What could Games Workshop produce if they fully embraced digital rules?

[Tetsugaku]

There is no reason GW can't produce digital rule books and codex's. The tech is clearly there as stated above. Is the demand there? All of us here would probably say yes, but are we the majority? I would think not.

And as GW has shown time and time again, they are all about the mighty $$$. Digital codex' would probably eat into that. To which you may reply that you could charge a subscription fee, yearly or monthly, that lets you have access to digital books for a discount. But that's a dirty word in GW's world.

It certainly is going to cost Monet to develop yes, but there is the ongoing money for purchases and or membership to pay for that.

Think about this long term, this is a system and an approach for GW to use for the next ten years, who knows what tech we'll be using then and how much more common it will be?

[Mud Duck]

Could you go into some details why not? Do you use any digital subscription services like cable TV, Netflix, Spotify or Xbox live?

Hugely appreciate your feedback

I don't think that GW will go the route of 'rent a codex'. My thinking is like this, I i hit you up once every say 4 years for a new codex for 50 bucks, sure people are going to *****, but they are going to buy. Charge 5 bucks a month, and people are going to A. just write down the rules that they need for their army; B. Forget to renew, and not have to list/rules. and just get all pissy; C. ***** continuously about how GW is price gouging the little guy; D. Parents and relatives of children will not buy these items for birthdays, Christmas, etc. if there is a monthly fee. That I think is the big one right there.

[gendoikari87]

What could Games Workshop produce if they fully embraced digital rules?

A legitimate business model.

[Mr Mystery]

A legitimate business model.

Because being the outright market leader is such a poor position to be in?

I'm with Darklink in terms of 'rental' codecies. How would that affect those unable or unwilling to buy the platform necessary?

[gendoikari87]

Because being the outright market leader is such a poor position to be in?

I'm with Darklink in terms of 'rental' codecies. How would that affect those unable or unwilling to buy the platform necessary?

Replace "poor" with "ancient" and yes.

[Mr Mystery]

Replace "poor" with "ancient" and yes.

That....doesn't make any sense......GW are the dominant market force in their niche. Therefore, their business model remains successful? You don't fix what ain't broke, surely?

[Tetsugaku]

A legitimate business model.

What's wrong with their model?

Pounds for hours - they're a god damned bargain - cheeper than any console gaming I do, cheaper than Blu rays, cheaper than the cinema by 10,000% and even cheaper than IOS gaming, which is 69pence a damn game.

Why do people say GW is so expensive?

It's cheap! and the people who run it are all so bloody nice!

Seriously - what would you pay for this sort of thing and what do you think of the ideas?

i need feedback from all sorts of GW fans

[Tetsugaku]

There is no reason GW can't produce digital rule books and codex's. The tech is clearly there as stated above. Is the demand there? All of us here would probably say yes, but are we the majority? I would think not.

And as GW has shown time and time again, they are all about the mighty $$$. Digital codex' would probably eat into that. To which you may reply that you could charge a subscription fee, yearly or monthly, that lets you have access to digital books for a discount. But that's a dirty word in GW's world.

What would you pay and what payment model would you prefer from the list?

[Tetsugaku]

I'm with Darklink in terms of 'rental' codecies. How would that affect those unable or unwilling to buy the platform necessary?

It wouldn't the books are still valid (With FAQs and updates applied) - so no problem.

Where will we be in 5 years though? Certainly with more, cheaper, faster more ubiquitous smart phones and tablets, paying subscriptions to the things we like, be it codexes or Netflix - do you agree?

I would;t phase out printed codexes, not until they stopped selling, that won;t be long.

[Mr Mystery]

It wouldn't the books are still valid (With FAQs and updates applied) - so no problem.

Where will we be in 5 years though? Certainly with more, cheaper, faster more ubiquitous smart phones and tablets, paying subscriptions to the things we like, be it codexes or Netflix - do you agree?

I would;t phase out printed codexes, not until they stopped selling, that won;t be long.

Yes, and no. Yes on the tech front, lord knows what we'll have in 5 years time (possibility of holographic images and that).

But a book is a book, and unlike a Movie, it retains certain value after you've enjoyed it once, more so in the case of Codecies and rulebooks. I'm one of those people who buys every Codex and Army Book, regardless of whether I currently, or ever intend to play the army. Why? I like reading them. I like the way they look in my bookcase. I can reach in and read up whenever I want to. I only bin books when they've been superceded (no point keeping old codecies etc, as I'm not going to be using them again).

Now I do enjoy Netflix and Lovefilm (in fact I'm watching Dark Knights on Lovefilm as I type) but I don't see it happening for books. Download films save me money overall, as it means for £6.00 a month, I have access to a wide range of films and TV programmes whenever I want them. Compare that to spending say, £6.00 on a single DVD or Bluray. It's an obvious answer I'm sure all will agree, especially when it's a film I've been keen to watch, but wary of paying for the disk as it looks a bit ropey (like John Carter, that's a Netflix film if ever I've seen one!) Whereas my Codecies and Army Books....I *know* I'm going to get some kind of use out of them, guaranteed, because my Hobby is dear to me, and takes up a lot of my spare time. I personally wouldn't rent or hire one. I may however, should I invest in an iPad in the future, then buy a digital copy of all and sundry. Not quite the same as a book (and I like my tactiles!) but the automatic updates do appeal!