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SALUTE 2005
Mike Adams
Summary Well, Salute is over for another year – the show that gets bigger and bigger each year. So big in fact that next year it moves to the Excel mega-venue (at least that should mean free car parking). The free mini also gets bigger and bigger every year! This year it’s a veritable diorama – St. George slaying the dragon over his prone horse. Plus of course the dependable Salute die in the welcome bag (whenever I use it in games, I have to explain that the one-dot side with the writing on is just a plain one and there really is nothing fishy about it. The last time I used it was as a substitute for tossing a coin in a game of Pokémon cards. Should I be admitting that?). I am exhausted as usual, but I have come to expect that. My personal Salute experience has gradually changed. This is probably just me, but I realised that the historical part of the hobby has taken a lowly second place, almost to the point of insignificance. Recently Games Workshop has seen its pre-eminent position challenged by a high standard of competition in the fantasy/sci-fi arena, and so I had a large list of other products to see this year. This is also reflected in my spending. I bought no less than three new games systems (rash, I know), all of them sci-fi/fantasy. In fact, overall I bought no historical minis or other historical products at all this year, which I think is a first. Plus this year I wanted to speak to people inside the industry to sound out the commercial possibilities for a game concept I have been working on.
My Shopping List
The following was my list of things to look at, including “purchase probability”:
Winners and Losers It is interesting to look at the “winners and losers” from the shopping list.
The Losers… I’m afraid to say that Aberrant Games’ Rezolution wins the loser stakes for not having their product ready for the show. D’oh! I think that could prove to be a fatal mistake for the company. They’ve missed a massive window of opportunity to take money from people and hook them into the game. Rackham so very nearly got my money. But ultimately where Confrontation scored (rulebook = zero cost), Ragnarok failed (rulebook = £30!). I was also put off by the complexity. I left that behind years ago. I just don’t have the time now to wade through hundreds of pages just to play a game. Crocodile Games had a magnetic attraction to my wallet, but I managed to resist, for the moment. The reasoning here is that although I felt the very strong urge to buy a Subeki or something similar, what was the point unless I was going to buy a whole army, then who would I play unless I did my usual habit of buying both sides. And basically, there is no way I have the time or money to invest in large armies in a new system, hence the attraction of lightweight skirmish-type systems. However, I have to give them the highest praise for their product. Games Workshop were again complacent, in my opinion. The attitude seemed to be “everyone knows who we are, if you want something come over to our stand” rather than any kind of active promotion. For example, I asked were there any show specials (“buy three, get one free” type of deal) or special pre-releases (“get the new Tyranids before anyone else”), but there was nothing except I think two drole Warhammer characters. Another point to consider is a comparison with the new Starship Troopers game. Now this is basically the same deal as GW’s “Battle for Macragge” W40K starter set, i.e. a boxed set with rules, dice and a number of plastic minis. Even the factions were virtually the same – power-armoured marines on one side and alien bugs on the other. But GW’s deal is arguably better. First, it’s £10 cheaper, second you get loads of other bits, especially some excellent terrain pieces, and third you are buying into a huge and well-established system. So therefore, why were people buying up Starship Troopers like there was no tomorrow (including me)? Surely partly it’s because they were actively selling it, whereas no-one was actively selling Battle for Macragge. Strange. BTW, you’re probably thinking “why did you buy it then?” In my case, I’ve already got ten W40K armies including Tyranids and two Space Marines armies, and I’ve got the hardback W40K rulebook, so I would only be buying Macragge mainly for the terrain. But I still considered it! As an aside, another benefit is that you get an A5 size rulebook suitable for taking out to clubs and tournaments, because I’m not taking my valuable hardback book, but really this is more of an annoyance that GW don’t supply a usable rulebook except in this starter set…grumble, grumble. Dark Age lost out because I had to hunt out where I could get them. And by the end of the show I was all out of cash.
The Winners… So, the winners then… Starship Troopers, for being irresistable even at £50. It’s just such an attractive package – one box, simple concept that everyone can understand, looks fun, nice models to build and easy to paint – job done. Oh, and the Andy Chambers name did sell it as well, because I always respected the games development work he did at GW. And also…surprisingly, Urban War. They scored because the starter rules are just £4, and that includes a voucher for a free mini! Plus they had a “buy 5, get 1 free” incentive. It’s worth buying the first Urban War mag with the starter rules just for the artwork. So now I am the proud owner of some Vasa faction minis. How did that happen? The third system I bought was not even on my list. I couldn’t resist a starter set (£14) and booster pack (£8) for the Hasbro/Wizards of the Coast Star Wars collectible miniatures game. I bought the Revenge of the Sith starter set, ready for the release of the new film. I had in my mind that my 10-year old son would like to play this game (he’s going to see the film with friends for his birthday party in May) and I was attracted to the formula for the game – combination of cards, dice, board and ready-to-play minis.
Other notable products The War Machine stand is getting bigger – that must be a good sign, although I’m not aware of what they are doing at the moment. I found some fantastic palm trees, assembled in Thailand (from Baker Company, I believe). But in practise you really need to go for the 100-trees deal to have anything like the right amount, and although it’s actually very reasonable at £1 per tree, I can’t bring myself to spend £100 on palm trees. I can see that it would be good for a club or someone doing a demo game, but for humble old me who is just looking for terrain for my dining room, I’ve probably got to make my own from paper and wire. Crimson Empire are now Cursed Empire (apparently stepping on someone else’s IP toes). For me an RPG is still a Rocket Propelled Grenade, but somewhere out there is a whole hobby. Definitely for students with time on their hands! Anyway, Cursed Empire has a very strong visual look which I like. They’ve added a small minis range, and somehow I bought one. Perhaps something to do with the fact that this year they had two gorgeous women on their stand promoting product - I remember falling under their charm last year. Of course there were many, many fantastic products on offer at the show. Please understand this is a very personal account, based on the stuff I’m into at the moment. Companies like Gripping Beast, Perry Miniatures and many others are still there with their superior products, it’s just that I normally drool over these, but these days I have to be very selective about what I’m looking for. The days of just browsing have gone.
Notable Wargames Again, for reasons of time, I can only have the most cursory glance at any of the actual wargames on show. It’s a real shame, but the number 1 reason for a show like Salute is to get access to product. This is the only time I ever get to see product at all, apart from GW, and here it is all in one place. Indian Mutiny (Action at Kudjwa, 1857, Barnes Wargames Collective) This game brought out my nostalgic soft spot for historical wargaming. I’ve always had a secret desire to do the Indian Mutiny. I took a couple of photos which should be in my Salute 2005 gallery on the website. Er, that’s it. Others just flashed by… The Great Escape (wow); Napoleonic naval (wow); Stalingrad (good); SLW’s Cloudships of Mars (beyond me). Unfortnately, I didn’t get to see the Tsushima game, but that was the only thing on my hit list for floor #4. I never made it to floor #4 at all, but that was where most of the wargames were. Just a thought – what would be nice is one show for traders, with a few games simply to show off product, and a separate trader-free show for wargames. Then I would have time to do both. I would love to see some of these games properly, and even take part (God forbid), but there is no way I’ve got time for that and visit the trade stands.
Painting & Sculpting Painting award goes to that lovely lady on the Crocodile Games stand, who apparently was the genius behind the display cabinet minis. Sculpting award goes to Kev White of Hasslefree Miniatures, with Chris Fitzpatrick of Crocodile a close second. Kev was very humble, but I think his work is masterful.
Balance Sheet Purchases
(total spend 2004 £123.50)
Costs
(total costs 2004 £29.00) |
