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Many of us are Warhammer Veterans, many just play the tabletop game. However, Games-Workshop are becoming increasingly 'modern' and are releasing more and more computer games, this means that a lot more people know of or are joining the hobby, many of whom know relatively little of the tabletop version.

I see many (understandably) complaining about Game-Workshop's emphasis on the younger player, at the cost of their long-term customer satisfaction. Similarly I see many complain about the ideas brought in from video games, such as the depiction of the Alpha Legion in DoW. However, it does also bring many new players (a good thing?) into the hobby and can be a great addition to those of us who also enjoy the hobby and it did (IIRC) introduce the popular Blood Ravens chapter, who appear to have been embraced by GW. And there are more games on the way, including to some people's dismay, one that further centres around the Ultramarines.


So I ask you Dakkites, what do you think of this increasing 'modernisation', through computer games, by Games-Workshop?

Do you like it, as it brings more and more awareness to the game? As it makes it more main-stream and less stereotyped? It brings more revenue to our GW overlords?
Or do you dislike it as it's more commercialisation by GW and they should look after their fan-base more? That it further takes the emphasis away from the veterans of the hobby?


Apologies to Frazzled, who probably doesn't know what a video-game is...

I've actually played almost all of them, except squad command, and space hulk.

Dawn of War series: done very well, actually brought me back into 40k after years away, was only playing fantasy at the time. I love the series, despite it being too imperium focused.

Chaos Gate: was totally cool, however it's engine should of been used for more of a necromunda/mordhiem game than a full scale game.

The fantasy games: while totally neat, they are not truly represetative of the table top game, the campaign structure is fun but the mixing of units is a big no no in most list biulding.

Overally I like them, it's a good supplement.

Personally, Final Liberation has been my favourite yet. I find it provides massive (epic) battles without the model's etc, and is hence a good addition to playing the tabletop game myself.

Final liberation was indeed, (excuse the pun) epic.

If anything is deserving of an update, that game is. What was most unusual about a game of that era was that the FMV didn't suck.

filbert wrote:Final liberation was indeed, (excuse the pun) epic.

If anything is deserving of an update, that game is. What was most unusual about a game of that era was that the FMV didn't suck.

True, I rather liked that game.

I think it's wonderful - it's an environment that IMO is richer than anything you see in other mainstream Sci-Fi universes, e.g. Star Wars/Trek, it's just fantastic when I have another way to interact with the 40k storyline; whether it be an Action/Strategy game, CGI movie, or whatever next is over the horizon.

GW seem to clearly understand how important their IP is, so I always can dive in to whatever company's interpretation of 40k is without worrying about a cardinal sin being broken (i.e. Chaos Marine having a change of heart and saving a little girl from a burning orphanage).

Hi there!

I've never played any of the video games but I enjoy watching clips of the Sisters of Battle in "Soul Storm" on You Tube. Speaking just for myself, seeing these animated visual interpretations with sound and music is very exciting! So, I think it's a good thing, as it's the fluff that brings me to the miniature game and models, and that fluff is adaptable to many other mediums

--- Frankie

True and good point. Although are people ever 'upset' that the fluff is taken away from their imagination and properly depicted per-say?
For example: the effects of Plasma Cannons...

Then play Dawn of War 2. DoW2 got a lot closer to the tabletop game, and adhered to the fluff pretty well, all things considered. There wasn't any "losing 100 Baneblades" and insane Alpha Legion, unlike the first series (which I did enjoy despite the fluff destruction that happened in those four titles).

My only major glaring problem in DoW2 was seeing a Force Commander, x2 squads in Terminator armor, and a Dreadnought pop out of one Drop Pod when deploying on a mission.

Dawn of War was what brought me into 40k. I played it, loved it, especially the art direction. From there, I started reading Background Fluff, buying Black Library books. Then I looked at forums. Finally, I bought the Starter Set, a BA Codex, and a Rhino, and started a BA army. Now I'm in the process of painting the first of my WoC, as I started Fantasy last weekend, and have been staying up late reading and re-reading rules.

Truly Dawn of War is the most powerful gateway drug in the world. I think I've spent upwards of 700 boondollars now, and I'm putting most of my spare cash towards this.

I guess that's a long winded way of saying, yeah, the Video Games are a cool way to either get more enjoyment out of the setting, or introduce more cautious gamers into our deliciously expensive hobby.

If it brings more players in it can't be too bad. For people who are already invested in the hobby, it's also cool to get down and dirty and actually see their favorite armies move and fight via videogames.

filbert wrote:Final liberation was indeed, (excuse the pun) epic.

If anything is deserving of an update, that game is. What was most unusual about a game of that era was that the FMV didn't suck.

Ah, this, 1000 times this

I LOVED that game, and I wish that it had sequels, using the other available races... That would have been something!

I wish it would get updated, but seeing as GW itself doesn't care a wit about Epic, I don't think we'll see anything like this soon, if in fact ever...

It's a good move, it makes the mainstream people aware of the games and gives them an excellent introduction in some ways.


But agreed with the above, we NEED MORE OF THIS:

I had given up on WHFB until I played Warhammer: Age of Reckoning and got the collector's edition boxed set of that game for half price. The miniature it came with was meh, the comic book explaining the story pretty much sucked, but the hard back art book collection that came with it really stoked my imagination and inspired me to get painting and converting.

Although the online game is dying by most accounts, the sights and sounds got me back into Tabletop Warhammer. I have countless idea's for terrain projects, scenarios and such because of that game. Poor execution of a game, but great job capturing the essence and look of the IP, for the most part.

Clicking on an Orc NPC and hearing a fart noise, then an Orc saying "Oi! Me bum spoke!" never got old.

The RvR was fun most of the time too.

I almost wish they'd take that game and create a single player epic RPG, along the lines of Dragon Age.

WAR was a brilliant game, which wasn't rewarding enough where it needed to be to keep people playing. The public quests were great, but no one did them because they were pretty much pointless. The ways the servers were licensed was a bit odd too.

Final Liberation was... many, many hours of my life. Brilliant, once again.

Games Workshop doesn't necessarily 'spend less time on the hobby' because of these games - virtually none at all - other than for the guy who writes up the licensing agreement for the third-party company that makes the game in question. And he was probably just a lawyer.

I think games can easily add to the background or be taken aside and viewed as though in a parallel universe. GW could probably do more to tie in the games and miniatures range, but that's where the discussion of whether it 'cheapens' the hobby begins.

Its clear that GW is losing popularity and customers and so the clear place to go is the teenage/preeteen age nerds and other gamers and try to pick them up.

I really don't see many negatives to it's expansion. It will only result in us getting more mediums in which to enjoy our favorite background.

Considering that GW doesn't do any traditional advertising I think it's an excellent move to keep bringing in customers.

I think someone was in the process of performing a fan update of final liberation. The publisher, SSI, released the development code to a bunch of fans who in turn were planning on adding chaos stuff in.Apparently it didn't get beyond alpha testing stage though.

Actually....I got into Warhammer because I liked Dawn of War 1 and 2 so much!


So yes. Good idea.

Loving all the Final Liberation Love and the positive attitude guys!

Hey, and the bigger the fan-base gets, the more GW should actually look out for us...

I think they'll sell a lot of games, because people really like the background. But the majority of those people that are exposed to 40k through the games and start looking into the tabletop hobby, will never in their right mind actually take it up once they see the ridiculous sticker price of those models (which gets more and more ridiculous on a yearly basis).

I'm not getting into the video games vs. miniatures argument and comparing value for money, since there's always bias for the tabletop side and it's kind of pointless, I'm just saying that's probably what's going to happen. They'll continue to make a little money through licensing like they have been, but don't count on those people flooding to the tabletop game in droves and making 40k immensely popular. A lot of people may have gotten into 40k through Dawn of War (I was one of them), but for every person that did take it up I bet you there were quite a few that saw the prices and never took it seriously after that. And how many of those people that did get into it through DoW ended up quitting after one or two price rises I wonder?

I just don't see 40k or any GW game becoming any more popular than it is right now. Not only is it too nerdy for most people (I don't ever see miniature gaming because as mainstream as video gaming, it's not happening), but the prices are just ludicrous and put off all of those people who would have given the game a chance despite that.

Just Dave wrote:So I ask you Dakkites, what do you think of this increasing 'modernisation', through computer games, by Games-Workshop?

Good. The more the merrier.

I see computer games as just another outlet for playing Warhammer in some shape or form.

I've enjoyed all the Warhammer/40k computer games I've played except for Fire Warrior which was truely woeful.
Sure there are discrepancies in the fluff sometimes or the way a unit might/should behave but overall they have been solid and some of the FMV has been really inspiring.

Why shouldnt GW branch into the computer games market, I doubt they spend a lot of resources on it anyway (since a 3rd party actually produce them) so wheres the harm? More profit for GW at the "expense" of an enjoyable game? Meh I care not.

I pesonally think it is great for the game. The Dawn of War series brought alot of gamers into the hobby when the line was semi-stagnant. Also, with the economy being the way it is, it is not a bad move exposing 40k to even more potential players via xBox, PS3 etc.

I think it is a good thing but it would be nice if Space Marines were perhaps not quite so prevalent even though they are the easiest to market and thanks to Halo people love the idea of being a superhuman warrior running round shooting aliens and slapping them in the face (like the average Bradford teenager on a saturday night outside the old people's home.)

I think that the video games are a fine expansion for GW (DoW has taken up a lot of my free time over the years) although I do think that a GW film (Ultramarines) is taking it a bit too far

Personally, I'm not a fan of any of the GW videogames. None of them have featured the Space Wolves.

I kid, of course. DoW2 is probably my favorite RTS ever, since I've never been a huge fan of base building or tech trees. Persistent squads with customizable options that are given to you at the start of the mission? Dream come true. I'd personally have designed the various squads to reflect their codex (actual book) counter parts, (3 man Dev squads with one Heavy of Special weapon is a no-go) but other than that I'm very impressed.

As to whether or not it's good for the hobby, I'd have to go with a resounding yes. It's true that not everyone who picked up the software is going to join the hobby, and it's true that not everyone who joins the hobby is going to find it as engaging as a computer game, but there's that small percentage that buys the game and becomes a long term part of the greater wargaming community, which I'd say is worth it.

Yeah, I'm all for it too. I stared on Dawn of War just recently on my new computer and I love it. I did find it a very different game to the tabletop...obviously...I was so used to having lots of time to perfect the ultimate strategy that I kept getting crushed and being called a noob by twitchy children despite playing the 'universe' for nearly twenty years!

There's nothing worse than going from the king of the hill to the peasant again!

GW is doing a good job with the extra publicity. It's obvious that the origional gamers are in there 20s and 30s. Creating video games which introduce new younger players to the universe ensures that GW will continue as a buisness. They are doing this to guarentee that their product survives for many years to come (I know that I will help with this when I become a father. get my kids hooked on this instead of something like pokemon).