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Do you reckon that the recession will affect playing 40k for you? I am a little bit worried cause the engineering consultancy I worked in was having work load troubles before I left for my holiday in China. I am worried when I return to NZ I might not have a job anymore, hence I can't complete my necron army and the new demon army I've been tinkering with :(

Anyone else got hit hard in the pocket regarding 40k?

Yes, My worry is that GW will stop all GT's because of low attendance. I'd be worried about everything besides my army if I lost me job.

Well,where I work (an Auto body repair shop just outside of Atlanta),there have been some layoffs as well as a drastic cut in any overtime,I used to average 50 hrs a week and am now down to 40,wich for me means around a $250.00 cut.
Now,also having a family I have to manage money carefully,wich of course means GW products are not a top priority,so I would say for myself at least should the economy continue to decline I'll probly halt or extremly limit my 40K purchases.
On the up side I currently have so many Orkz to paint (120 or so) that I honestly don't need to buy anything else for a while.

I think history shows that escapist activities then to thrive during economic downturns. During the great depression for example Hollywood enjoyed unprecedented success.

GW whilst it is pricey in wargames terms is still less expensive than hobbies such as restoring cars or going out on the lash (drinking).

I wouldn't worry too much.

If there's rioting and gak, I will be sure to loot the local vagabonds

lol, nerd anarchists

LuciusAR wrote:I think history shows that escapist activities then to thrive during economic downturns. During the great depression for example Hollywood enjoyed unprecedented success.

GW whilst it is price in wargames terms is still less expensive than hobbies such as restoring cars or going out on the lash (drinking).

I wouldn't worry too much.

And it only costs if you're buying new stuff. Maybe if people have a little less cash to splash around they stay home and actually paint what they've already got?

bah... paint what ive got. please.

when money is tight, dakka dakkas swap shop is where i get me some new (for me at least) toys.

everyone has models they dont want anymore that are just eating up space in the closet. i got fed up with this one day and started using dakkas swap shop.

now. insted of having a box full of models i dident want. i have about 2k in nids, and a little over 1k in Sisters.... and half a box of models i dont want which will eventualy finish off my sisters, and mabey get me a good chunk of the eldar i want.

Well, eventually GW will go under, but I don't know how things will continue after that. Will people still keep getting together and playing it when GW's gone?

Hasn't affected me.

Interest rates are down, job is secure (doctor), and my expenditure is fixed.

Things are so good for us ATM we bought an SUV last month and I've just increased my GW spend as I'm not going to movies due to a new baby.

GW has gotten through recessions before, it will again.

Waaagh_Gonads wrote:GW has gotten through recessions before, it will again.

The UK has not had a recession since 1991/92, back when GW was starting its main expansion. They have coped with foreign recessions, but at their current size have never had to deal with one in their home market. Saying that though, they are a pretty sensible company financially speaking, and the dropping value of the pound over the last 6 months will have made their foreign business much more profitable and will have increased foreign demand so hopefully it will balance out and they'll do just fine compared to some of the other companies out there. The stock market seems to have faith in them anyway:
http://finance.yahoo.com/charts?s=^FTSE#chart2:symbol=^ftse;range=1y;compare=gaw.l;indicator=volume;charttype=line;crosshair=on;ohlcvalues=0;logscale=on;source=undefined

Too bad about Wedgewood and Woolies, eh?

Just got some great deals of trademe.com!!! 14 Kroots for 35 New Zealand dollars and a crisis suit for $25!!! Thats plus the postage fees!!!!

To be frank, I don't think GW will outlast this recession.

Possibly, I am definetly cutting down!!! I think the story can be continued, but I the fans definetly need to decide one source to continueu the saga, or else gonna be too many fights on the internet about "what happened?!"

GW will be fine, you may see a reduction of output, but as somone previously said, escapist hobbies thrive in times like these.

Some escapist hobbies. I think the industry itself is under both recessionary and substitute pressure.

But GW dominates the industry and its very unlikely that wargaming is going to cease to exist.

GW dominates the fantasy portion of the industry-not historicals which, from my undertsanding, is far larger. I could see that fall away. I've seen an era where the 3rd largest chemical company in North America files. Anything can happen.

Panic!!!

Historicals might have a bigger market overall (I'd have to see the data) but there are no historical companies anywhere near as consolidated and dominant as GW is. When you mention wargaming people think GW, not battlefront. GW is effectively mainstream in its field.

Actually when I mention wargaming people think Axis and Allies or Gears of War. Old people think Avalon Hill games.

Wargaming as a whole is easily done as an amateur hobby. That's where it started. Big companies like GW are actually very unusual compared to the history of wargaming.

I don't see the wargame industry collaopsing but if it did, a lot of small companies would keep going as weekend only outfits.

Agreed.

You'd be suprised what can sink, Look at the titanic (not the movie, for the love of god!).

Frazzled wrote:Actually when I mention wargaming people think Axis and Allies or Gears of War. Old people think Avalon Hill games.

The experiences of this guy mirror my own, and you can't deny GW, with a line of stores and world wide recognition, dominate the market.

GW: the Mcdonalds of wargaming

If your market is only $100 or so MM, thats not exactly a big deal. Lets be realistic.

Actually, the word that people say more than video games when I try to
describe the hobby is Dungeons and Dragons. So DnD gets more mainstream
recognition than GW.

Kilkrazy wrote:Wargaming as a whole is easily done as an amateur hobby. That's where it started. Big companies like GW are actually very unusual compared to the history of wargaming.

I don't see the wargame industry collaopsing but if it did, a lot of small companies would keep going as weekend only outfits.

Sure, the hobby would continue, but most miniatures gamers started with Warhammer, or at least became aware of the hobby in part through GW stores.

For all of GW’s failings, and there are plenty, they’re the company that brings new players in. Most folk playing other fantasy miniature games started with a GW game.


But that’s assuming GW goes under, which is very unlikely in the near to medium term. While the company will have to continue improving to ensure long term viability, their financial position is strong enough to survive a few poor years. Basically, while GW might collapse, I doubt it’ll be the recession that does it.

malfred wrote:Actually, the word that people say more than video games when I try to
describe the hobby is Dungeons and Dragons. So DnD gets more mainstream
recognition than GW.

apples and oranges.

also providing more than your own experiences in references typically is required to make a blanket statement.

meh, if GW effs-up someone (or an independent group) would buy the IP and it would keep going.
Warzone, Vor and Void are still going, and none of them were as popular as ANY of the GW games.