 |
| You really do need at least 1 picture per post, and this is the most relevant one i could find.... |
Lets face it GW has made two good games. Both Wh40k and WHFB are very fun to play and most of us consider one of these two games (or both) our number 1 hobby, however there is defiantly room for improvement in both systems. Now for me the reason why i complain is because i want to see both WHFB and Wh40k improve and become better, i would like to see every army in both systems get a current edition army book/codex before a core rules set update and i would like to see better play testing to ensure that there aren't Eldar/Tau levels of Over Poweredness or Tyranid levels of Under Poweredness. The fact of the matter is that if i didn't care about either system then 1): I am wasting a lot of money on something i don't care about and so should be considered insane and 2): I wouldn't be complaining about the issues i see in the rules of the systems.
I want to make it clear, I do care about both Wh40k and WHFB. Recently i have been warming to Wh40k again mainly because i now have two armies that i am excited to play (Orks and a Tanith themed Guard army), and i think that 7th edition has improved on some areas that needed improving on in 6th edition. WHFB is still my number 1 go to game, the new Wood Elf book is a wonderful thing and after i got over my initial disappointment over some of the changes i really like it and look forward to using it for the next 9ish years.
If you are in this hobby the chances are you do want it to improve, not just for your experience but for everyone's experience. And if you think that WHFB and Wh40k cant improve and are perfect then you have a odd definition of perfect and must be pro GW to a concerning degree. The way that we express the desire for change in GW's game systems (besides writing our won house rules) is to voice our concerns and in doing so hope that GW takes notice. So next time you see someone complaining , and are sure they aren't complaining for the sake of it, keep in mind that they probably do like either Wh40k or WHFB and just want it to improve. Until next time.
Rex
I could be considered a whiner, a moaner and a complainer when it comes to Warhammer, but I'm not a hater.
ReplyDeleteLike you, I really do enjoy the game, and wish I could paint and play more often. But while I think Warhammer is a good game, it frustrates me that it isn't the great game it could be, for relatively little effort on GW's part.
I know that my bitching about the game has precisely zero effect on GW, so the only reason I do it is it's cathartic. I feel better for doing it. Sorry to everyone else who might have had to put up with it.......
Anyway, Warhammer. A good game, and maybe one day, a great one.
Keep in mind that if you complain there is more of a chance that GW will hear it than if you didn't complain, that and complaining is a good method of venting
DeleteNicely summarised Tane. I'm in the same boat. I just LOVE the game, I am not a hater, and I too complain for catharsis, as GW has now openly admitted they are not interested in what we have to say: "We do no demographic research, we have no focus groups, we do not ask the market what it wants" I believe this may become a mantra for us moaners who love the game.
DeleteSee Pete's blog: http://www.thefieldsofblood.com/2014/07/nottingham-we-have-problem.html
(I have already had my rant there, so I'll spare Rex's blog :)
Feel free to rant here as well, we all need to vent now and then and GWs disregard for what we (as consumers) want is reason enough to rant
DeleteYou forgot GWs other core game system Hobbit/LOTR... though how long it will remain a core game I cannot say... but for me, its the only one of the three I care about, and as you say... its because I care about it that I whinge, though mostly on cost/pricing ... and its that pricing that has turned off many potential gamers so meaning less people being able to afford to play, which dilutes the player pool and negatively impacts the game as a whole...less players means less buying customers... you'd have think they'd have figured that out by now, surely its not rocket science???
ReplyDeleteAH yes thats right LOTR is still a core system although the rules are hard to find and GW doesn't sell the rules for most of the factions any more (which is odd as the models are still being sold).
DeleteThere is a good chance that the LOTR range will carry on for a few more years, they still have he 3rd hobbit movie and thats the one with mots of the fighting in it (and the one most suitable to make a table top wargame out of).
And i do agree that it is odd that the prices keep on rising, it really is killing of the player base especially the younger player base
Also it is not easy to rewrite the LOTR story to fit your marketing strategy. You have to work (at least marginally) within what Tolkien wrote, and how Peter Jackson manipulates the story for the screen. No Hobbit is suddenly going to develop a masive heroic statline overnight. And dwarves are not going to get expensive Ibex cavalry! Ooh, errr ... did I say no monstrous cavalry at horrendous price ? Sorry, that may have slipped out.
DeleteIbex cavalry.... Ooooooooh! ;-)
DeleteI completely agree. Apathy is far more damaging to GW than the so called "haters".
ReplyDeleteI dont like GW very much at all. But I feel that the people who complain dont hate the complaining as much as the frequency of such complaints. There is nothing wore than someone who has nothing but complaints to say on a particular topic. In terms of internet forums there are people who dedicate all their internet time to simply "hating" GW. It gets very tiresome to read and frankly I think a lot of that time could be put to trying to create a better gaming experience.
ReplyDeleteGW has just siad to everyone they do NO RESEARCH into who they sell their stuff to. Meaning they have not and do not read complaints or praise etc. They simply do not care, which is something we all knew. So why spend more time complaining than talking about the things you enjoy in wargaming?
As someone who has started to get annoyed at the constant 'bashing' or 'toxic environment' created by some, I can say its not the complaining itself, its the fervor and frequency of the complaints. Its wasteful most of the time and if you need to vent all the time than I simply get annoyed at it. I really dont like GW games as they are, but I also dont like the way many people play it. But if I spent a lot of time complaining about it I would miss a lot of great aspects that I have really been enjoying this year. Despite the GW games being the worse they have been ever (in my opinion) I have had more fun this year with their games than any other year. This was also the year I decided to not complain as much as I used to. Anecdotal I know, but I feel if the complaints were in moderation the issue wouldnt be so bad and the community wouldnt be divided.
It gets worse when you read webpages from the mid 90's onward and see most of the complaints have not changed. Its like a broken record. As I said earlier its the Frequency and the Fervor that really annoys most people.
But yes, I will admit those who complain probably do so out of care. Personally I would say instead of complaining, be productive and just stop buying it. Thats the only way you will reach the. However this may soon change.
The problem is the shiny factor. The figures are so damn good! (Kudos to the R and D team for that aspect.) Also consider the prior investment on the side of the gamer. Try adding up what you have spent on GW figures that are now, frankly obsolete. There is the rub. Half your army is still useful, so you don't change to another games system, just bite the bullet. Until it happens again, and again...
DeletePlay Wood Elves, that way your army doesn't get updated for 9 years
DeleteI love Warhammer Fantasy, and want to love 40k. I spent a long time and a lot of money on 40k, and I still like the universe, the models and the concept. I've found that something about the rules seems to encourage even otherwise lovely people to find ways to build overpowered lists. Myself included. It plays like a game for lawyers, where the strategy is to milk advantages out of the rules. I stopped playing it a year ago and have been playing Fantasy, X-Wing and Hell Dorado instead. For some reason Fantasy doesn't seem to have to have those same tendencies as 40K, at least where I play.
ReplyDeleteI am with you Ben. Whilst i am warming to Wh40k i still love WHFB more and i do see more competitiveness in Wh40k than WHFB
DeleteBen, that's why I let 40 K go. Unfortunately fantasy does seem to go the same way, but it is marginally more balanced, and attracts some gamers that are just in it for the fun and love of playing, and don't necessarily have an uber list that annihilates everything. Sadly my Black Orcs are now almost as useless as my Tau Kroot, and I had to spend hundreds of dollars on fugly demigrifs to keep my empire army competitive. The philosophy behind the game has gone wrong, and GW don't listen to their customers any more. Pete posted the latest sales figures from GW on his site. Despite the downturn in sales (Aus-NZ down by 22%) GW's CEO proudly states: "We do no demographic research, we have no focus groups, we do not ask the market what it wants"
ReplyDeleteRevenue: -9%
Operating Profit (pre exceptional items & royalties) -24%
Operating Profit -43%
Earnings per share: -51%
No dividend is going to be paid. And it looks like the new website cost $4.5 mio GBP.
Revenue down by 9% but Cost of Sales the same
Australian sales down 22%, Australian Operating Profit down 26% to GBP 557k
In the Strategic Report GW admit they do no demographic research as they control the niche