A lot of great points are raised here. I would identify with Najo's Group 2 now, but I was in Group 1 before I lost faith in GW the first time during the price increases, the unrelenting new editions after 2nd Edition 40K and 4th Edition WHFB, the sidelining of the 'specialist' (read: not as profitable) games and the removal of the Mail Order service.
In my opinion there are in fact only two groups in GW's eyes: those who pay, and those who don't. I believe that GW at some point in the distant past made the reasonable financial decision to cater for the guys that subscribe to White Dwarf, that buy every new release and collect a shedload of armies. I'm sure that this breed of 'Ultragamer' was cultivated, I remember the days when even having a company, let alone a chapter of Space Marines was an ambitious studio project; now the Argos catalogue that every damn rulebook, army book and magazine has become is packed with images of tabletops invisible and groaning under the weight of bloated armies. Big gaming has become normalised in order to increase profit, but in fairness looking after the big spenders is lesson #1 at business school. And big games are awesome.
It should be universally accepted that GW's actions over the years have polarised the gaming community, justifiably or not, and from what I've seen I don't think they've felt able or willing to reverse the trend. That may be our fault in Groups 2 and 3; did GW stop listening and adopt its corporate poker face, issuing legal threats to protect its half-original IP and closing down dialogue with its fanbase, before or after rivals tried to poach their business and their own customers started trolling them and sending them hate mail?
Ultimately, we've taken 15 or so years to reach this point, I don't see things changing for a long time. GW will struggle to climb down from their position gracefully to win back the Group 2 old guard/fringe/low income collectors, and we're already catered for with releases like Mordheim, Dreadfleet and Space Hulk along with the numerous cool models and unit types that are available now, not to mention the lure of other companies' systems and models. I reckon we'll see a lot more of the limited release strategy, especially if the moulds or storage are issues. Clean shelves, full coffers. I'm also stunned that GW have only now bought their own print gear, after decades of producing monthly magazines, new rules editions every 4 years, and all that lovely fiction. Better late than never, I guess.
In terms of positive ideas moving forward, I think communication would be a game changer for GW. I work in the trades, and to buy from plumbers merchants etc you're often required to have an account with the shop. Now if GW had this system they could link players' comments and purchases to individual customers, measure trends in various parts of their customer base and begin to build strategies based on what a general consensus and demographics would suggest is most profitable and popular. It would also please the loyal supporters/fanboys to know they have representation at HQ and acknowledgement of their individual contribution to this hobby. Maybe, and without tongue in cheek, GW could issue certificates to thank customers who reach milestones in their collections- breaking the £1K barrier, painting their first squad, playing or running say 10 instore games? Hell, why not invite the biggest spenders or the most dedicated on a golden ticket to visit HQ, shake a few hands and drink some bubbly? That's the personal touch I'd expect from a premium luxury goods producer.
With the store managers vetting and submitting the info to HQ you'd remove the forum frenzy that probably leaves GW snowblind to constructive criticism, and any haters trying to screw the system. With that personal info available they could use White Dwarf to shout out notable individuals' achievements, local gaming groups, even independant retailers. Rebuild the fanbase connection, bring the lost sheep back into the fold and restore the personal touch to White Dwarf! I want to see real games being played and our community represented. Find a cleverer way to advertise GW, use word of mouth, it's how people make most of their bigger purchase decisions. And, although it may dent sales a little, ease up on other companies' models! How does an 80-90% GW quota for GW hosted games sound? This is a creative industry built by and for creative people. Not everyone will be satisfied with GW's vision no matter how perfectly realised it is.
Finally, regarding impact on the putitive 9th Edition, GW could have the best of both worlds. With highly protected IP on more original models, rival models will be fewer and they'll still come off as the big man for showing magnanimity. If 9th is the clean slate everyone thinks it'll be, it's the perfect time to start fresh consumer records. The guys that paved the road here with £20 notes may be forgotten, but if this game is going to be radically different we'll all be able to start on the ground floor and get behind a more honest, personal approach.
Something's got to change for me to rejoin Group 1, beyond the size of the paint pots, because if GW think the only way they'll secure my purchases is to keep me in the dark on their plans for my game, refuse to support my beloved Space Hulk, Quest and Necromunda, and to force panic purchases through all these 'limited releases', I'll have no option other than to tune out entirely and start or join Group 4: the guys that have tonnes of old GW stuff and no connection with the company at all.
In my opinion there are in fact only two groups in GW's eyes: those who pay, and those who don't. I believe that GW at some point in the distant past made the reasonable financial decision to cater for the guys that subscribe to White Dwarf, that buy every new release and collect a shedload of armies. I'm sure that this breed of 'Ultragamer' was cultivated, I remember the days when even having a company, let alone a chapter of Space Marines was an ambitious studio project; now the Argos catalogue that every damn rulebook, army book and magazine has become is packed with images of tabletops invisible and groaning under the weight of bloated armies. Big gaming has become normalised in order to increase profit, but in fairness looking after the big spenders is lesson #1 at business school. And big games are awesome.
It should be universally accepted that GW's actions over the years have polarised the gaming community, justifiably or not, and from what I've seen I don't think they've felt able or willing to reverse the trend. That may be our fault in Groups 2 and 3; did GW stop listening and adopt its corporate poker face, issuing legal threats to protect its half-original IP and closing down dialogue with its fanbase, before or after rivals tried to poach their business and their own customers started trolling them and sending them hate mail?
Ultimately, we've taken 15 or so years to reach this point, I don't see things changing for a long time. GW will struggle to climb down from their position gracefully to win back the Group 2 old guard/fringe/low income collectors, and we're already catered for with releases like Mordheim, Dreadfleet and Space Hulk along with the numerous cool models and unit types that are available now, not to mention the lure of other companies' systems and models. I reckon we'll see a lot more of the limited release strategy, especially if the moulds or storage are issues. Clean shelves, full coffers. I'm also stunned that GW have only now bought their own print gear, after decades of producing monthly magazines, new rules editions every 4 years, and all that lovely fiction. Better late than never, I guess.
In terms of positive ideas moving forward, I think communication would be a game changer for GW. I work in the trades, and to buy from plumbers merchants etc you're often required to have an account with the shop. Now if GW had this system they could link players' comments and purchases to individual customers, measure trends in various parts of their customer base and begin to build strategies based on what a general consensus and demographics would suggest is most profitable and popular. It would also please the loyal supporters/fanboys to know they have representation at HQ and acknowledgement of their individual contribution to this hobby. Maybe, and without tongue in cheek, GW could issue certificates to thank customers who reach milestones in their collections- breaking the £1K barrier, painting their first squad, playing or running say 10 instore games? Hell, why not invite the biggest spenders or the most dedicated on a golden ticket to visit HQ, shake a few hands and drink some bubbly? That's the personal touch I'd expect from a premium luxury goods producer.
With the store managers vetting and submitting the info to HQ you'd remove the forum frenzy that probably leaves GW snowblind to constructive criticism, and any haters trying to screw the system. With that personal info available they could use White Dwarf to shout out notable individuals' achievements, local gaming groups, even independant retailers. Rebuild the fanbase connection, bring the lost sheep back into the fold and restore the personal touch to White Dwarf! I want to see real games being played and our community represented. Find a cleverer way to advertise GW, use word of mouth, it's how people make most of their bigger purchase decisions. And, although it may dent sales a little, ease up on other companies' models! How does an 80-90% GW quota for GW hosted games sound? This is a creative industry built by and for creative people. Not everyone will be satisfied with GW's vision no matter how perfectly realised it is.
Finally, regarding impact on the putitive 9th Edition, GW could have the best of both worlds. With highly protected IP on more original models, rival models will be fewer and they'll still come off as the big man for showing magnanimity. If 9th is the clean slate everyone thinks it'll be, it's the perfect time to start fresh consumer records. The guys that paved the road here with £20 notes may be forgotten, but if this game is going to be radically different we'll all be able to start on the ground floor and get behind a more honest, personal approach.
Something's got to change for me to rejoin Group 1, beyond the size of the paint pots, because if GW think the only way they'll secure my purchases is to keep me in the dark on their plans for my game, refuse to support my beloved Space Hulk, Quest and Necromunda, and to force panic purchases through all these 'limited releases', I'll have no option other than to tune out entirely and start or join Group 4: the guys that have tonnes of old GW stuff and no connection with the company at all.
