Wargaming ASKEW: The Most Infamous Moments in GW History #9
Blogs and forums are constantly bombarded with rage filled hate letters, directed at the largest and most successful company in wargaming: Games Workshop. Before we jump the rage shark, just remember many of these moments produced something better, by you the hobbyist.
Number #9: Fighting the Internet
To be more precise Games Workshop refusal to communicate constructively with their customers. This policy stems from Games Workshop refusal for comment to any media organization (even the BBC!). Still, this wasn’t always the case; back when the Internet was young, GW developed a forum, which oddly isn’t unlike what we see today from sites like 4Chan or Reddit. To give you an idea, all you have to do is check out the Waybackmachine.
Here is an example… Old Forum Guidelines
Look around you will find some funny stuff. Like complaints should be emailed to [email protected]. The forum was also known degradingly as the “Eye of Terror” for its multitude of problems, but for all the failings the forum was a way to have direct contact with GW. Their were times when the design team would come in comment on rules and even Andy Chambers flaming posters over minor disagreements. It was also a place where the fantastic global campaigns of old were cultivated. Sometime around 2006 the party was over, as 5th edition neared and the Great Recession’s tentacles started to appear.
Once GW pulled the plug, it began a real Dark Age of communication. The design team was banned from discussing about future releases (outside vagueness at Games Days) and were no longer able to attend Independent events. It was also around the same time all rules testers were brought in house to avoid leakage.
Coincidentally, the timing of the forum shut down was also the beginning of GW battles against IP and copyright threats. Games Workshop’s pattern of squashing rumors, changing trade terms, discontinuing the bits store, all in a effort to defeat the many “problems” the Internet spawned. Worse yet, GW vigorously went after forums and bloggers for posting rumors and leaks, which GW continues to do as the struggles at BoW /Wayland Games illustrate.
One episode, sticks out more than any other, the Facebook debacle, GW once had an official Facebook page. It became over time a venting ground for price increases, trade embargoes, but it wasn’t until the the Spots the Space Marine disaster that everything came to a head. It was the GW official statement that was the death knell, because two days later after its release the Official Facebook page was taken down. GW new stance was to direct fans to specific store Facebook pages if they wanted to talk about the hobby.
The Silver Lining
https://www.facebook.com/theblacklibrary
https://www.facebook.com/GWWarhammerWorld
https://www.facebook.com/GamesWorkshopDigitalEditions
https://www.facebook.com/ForgeWorldUK
As I always say, GW refusal to work with the Internet has instead created the wealth of blogs and forums we have today.
What would Bell of Lost Souls be if GW released news before everyone else?
What would forums be like DakkaDakka if GW had their own?
Luckily, for many sites, GW has left all of us to build the community and I think that is a very good thing. The Internet is free of boundaries and if GW had developed a closed environment, likely much of the creativity and variety we see today would be lost.
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