Games Workshop and the big ambition of a miniatures business
25 comments
·January 19, 2025dingnuts
johnnyo
There are bunch of tabletop wargames, but Warhammer has the network effect going for it.
If you want to go the local hobby store and play a game, most other people are playing Warhammer, that’s what you play too.
You might prefer Bolt Action, but if nobody else in town has a Bolt Action army, it’s an uphill climb.
I recently attended a big Wargaming convention. While all sorts of games were present and being played, 40K has orders of magnitude more people playing it.
neaden
There was a time not long ago where there were some competitors like War machine getting close to GW markets are, but they've stumbled and GW has continued to do well. The number one thing is network effects. GW has their own stores, but even at non-GW stores it's the game you can probably find a community playing, so it's the game you'll probably get introduced to. Additionally while Warhammer 40k is the biggest GW game there is also Age of Sigmar in the fantasy space along with the Horus Heresy, The Old World, and Middle Earth Strategy Battle Game as well as some skirmish games like Necromunda, Warcry, Kill Team, and others many of the models used in the skirmish games can also be used in 40k/AoS making it easier to double dip.
emptysongglass
And Steamforged Games, which now owns all the Warmachine IP, is doing a terrible job stewarding its future. It's a shame, because Warmachine really had the depth of lore to compete, and was so close to providing a strong alternative.
I've gone back to paying a lot of money to play Necromunda, which is a truly fantastic gem of a game with lore so deep, there are multiple Necromunda podcasts and YouTube creators putting out multi-hour episodes on it. Nevermind that the model sculpts coming out of that team are the best in the industry. [1] [2]
[1] https://www.warhammer.com/en-DK/shop/hive-secundus-malstrain...
[2] https://www.instagram.com/wellywoodwargaming/p/DChkL6ThVbp/
smogcutter
Switching costs are high for this type of game. If you want to play something new you need to invest time and money into buying & painting new figures, learn a new set of rules, and convince your friends to do the same.
OTOH historical wargaming is even more niche, but because nothing’s tied to IP games are much more diverse, and the hobby’s backed by a healthy community of small businesses and individual creators.
sdenton4
Historicals are where it's at... Quality of the minis has been skyrocketing, and you can use them for a wide range of games. And it's a fraction of the price of GW.
jmorenoamor
Because of its lore. It is a huge collection of classic tropes, carefully put together, nothing will surprise you, you know all of its componentes from somewhere, religions, literature, history, etc. But the sum of all of them and the commitment to it it's quite remarkable.
Retric
They aren’t really dominant unless you so heavily restrict the space. The more popular “battlefield” simulation between armies are more abstract aka Risk, Chess, etc or video games like StarCraft.
Restrict things enough to basically describe 40k and sure they’re dominant, because you’re excluding most games.
Zironic
You're looking at the wrong market. Games Workshop are not a "battlefield simulation" company. They're a miniature company or if you want to look at it more broadly, they're a company selling molded plastic.
The battlefield simulation is only a means to an end of convincing consumers to buy high margin plastic.
Retric
In that context Mattel is the kind of selling molded plastic.
Ekaros
There is, but others were more mismanaged or had more legal troubles which took lot of wind out of them. You need to consistently keep producing something to keep old players and pull enough new ones. Also GW managed to get good enough presence over others.
alasdairking
Because it is blessed by the Emperor of Mankind. Glory to the Emperor!
It's great fun, smile.
senectus1
the lore and novels/audiobooks behind it are HUUUGE.
Its just a really REALLY well curated universe.
sky_rw
Please God don't let Warhammer become Marvel.
portaouflop
In the grim darkness of the far future, there is only money
Cynicism aside I don’t see it happening, let’s see how the tv series pans out but I really like their recent work - Space Marine I & II were excellent. I still play Dawn of War just for the vibes, and I hear the table top and RP games are also still good
dpig_
Yeah, I think GW is well aware that their 40K and Fantasy universes have incredible draw. Even given the enormous barrier to entry for the premier tabletop game, the IP is ubiquitous.
Unlike WOTC, who seem so flippant about their MTG IP that they're happily slushing it with Marvel, Avatar, Spongebob etc. And even when they're not, they're releasing in-universe sets now that are literally "planeswalkers in cowboy hats," "planeswalkers doing pod-racing," "planeswalkers but its Stranger Things."
jvanderbot
Also highly recommended are Mechanicus and Darktide. Even the old battlefleet gothic were good.
They nailed several entries in several genres.
And for media? They have none other than Astartes, though some actually produced things are quite good as well, none tops this youtube miniseries IMHO.
juliangmp
I doubt GW would go into that direction.
Though I do believe they will continue to raise their prices to the point where you have sell a kidney for a combat patrol box.
I don't understand why gw is so dominant in this space; is there no room for other tactical ttrpg IP?