DId Games Workshop Make Me FAIL?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 21 มี.ค. 2024
- I failed lately in a way I didn't expect - was Games Workshop to blame?
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I've learnt something recently about "the hobby". I build wargame miniatures, but a family member who builds scale models recently gave me a 1/35 tank, as a challenge. The component parts of which are ridiculously overcomplicated. No one needs to have tank track links in 3 pieces. But I realised that the scale model builders amongst us are into the process of the build.
It’s so weirdly fascinating.... this hobby, I mean. With GW rereleasing the old WHF models for TOW, you have so many people complaining about the relative simplicity of the old sculpts. Also the people who complain about the lack of detail and options on the push fit versions of more recent kits. Apparently, if we believe the statistics, the vast majority of GW’s customers are hobbyists who seldom or never actually play a game of 40k or AoS. So clearly, it’s in the company’s best interest to design a product that caters to the builder, customizer and painter... not the person who’s trying to get 2000 points on the table in a week.
Me when my date sees my 5000p of Space Marines and politely finds an excuse to leave
Personally I hated the push fit of my command edition starter set and when I got my first full Intercessors kit I was was happier with how everything came together. The building is actually my favorite part, so I'm biased and enjoy all the smaller pieces. It's like graduating from regular LEGO to Technic for me. As for the detail, I really appreciate the effort and details going into the sculpts. I'm reminded of a great quote: "I don't know the key to success, but I know the key to failure is to try and please everyone."
About over-detailing - a possible explanation to its increase on GW models is that they aren't necessarily aimed at professional level painters exclusively. The higher the level of detail is, the more work things like contrast paints and washes do on the model - something that's not really a net benefit when you're already doing all your texturing and rendering "by hand" while painting, but that allows simpler and faster painting methods to look better than they would on more plain and smooth surfaces.
"I sat down early Sunday morning to start building those Inceptors." Aaah, Inceptors... and here I was expecting to hear all about getting the damn things on those flying sticks! 😂 Interesting points about picking what and where to 'fail,' especially with self-imposed targets and goals in a hobby like this. Thanks for the Pshaow! ✌
The Briggs/Chase Law of program development (this applies to A LOT more than programming):
i also feel that the way gw have designed their newer models have been designed specifically to limit if not bar compatiblity with third party pieces. the old simple cadian models were clearly defined separate sections like torsos were one part, legs were one to two parts and it was easy to swap in alternative parts even from within their own range to spice things up but now with the new cadians it's an utter pain in the ass to do it
As someone who just wants to "play the darn game", with age has come a new mantra when assembling and especially painting: "It's not just good...
I painted a full napoleonic regiment during lockdown (something over 1,000 minis) and after taking a break, I recently got back into it after visiting the Games Workshop cafe in Tokyo in January. I hadn't really followed any GW stuff or news in the past 15 or so years (at least from the hobby side of things) so I picked up the Exaction Squad Kill team thinking it would be a nice little intro back into sci fi side of wargaming (plus they remind me a lot of Judge Dredd lol) but I was amazed/shocked at how many parts and sprues I got in the box. I think assembling the squad of 10 and the cybermastiff, I'm still left with 60% unused bits and pieces from the various customisation options. Even the instructions and the sprue numbering for the parts was a lot more confusing than I seem to remember. 😅
I still love my 2ed marines from the 90s. 2 or 3 pieces each. Fast to put together, quick to paint. It was like they wanted you to play the game.
I feel the exact same way about many GW models - SO many parts that dont need to be separate!! it's so frustrating because it's always some tiny thing, even if it's a midsized model. I'm convinced they just want to fill out the sprue frame so that it's packed, so that it feels like you're "getting more".
Lol, me putting my first House Escher models together. "Why do you have to glue their hair to their heads!?"
GW drain me and after 37 years I stopped buying them 😢
I believe that the Rolling Stones summed it up pretty well with the lyrics:
I generally enjoy painting GW sculpts. But there is definitely a lot of work in getting them ready for paint. If I want to get something up to display quality, just getting everything cut, sanded, mold lines cleaned, and gap filling if needed, just takes a lot of time. When I got my new deathwing stuff I spent one whole hobby session just getting the models built, just for a 5 man squad. I'm not claiming to work quickly or efficiently, but I'm pretty experienced at building models at this point. I do also enjoy the build/kitbash phase of a project as a bit of a break from painting. It's something different and scratches a different part of my creative side.
This is precisely why I love the Stargrave and Frostgrave minis. So simple to assemble and paint up.
I see other comments about scale models and their complexity - but which is driven by a desire for accuracy. The thing that separates them from GW is that sub-assemblies in scale models are usually actual things (engines, gun mounts, etc) as opposed to 3 bits of the same arm. And look at the sprues from scale model kits - they aren't obsessed with using every micrometer of space for parts which makes getting the cutter to a workable angle for taking the parts off way easier . . .
As soon as you mentioned Redemptor and Inceptors, I knew the pain. I would like more for my marines, but I remember the pain of building them. I also find the new kits take forever. I sit down saturday lunchtime with a couple of kits at most. Maybe by 8pm I might be done building them. By that time, I’m done, mentally exhausted. I hobby to unwind from work, but I need a way to unwind from the hobby at times.
I must confess that I have up on star wars legions because of the intricacies of building the basic battle droid. Those arms and legs are extremely fiddly!