That hasn’t really been the case with GW for a good ten, fifteen years now. They’ve kind of tipped over in the opposite direction, and will sign off on just about any licensing deal, regardless of whether the underlying project is worthwhile or now. If you search for Warhammer on Steam, you get literally hundreds of hits. A lot of it will be DLC, admittedly, because WH40K lends itself to that model really, really well. But it’s still dozens and dozens of different titles that have licensed the setting from GW.
Right, but none of them are direct translations of the table top game, which would be the obvious first choice for a videogame. The closest are the total war: warhammer games or the older RTS games. Stuff like Rogue Trader or Mechanicus or any of the single player Space Marine shooters that only use the IP but not the actual table top game rules are not really a danger, if anything the opposite. I strongly believe a direct translation of the table top into the computer would significantly cripple their miniature sales.
I don’t think a rules accurate, high quality video game would actually eat that much into the table top space. Table top provides two things you can’t really replicate in a video game: miniature painting as its own, distinct sub-hobby, and a structured activity for real-world socializing.
In terms of attracting new players to the game, rules accuracy is largely irrelevant. If I’ve never played a 40K game, the selling point to get me invested is, “You can make your own army from one of a dozen or so distinct factions, then square off against another player in a turn-based tactical game.” It’s not really, “Look at how many d6s you get to roll!” Lots of WH40K video games are scratching that first itch, which should be the real threat to the table top market - people who are already into the table top game aren’t likely to ditch it for a video game, but someone who’s interested in the setting but hasn’t invested in the table top game yet is more likely to get into the video games and stay there.
But I don’t think that’s even really a problem - I’ve been around WH40K for almost my entire life, but I’ve never really played the table top because I’m not really into painting minis, and while the concept seemed cool, it didn’t interest me enough to start dumping hundreds of dollars into buying models. But I’ve got about a dozen Warhammer titles in my Steam library, including several that perfectly fit the “make your own army from one of a dozen or so distinct factions, then square off against another player in a turn-based tactical game” pitch. I’m not lost retail for the table top - I was never getting into that space at all. I’m extra revenue on top of the table top game.
Battle Sector I think was more similar to the tabletop game–it atleast felt more like it was trying to be–strict turns, point value armies, etc…..but Miller’s the most right on this front I think.
I also think NOT creating a 1 for 1 recreation of the tabletop game is the smartest thing GW does. Why dilute your niche? Do ANY tabletop skirmish/war games have 1 for 1 recreation video games?
Mordheim?
I had no idea. That looks pretty cool.
Bloodbowl and Bloodbowl 2 were table top accurate. I understand there’s a Space Hulk video game that’s pretty faithful.
You’re quite right. The sad truth is Warhammer 40k just isn’t a very good game. Depending on the size of our armies, I might have to wait a good 30 minutes while my opponents takes his turn moving, shooting, and fighting with very little for me to do but occasionally roll some dice to avoid dying. It’s less a game and more of a pageant for us to show off our nice, expensive painted miniatures.
Whenever someone asks if I recommend WH40k, the first thing I ask is if they like painting miniatures. If the answer is no then I suggest they avoid the game.
They’ve released Necromunda, Mordheim, and Blood Bowl in computer form which are pretty close to the tabletop rules. Mordheim has been out of print for more than 20 years at this point though.
Hey, I don’t like painting miniatures, but I also don’t care that all of my armies are mostly grey plastic… They play just as well.
ETA: On that note, though, a tabletop accurate version that is more user-friendly than Tabletop Simulator would kill any future purchases of miniatures from me… I like the game and the lore, not the construction and painting of the pieces.
I don’t mind if someone has a few models they’re still working on, but I much prefer it when everyone paints their models. Most leagues I’ve participated in reward players for showing up with a fully painted army.
See, I don’t play so I didn’t even think of this. Yeah, a computer version would greatly speed up gameplay, a turn wouldn’t really take any longer than a turn in X-Com or similar games. Also, you’d have more time to actually think about your moves instead of constantly having to roll dice.
The people who play would be horrified by this line of thought.
In my experience, Warhammer players love all the physical aspects of the game, the minis, the painting thereof, the huge tables and scenarios, etc.
My mode of thought is more like yours, but when I suggested replacing the table with an hexagon marked map and the minis with hexagonal pieces with the name of the unit in it “So we can play without spending so much money and labor on it” I had to run to avoid being lynched 
Battletech players like me play using anything as an unit (a die, a bottlecap, a crumpled piece of paper, a lego minifig, etc) and in hexagon-marked maps as a matter of course, but we are a different species.
Yep, battletech is a slightly different world.
With Warhammer, one of the big reasons that doesn’t work (well) is that my unit of 10 Chaos Space Marines has 1 guy that has a chain sword and a pistol, 5 guys with a pistol and a boltgun, one guy with a missile launcher, one guy that is a sorcerer, one guy with a big-ass chainsaw axe, and one fellow carrying a chaos icon; and just a short distance away, I have another 10 space Marines with a completely different loadout… Now which one do you attack? Once you are used to the aesthetics, you can judge the “right” target, by sight, in a second… using paper markers or other stand-ins just slows things down (but hey, I’d rather people play even that way than not at all!)
I was going to say all that info would fit neatly into a trading card, but that would not be much of an improvement.
Bingo. We spend a lot more time assembling and painting our models than we do playing the game, so how they look goes a long way towards how the game is enjoyed. This applies to most other table top war games including Infinity, Warzone, Star Wars Legion, etc., etc. I think the success of Games Workshop in the table top market can be attributed primarily to two things: They’ve spent the last few decades producing some of the finest miniatures available and it’s only recently that other companies have caught up. They also produce a lot of fiction that draws people in and keeps them interested.
Battletech is something of an odd duck. It’s a miniatures game, yes, but most players play it on a hex grid. And making sure the miniature you use on the table accurately reflects what you’re playing hasn’t been critical. It hasn’t always been possible even. If I was playing a variant Locust back in 1992 they might not have even produced such a model. Some of that might be changing though. There is a lot of terrain available specifically for BTech that wsn’t available thirty years ago.
I get that, the customization of my soldiers is what keeps me playing X-Com 2 all this years later.
I recall Battletech being discussed on another board, and when somebody commented “like Warhammer the setting exists to sell miniatures”, someone else quickly corrected them that no, "it exists to sell rulebooks".
I can believe it, consider how despite it being a fanfic thread posters were constantly talking about game rules & mechanics and showing off builds for mechs and such. A rather D&D feeling, actually.
Warhammer though; even the Warhammer fans themselves joke about how much money they spend on “plastic crack”.
That’s the plan, and there’s an obvious candidate. I do like that the story/lore seems to be progressing.
What would the new god be the patron of? I think the chaos god of greed would be most appropriate.
I got out of painting GW stuff when I got into Infinity a few years ago. There’s still a few tank model kits on my desk I need to work on.
Tyranny, maybe? Makes sense coming from the Imperium.