Thursday, May 17, 2012

An Editorial to GW: Make Codexes Free

Posted by Ranillon on 13. May 2009 20:04


A couple of comments I read over at Dakkadakka the other day got me thinking about how Games Workshop might want to change their business model.  It didn’t take long for me to come to the conclusion that if they were smart GW should offer its rulebooks and codexes for free.  Here is why:

1) The Real Money Comes from Models:  People play GW games because of the models, not per se the rules.  Anything that can encourage people to buy those models is a good thing.  Hooking people on the game system and army rules encourages people to spend more on models.  This is true for both the new player and the experienced veteran.  The sticker-shock associated with miniature games is a serious limitation to greater sales.  Not having to spend money on rules would be a great way to inspire people to buy more models.  The newbie could read and get hooked while the veteran can read a codex for an army he doesn’t play and decide to branch out.  It’s amazing the amount of players who never purchase codexes they don’t play.  Once they see what the other army has to offer they might very well become tempted to purchase more models.

2) Free Rules and Codexes Allow for Quick Updates:  No more having to wait years and years for necessary improvements to your codex (<cough> Dark Angels <cough>).  All you have to do is make changes to the main file and then offer it as a PDF.  This side-steps the problems and expense of adding updates to printed versions.

3) Free Rules and Codexes Also Allow for Beta Testing:  Not sure if a rule works?  Don’t have the time to runs the nigh endless games needed to play test?  Why not get the gaming public to do your work for you?  Beta test rules wouldn’t be official, but they would give people a chance to play potential ideas early.  It also gives them the opportunity to not only give input to the process of design, but also what might sell the best.

4) You Can Still Sell Printed Versions:  Even in the era of PDF copies many of us will still want a copy of the rules we can hold in our hands (and given the cost of ink and paper printing one out won’t be much cheaper anyway).  You could even just provide the minimal basics for the free versions, leaving the fluff, pictures, and expanded explanations to the printed versions.

5) It Makes for a Great Selling Point:  Get our rules for free!  That right there is apt to catch the attention of any self-respecting gamer.  I think it would also have the secondary effect of suggesting to people that Games Workshop both cares for its players and is ahead of the curve in terms of rules and salesmanship.  Any brand is going to get stale if it always offers the same old stuff the same old way.  Free rules and/or free codexes are a way to shake things up.

Admittedly, my assumptions may be wrong and codexes are just fantastic sellers that make model purchases pale by comparison, but I seriously doubt it.  Certainly, offering free rules would require a leap of faith by GW, something they probably aren’t willing to do. 

If nothing else it would be nice to have all the rules in a virtual package.  That way all I would need is a laptop or reader to have my rules wherever I go.  Ah, well, one can dream…

Comments: 7

Filed Under: Editorials

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Comments (7) -

  • Scott

    Scott said,

    Those are all excellent points, however in reality Games Workshop is a monopoly that is mostly based on securing as much profit as possible. Now not to say there are not members within the company that are on our side, there are and they are nice people, the true evil cave dwelling bastard trolls reside in marketing, those who look purely at profit rather then expirence, and they hold the power over the general staff. So anything that would make print sales go down is automaticly out, though I do agree that you have a good idea here, the question is who do we have to beat down to actually get it.


  • Equinox

    Equinox said,

    I totally agree with you.  I think this idea could even be merged with WD and allow for the codices to be printed in there once they have been through a beta phase.  Give people like me a reason to buy WD again.


  • AoM

    AoM said,

    There are more than a few awesome games out there that have the rules free on their websites.  They've got printed rules for sale as well, but if you're just looking to try things out before you spend your cash, this is the best way to do it.

    Just to name a few:
    Infinity
    Alkemy
    Pulp City
    Wings of War


  • Ron Saikowski

    Ron Saikowski said,

    Very interesting ideas.
    I love the thought of it and I know that I'd be inclined to look at other armies and possibly branch out knowing that I could get the rules for that army quickly and easily.


  • Gothmog

    Gothmog said,

    They have done that with Specialist Games. It worked (sort of) with blood Angels. Not a Bad Idea


  • gbprime

    gbprime said,

    Well it's true.  If people could put together 500 points of an army without having to buy a 30 dollar rulebook first, there would be a lot more 500 point armies out there.  And we all know THAT leads to more 2000 point armies as you slowly bulk them up.

    At present, the codex cost is a barrier.


  • ducki3x

    ducki3x said,

    (sorry, I'm coming to the party a little late here)

    I think item 1 is the strongest argument in favor of free (or reduced cost) codexes. Like with an MMO, the real money isn't made in the initial sale of the software (main rule book or codex); it's made off the monthly subscription (miniatures).

    I'm not convinced that GW would have any interest in supporting items 2 & 3. They seem to be inable to keep up with FAQs as it is - I doubt they would divert resources tasked to creating new (or fully updated) products to continue to support existing recent releases.

    For 4, well, once you started giving them away, I basically think you're done with the codex as we know it, unless the cost of the printed version went up yet again. If the cost was reduced or stayed the same, I think fluff and art would be scaled way back; the document would be all about the rules. Also, if they did do live support of the rules (per item 2), I suspect that they would need to go to some kind of publishing-on-demand model (perhaps making codexes mail-order only) if they wanted a shot at keeping them current.

    As for 5, I'm not sure how great a sales point it truly is. On it's surface, free is great - who doesn't like getting something for nothing? That said, free also sets a mindset about the value of a product, as a price of nothing is often associated with cheap and/or disposable items. Also, free may set the entry bar too low - you may get too many uncommitted dabblers, which probably isn't directly bad for GW (because they sell more models regardless), but which may (or may not) have a negative impact to local gaming communities. Pulling a number out of (near) thin air, I think $9.95 - $14.95 would be a reasonable price range that would infer value but not turn anyone away.

    Personally, I think they should do some market research (if they haven't already) and vet out how well a cheaper (or free), slimmer, more rules-focused (think Blood Angels from WD) codex would do against the current versions. It would then come down to a question of money - would this cheaper version actually generate more sales in miniatures to offset any profit loss? Would people actually buy a cheaper, less flashy version, or is the fluff a strong selling point of the document?


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