency of flow, and same drying time, which makes these paints incredibly useful, especially for beginners. Surprisingly, even Yellow, a paint that is notorious for lack of coverage, is very well pigmented. 

Being a seasoned painter, I was able to paint up a model in roughly a half hour with these markers, which is notable and impressive. My first test model, a villager, was very easy to paint for the most part, minus eyes and smaller features. All that the model needed after my initial passes with the markers was some specifically placed washes, and it was basically table ready.

However, the real test would be if a non-painter could handle these.

So, I grabbed a few models and my wife, and we set off to work. She took less time than I did, spending 20 minutes painting a model while also handling other duties in the house. 20 minutes to go from nothing to a table ready model, from a person who doesn’t paint because of the complexities of painting. I would say that is a big win. Another test occurred a few days later, with a friend who normally stays away from painting due to the toll it takes on their hand (which is more common than you think), and they also had an easy and fun time painting up a model while sitting on the couch. This is where I think these markers are wildly successful; it removes that gate that sometimes exists in our hobby.

On the negative, there are a few points to make that aren’t necessarily deal breakers, but something to consider. Blending paints will be difficult with these markers, as you might not want to cross contaminate markers. When I attempted to clean a marker with water, it never stopped flowing. Also, the available colors are only 34, so if you’re looking for the level of flexibility that a normal miniature paint range offers, you won’t find that here. Lastly, the skin tones tend to be lighter and more liquid than the rest. 

But that being said, the available colors are strong, and the usage of these are pretty great. While I used these on small models in my tests, I can see these performing strongly on larger projects, like terrain, vehicles, large models, any place that can benefit from such a large brush tip and consistency of paint. 

I highly recommend these for new painters, folks who don’t like to use paint brushes, and for those painters who are looking for an easy way to cover large spaces.  You can get them on AK Interactive’s website, or wherever you find your paints.