Okay so while Games Workshop does a lot of stuff right, they seem to also simultaneously struggle with these three things as well.
From a customer perspective, GW has done quite a few things right. From the lore to the physical models for the tabletop, everything is stellar. However, there are a few things where GW seems to struggle and could use a little help maybe. Take a look at these three talking points and let us know if you feel the same way.
These Are The 3 Things Games Workshop is Stupid Good At
1. Writing Rules
Oh boy. This is a big one. It’s only become especially apparent that the rules-writing team has been failing extra hard since the start of 8th edition. While the mistakes in rules weren’t horrible at the beginning, as of late, they can’t write a set of rules that has longevity longer than two weeks.
We’ve seen entire codexes be made obsolete before they even hit the shelves and some books were even sold at a premium price, although they were incomplete. And RIP to anyone who was unfortunate enough to drop $80 on the limited edition version of those books. We’ve talked about all of this in length before, but rounding up some of the more notable and recent rules fails, we’ve got:
- Space Wolves having wrong Warlord Traits in their codex.
- Lazarus’s points missing from his own Ritual of the Damned book (which by the way, he’s on the cover of).
- Salamanders supplement getting FAQ’d into the ground after GW didn’t catch a mortal wound trick in the book.
- Titanicus wargear cards contradicting themselves from earlier printings and rules.
- And more recently, an unplayable set of characters that literally can’t be fielded in Matched Play games because they break the Battle-forged rule.
Yeah. They seem to really be dropping the ball there…
2. Keeping Their Inventory Stocked
One of the biggest speed bumps for players wanting to enjoy the game is that all the “meta” units are almost always out of stock. As soon as something gets good, players flock to the GW online store and buy up everything almost immediately. GW is a literal hobby titan, yet can’t keep stock or replenish their minis in a timely manner. If you’re too late to the party, you could be waiting for months to get your hands on an actual GW official model.
We’ve seen this with the Thunerfire Cannon, a whole host of Dark Eldar stuff, GSC when they were hot, etc. etc. You’d think that a company wouldn’t hinder the consumer at buying their own product. However, in the wake of growing popularity, GW still hasn’t made enough adjustments to keep pace with demand.
But they are working on it from a production side at least. Whether that will translate into more communication between the studio and the warehouse, remains to be seen.
3. A Small Nuance, But Everyone Kinda Agrees- Citadel Paint Pots Suck
Citadel paints are actually very good. They are always readily available and GW prints which paint they recommend on the back of the kits you buy. But while the paint quality is great, the container is something that leaves a lot to be desired.
The paint pots they use operate off of a lid that you pull back, exposing all the paint. After a few times of use, you’ll notice that the container doesn’t close like it used to. And if you leave it for an extended period of time, you’ll eventually come back to all of your paints dried-out.
Plus, if you leave the lid open, there’s a chance you could bump the container and spill all of your wash/contrast all over what you’re hobbying on. Another note to make is that for whatever reason, the white paint is a nightmare to deal with. It clumps up almost immediately and you’ll find that you have to apply a medium to get the paint back to the right consistency.
TUTORIAL: Transferring Citadel Paints to Dropper Bottles: Decant
Other companies like Vallejo, Army Painter, Scale75, etc. all use dropper bottles. This virtually prevents any kind of air into the bottle, meaning it’ll never dry out. And is almost completely spill-proof. In fact, one thing we’ve recommended for the longest time was to transfer the citadel paints into empty dropper bottles and swap the label over.
This will add a lot more life to your paints, and it’s just a safer and cleaner way to hobby.
We get that nobody is perfect and we all make mistakes. But the majority of the community can probably agree that these three areas could use a little attention from GW.
What are your thoughts on the topics from above? Is there a certain part about GW that you think could use some work (that we didn’t talk about?)
Let us know in the comments of our Facebook Hobby Group, and make sure you enter the latest monthly giveaway for FREE today!
These Are The 3 Things Games Workshop is Stupid Good At
The community might focus on GW’s shortcomings more often than not, but there is plenty of positives as well. These are the 3 things Games Workshop is stupid good at. Read More
About the Author: Wesley Floyd
Wesley Floyd
Job Title: Staff Writer
Joined: 2018
Socials:@RealmbrushPainting
Bio: Imperial fanboy, tabletop fanatic, and the self-proclaimed King of Sprues. Wes has been in the Warhammer hobby since 2015 and joined the Spikey Bits writing team in 2018. He knows for a fact that Mephiston red is the best-tasting paint and is the commission painting equivalent of a Wendy’s 4 for $4.
If you like what he writes and want to reach out or get your models painted (to a mostly okayish standard), message him on Instagram.
