zerosignal wrote:What is the point of
GW?
The point of
GW is to make money for its shareholders.
To think otherwise is daft - it's the point of ANY company!
Yes, however, more customers and happier customers also means more money for its shareholders. There are consistently two themes that you see in the "
GW sucks" threads: people who want
GW to write better externally balanced rules for factions, and
GW to make the game more affordable for them.
The first is totally legitimate; just because it doesn't take away from my fun for my friends and I to simply change whatever rules seem silly, to recost units, or simply rewrite rules, it doesn't mean that we wouldn't be happier if
40k had fewer balance issues out-of-the-box, and of course, this would make for more consistent tournament/competitive play with people you don't know.
The second is pretty unreasonable. Miniatures and wargaming is a niche hobby that has a small customer base, that won't ever be attractive to the general population. Even if models went back to 1990 prices and the rules were free, most of the people I know wouldn't have the slightest interest or patience for the hobby.
GW should price its products at the most efficient (highest) price to maximize its profits, whether or not someone who is a student who works part time can afford the product. If
GW writes some skirmish rules so that people who can't afford 75 models and hobby supplies to play a game can also participate in
40k, great. However, if not, those people should simply either play a game that requires fewer models, or do something else.
zerosignal wrote: GW make and sell quality miniatures. Their primary focus is no longer as a games company - it is to sell miniatures. Hence, they are internally rebalancing codexes so that there are fewer 'bad' units. Increasing the overall power level will make for more expenditure per player (larger games, more apocalypse style, large units such as knights and superheavies).
I have no problem with this. You can still choose to play the game any way you want (as has always been the case). For those of us who like a more 'official structure', 'tournament/competitive' feel to a game, this is a step forwards.
While
GW characterizes itself as a miniature company, and I see the rulesets as a way for hobbyists to play with their collections, clearly, they write rules to help sell their miniatures. Case in point: the new windriders are sold out, because they are perceived to have highly advantageous rules.
What I *love* about the new Eldar codex is that internally, its balance is excellent (except 295 points for Wraithknight, which I can't fathom). There are so many good units to take that it's hard to spot a bad one. Not only does everything feel like it has value, but just about every unit feels like it has a place and a purpose, and something unique about it (ok, not so much the named characters). I mean, how many times have you picked up a codex, and said something like, "Bah, genestealers still suck." Almost every Eldar unit is fieldable now. And even though Wave Serpents were nerfed, they are still a great
DT.
I wish *EVERY* codex would get the Eldar/Necron treatment, where you aren't limited to a 2-3 great units, 2-3 mediocre units, and a bunch of head-scratching garbage, like pages of dreadnoughts, terminators, and crappy vehicles. I wish that the land raider / storm raven discussion was about how it was hard to choose between two great units, rather than how both units kind of suck for 200+ points.
But anyhow, I digress
