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So Long GW, It's Been Emotional...

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So Long GW, It's Been Emotional...

Postby markb » Sun May 18, 2014 9:10 am

After 22 years of playing GW products, and god knows how many £1000s spent, I think it's time to hang my dice up with it and move on to pastures new. This latest release of 40k, less than 2 years after the previous one, has finally nailed the coffin shut for me. 7th ed may be the greatest iteration of the game ever, who knows (and frankly I don't really care any more) but less that 2 years after dropping over £100 on the core rulebook and DV I am not going to drop another £45 on their lap along with the £15 or so needed for these new cards. Tbh this has been a long time coming, I was sceptical about 6th as well but gave in and bought it anyway. That coupled with the stupidly high price increases and constant codex creep has just killed it for me.

It's time for me to finally put my Brit Bolt Action army together, dig the FoW Soviets out and invest in DzC, at least Hawk seems to actually care about and listen to the community. Maybe if the Raiders played WH, which I have always preferred as a system, I might have clung on with GW a little longer but as it stands right now my entire GW collection is going to go away in the loft and gather dust. I won't sell it, I have invested too much time in it, but until I can justify getting back in to GW there it will remain.
"The guns have stopped because we are at last about to attack. Even our generals aren't mad enough to shell their own men, they think its far more sporting to let the Germans do it!"

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Re: So Long GW, It's Been Emotional...

Postby KInG » Sun May 18, 2014 9:29 am

Sad day but I fear you are not alone.
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Re: So Long GW, It's Been Emotional...

Postby markb » Sun May 18, 2014 9:41 am

I know, mate, it's been a hard decision but ultimately I feel that GWs glory days are long gone, like the Astronomicon they are a fading light. Long gone are the days when they released fantastic games just for the fun of it, games like Man O War, 2nd ed Epic, Gorka Morka etc. GWs golden age was in the 90s. It's hard to say when they started to go down the pan, maybe with the release of 5th ed 40k, I don't know, but for a number of reasons they are just not what they were. Maybe they never were, my mate always maintained that their glory days were in the 80s when they used to do stuff for other people and maybe it's just me who's outgrown them, I don't know. What I do know is I cannot justify paying their prices anymore, even with your nice discount. :).
"The guns have stopped because we are at last about to attack. Even our generals aren't mad enough to shell their own men, they think its far more sporting to let the Germans do it!"

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Re: So Long GW, It's Been Emotional...

Postby Stryder » Sun May 18, 2014 9:50 am

I do not blame you one bit they havent finished updating all the dexs to 6th and now 7th is here?????
GW are getting too greedy for their own damn good more concerned with quick sales rather than long term customer base so it seems
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Re: So Long GW, It's Been Emotional...

Postby markb » Sun May 18, 2014 10:21 am

I don't even think it's greed, mate. Year on year their profits have remained constant, and not even that high given their turnover, and year on year their sales volumes have decreased. They have had to raise prices to remain in business. While it has worked it isn't sustainable in the long run. The problem is GW itself. Other gaming companies have sprung up in the last few years to challenge their dominance, companies like Battlefront (FoW), Mantic and Hawk (DzC), and largely produced better systems with nearly as good, or in some cases better, quality miniatures. GWs answer has been to produce more and more convoluted rules and bigger, more "impressive" (i.e. more expensive) models without addressing the issues at the core of their failing company, that is the game systems need scrapping and starting again. It worked for 6th ed WH (although 8th ed has kind of cocked it up) and it worked for 3rd ed 40k. GW, for many years, bestrode the gaming world like the Colossus of Rhodes but in their arrogance failed to see the gnomes at their feet rising up to topple them until now, maybe, it's to late for them to reverse the damage.
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Re: So Long GW, It's Been Emotional...

Postby Stryder » Sun May 18, 2014 12:14 pm

One major overhaul ive noticed is a lot of new systems have scrapped igougo in favour of activations of different units (bolt action...x-wing...heck even zombicide has a rotating system for who goes first each turn) and yet gw is sticking with its tried and tested methods but they are ageing quite badly
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Re: So Long GW, It's Been Emotional...

Postby markb » Sun May 18, 2014 12:46 pm

And I don't know why not, 2nd ed Epic was alternate activation way back in 92 and is, IMO, the best mass combat game they ever made. What they did to it with 3rd ed was just criminal.
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Re: So Long GW, It's Been Emotional...

Postby skywalker » Sun May 18, 2014 1:15 pm

I agree with all you have said Mark, it echos most of the reasons I have dropped GW after 17 years and spemding a load of money, which I don't regret its just unfortunately whilst they (GW) still make great models in my opion their gaming ethos just sucks these days. I hope someone in GW hq wakes up and smells the coffee then comes to a decision to restore the games to their former glory :D
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Re: So Long GW, It's Been Emotional...

Postby markb » Sun May 18, 2014 1:35 pm

Unfortunately, Ian, I don't think that'll happen, too many old guard dinosaurs high up in the design studio. They remind me of Nokia, the biggest company of their type in the world who thought smart phones would never take off, now they survive on scraps left behind by Apple and Samsung. GW need a root and branch shake up, get rid of the old guard, bring in fresh new ideas. Restart, and properly support, the Fanatic games. Scrap WH and 40k as it is now and totally redesign it. The problem is I fear many of the older core gamers, like us, have got sick and moved on and GW are just happy to take the cash of the fad kid players, why else would they be making so many big uber kits? The problem is eventually they will run out of these and the core, who have been with them for years, have all left them. If they are not careful they will go the same way as FASA and TSR.
"The guns have stopped because we are at last about to attack. Even our generals aren't mad enough to shell their own men, they think its far more sporting to let the Germans do it!"

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Re: So Long GW, It's Been Emotional...

Postby Stryder » Sun May 18, 2014 2:55 pm

Bring back the skirmish games like necromunda/gorkamorka/mordheim/inquisitor/bloodbowl i know a lot of people (myself included) who like to see at least one return
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Re: So Long GW, It's Been Emotional...

Postby markb » Sun May 18, 2014 3:25 pm

I agree, the splash releases in the 90s where amongst the best games they ever made. Blood Bowl, Necromunda, Gorkamorka, Battlefleet Gothic and Mordheim were some of the best games GW ever made. Then of course there was Man O War, simply the best game they ever made, full stop. But these were released back in the GW golden age when gamers, not accountants, were still in charge. It all started to go downhill with 4th ed 40k and 7th ed WH. While there was nothing wrong with those games I think that it is at that point that GW asa whole started to decline. Of course there was the utter tripe that was the LotR games in that time as well.
"The guns have stopped because we are at last about to attack. Even our generals aren't mad enough to shell their own men, they think its far more sporting to let the Germans do it!"

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Re: So Long GW, It's Been Emotional...

Postby KInG » Sun May 18, 2014 5:49 pm

How cool would it have been to have dumped 40k and Wfb and right a brand new rule set for all the models under one banner.

The fluff would have to be worked on like. Lol
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Re: So Long GW, It's Been Emotional...

Postby markb » Sun May 18, 2014 6:02 pm

Well WH 4th and 5th and 40k 2nd eds were based on the same mechanics. Didn't really work very well as a mass combat game for 40k (although I still enjoyed it) but it was excellent for skirmish games like Necromunda.
"The guns have stopped because we are at last about to attack. Even our generals aren't mad enough to shell their own men, they think its far more sporting to let the Germans do it!"

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Re: So Long GW, It's Been Emotional...

Postby skywalker » Sun May 18, 2014 7:19 pm

I always enjoyed Necromunda and I even had a couple of fleets for Battlefleet Gothic but it died a death, a shame. If GW revamped Necromunda it could sell well but I feel Battlefleet Gothic has a lot of serious competition (X-Wing etc) so it would need to be a truely awesome game to sell well........................We can live in hope :lol:
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Re: So Long GW, It's Been Emotional...

Postby markb » Sun May 18, 2014 7:31 pm

Well BFG is more like a Napoleonic naval game but with spaceships so I don't think that X-Wing is really a direct competitor as such. And you've hit the nail on the head, it just died a death, same as all the other Fanatic games. GW only reluctantly supported them, mainly I think due to Jervis johnson, but they just stuffed it away in a corner and waited for everyone to forget about them until they could safely get rid of it. Yet more evidence of them sticking two fingers up at the gamers.
"The guns have stopped because we are at last about to attack. Even our generals aren't mad enough to shell their own men, they think its far more sporting to let the Germans do it!"

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