The Great GW Pricing Poll

[Psyfer]

Aren't you comparing apples an oranges here? A standard game of 40K is not equal to a standard game of Infinity or Malifaux. I do play Malifaux, and Warmahordes and the later is a better comparison and price equivalent. To compare to to infinity then use Kill Team rules, 200 pts. At that level you need a single box of Marines to play.

The point was not so much equivalency (as you're right, 40k vanilla is company based, Infinity is squad based) but the raw start-up cost. A game that you can get into for $50.00 (which as you can get the Infinity or Malifaux rules for free online) it much easier to get into then one that will cost you $200.00 to $300.00 (Core rules + Starter + Codex) to get into. Regardless of the style of game, the above factor doesn't change. Cheaper games are more accessible.

Question two, would you be okay with GW shutting down their retail chain?.

Wouldn't bother me at all as long as the postage was reasonable and the service up to scratch.

[Manyac]

vote: Lower Prices 30% - GW is severely overcosted now. GW is killing itself with their prices and needs to act decisively to turn things around. (30% in some cases isn't enought"

the prices are really overcosted, I`ve been playing for 20? years (more or less) but this isnt a "When I was young a box of goblin was 3€ rant".

Every one knows the "Warriors of Chaos Nurgle Chaos Lord" great plastic mini, No multipart, Static, plastic, simple sprue, great modelling, and in a lot of "golden demon prices" -> 12,00 €

compare now with the "Space Marine Captain" not so great plastic mini, No multipart, Static, plastic, simple sprue, not so great modelling -> 25,00 €

The price increase is more than 100% in 3 years?

In fantasy the prices are overcosted but in 40k are simply abusive. but the prices aren´t the only problem, nowadays we are paying the same for printed codex than for digital ones. Please if you are going to charge me the cost of choping a tree for my codex and please do it.

The ruleset is another problem, as is unbalanced (as ever) but no balancing FAQs, there is no tournament support (some years ago there was some support not great but support)

[Wilfen82]

I'd go with a 15-20% reduction for most things.

Something I also feel could help is we now have many 2 in 1 kits where you can build 5 troops, 3 MC etc and yet have a surplus or waste of plastic on that sprue in the form of spare heads, torsos, appendages (I'm not talking bout alt weapon options that the unit can pick from). So if they were removed then maybe that £20 box is now £15 and as Ive got spare change in my twenty note budget, so I'll pick up a blister at the same time as it'll only put me over budget by a couple of quid. Go out with £30 thinking maybe a box and blister for bout £27, but now I can get two boxes which will give me more stuff so I do. Coz were not just thinking of selling to the adult gamers but the kids and teens with limited fiances. I used to do these kinda things with related products in the toy shop I ran with a better than 50% success rate and that's before "add on sales" or as we call them "ow go on then" sales like batteries, glue etc.

The next thing I'd suggest, drop the hardback army books. Return to softback and a reasonable price for them. My first 40K codex was 2nd Ed Chaos with 144 pages for £10, now its 96-100 pages for £30 of which 20% is photos aka advertising, I think not. I used to collect all the army books in fantasy and 40K (with a few exceptions) because I loved the fluff and knowing my opponents, but I am not prepared to spend £30. Would I spend £20, at a push. Would I get back into buying them at £15, yes I would. I once had a member of GW staff justify it to me because he had "got through" 8 copies SM codex flicking through for reference, I suggested a reference sheet and taking better care of his things

Just my tuppence worth

[Bitz Box Rob]

Not every thing needs a 30% cut, 20% would get me buying somethings again direct from GW again.

Seriously I had HAD to click 30% cause i will still not pay $82.50 ( U.S. dollars) for a storm raven. Only a price around the $58.00 is gonna make it happen, and be honest i'll still shrug at it and plan for next month, but this plan keeps getting derailed as other games make it attractive to "buy now" and go home with a shinny new toy.

Now that's not all models need a huge drop to be attractive to me. If a furioso dread went down 20% id go for a $37 one.

[Bitz Box Rob]

So forgot to mention the other thing slowing me down in the hobby.

CODEX ARE HORRIBLE!!
Hardcover no i don't even want rules in Hardcover if given the choice.
All Color no thanks that's just for your showcase publicity photos ( or call them adds ).

I am constantly browsing other players codex cause i cant afford to buy all of them anymore

you say you are a miniatures company who also puts out rules so we can play with them and want to buy more minis.
than do it

[Wolfshade]

Here is a question for the community; if you want a 20% price cut does that mean you simply buy online and things are priced correctly? Question two, would you be okay with GW shutting down their retail chain?

To address this.

Q1. If I want a 20% discount do I buy online? Yes. Though I do impulse shop at GW.

Q2. No. Certainly it is my experiance, I understand in America the experaince is very different, but in here GW stores do a lot to attract new customers. Certainly player retention is a hard thing, lots of hobbies have issues with retention even those without an on-going cost associated with them. If GW is to increase sales, then removing its chief mechanism for increasing the customer base is not the way forwards.

[Vaktathi]

It's insane how much GW prices have increased. While some kits have remained largely the same price (stuff like SM tac squads and Terminators) many others have increased at triple the rate of inflation in less than a decade. Even before Codex books went hardback they'd almost doubled in price in 5 years (from $20 to $38). It's gotten to the point where a lot of GW kits are on par with FW pricing.

[Nothanow]

Yeah. I used to buy nearly every codex because I enjoyed reading them. Now I get the chills even thinking about buying codecies or army books for the armies I already have models for.

I can get a digital copy of Honour the Chapter from Fantasy Flight Games for 20 dollars. That gives me unique rules and background for a huge number of Space Marine chapters, detailed wargear, and plenty of other stuff to play with my RPG friends. I can also buy a Space Marine Digital Codex for 60 dollars, giving me half the background fluff, fewer rules, and fewer pieces of colored artwork.

To be honest, I'm getting to the point where Dark Heresy/Rogue Trader/Deathwatch are my entry and exit points for the hobby.

[Cactus]

Right now, a typical heavy vehicle costs almost as much as a new video game release - or 50 games or songs for your cell phone. Multiply that times the cost of an entire army and you find that you can get a lot more for your entertainment dollar elsewhere.

It's had to convince someone to part with their money, spend hours assembling/painting to prepare to play (work), learn a textbook full of rules (more work), find an opponent, and find time to play, when you can just press a button for instant gratification. Lowering the cost of the game would give a quantifiable justification to play a table top game over a video game or other entertainment media.

[nedius]

I would argue it very much depends on the product.

The cities of death terrain is a steal at it's price. Comparable historic buildings are usually lower quality and more expensive.

However, some things, like th Hive Guard and (worst offender) the Hobbit Trolls are significantly over priced for plastic miniatures.

The cost for a hive guard was justified in metal, a bit much in resin and ridiculous in plastic. They are not worth £40+. £30 max. And even then...