Wargames Illustrated

[Greendragon]

Whats everyones thoughts on Wargames Illustrated? I've just been having a meeting and one of the points that came out of it was that Wargames would be an interesting one for us to sell, I even thought I might give it a go and, providing I like it, get a copy for myself each month. Does anybody on here read Wargames? If so what are the general thoughts on the magazine?

[sigur]

I got one issue around christmas because I was ordering at Maelstrom anyway and was curious. First off - the name is deserved. It's colourful, it's got tons of illustrations and photos so the name is well deserved. While they obviously do their best to have lots of variety they also (thankfully) go into bits and pieces that many wargamers may not be too familiar with. The issue I got had a big feature on the American revolution (with fun looking scenario ideas for the first small skirmishes including the boston tea party with rules for colonists made up to look like natives and so on) which isn't really my thing but that was the theme of the issue so it's not like I hadn't known that. Along with these scenarios you get ideas for where to get models for them, maybe some comparison shots between models from different manufacturers and so on and very nice colour illustrations for uniforms along with small bits of historical info as painting guides.

There were two articles on pretty much Flames of War things. First about armoured trains in WW2 (interesting stuff but also clearly advertising for the then upcoming models) and something on how to jazz up your ready-made desert terrain. So you notice who owns the magazine now but it's not too distracting or evasive. It clearly isn't "Battlefront's White Dwarf".

In general terms, there was stuff on the early American Revolution, Napoleonics, a bit of colonial warfare in India (interesting bit of history, this one), WW2 including modelling article, historical info and a whole set of fun looking scenarios based on the film Kelly's Heroes to be played as skirmish game, a bit on a guy introducing his sons to wargaming and probably some more bits I forgot. I couldn't help to notice that especially towards the latter half of the magazine there were a bit more adverts (some spanning a full page) butdue to how diverse they are it's not uninteresting to see (and to see how other painting services advertise).

All in all, the price may be a little scary but I think you get your money's worth with it if you're into the things the issue at hand deals with. But then, I think that many wargamers, like me, are interested in most eras so even though a good portion of the magazine is dedicated to the rare period i'm not that much interested in it was an interesting read. Fantasy or Sci-Fi were nowhere to be seen and hardly ever showed up in the ads so it seems to be a purely historical magazine with tons of pretty pictures. Some people like that but I heard of some others don't enjoy this too much and mourn the lack of information in there.

A magazine I've heard very positive reviews about is Wargames, Soldiers and Strategy. Then there's of course Battlegames Magazine which is based around the approach of "old-school wargaming". I had a look at their free preview issue pdf and it looks very nice indeed.

[Lars Porsenna]

I used to buy WI frequently back in the day, before it was acquired by BF. Always felt it was the best produced wargames magazine at the time. Haven't picked up any recent issues however (mainly because the local game stores don't sell it anymore...)

Damon.

[Eumerin]

Haven't picked up any recent issues however (mainly because the local game stores don't sell it anymore...)

That's too bad.

My local store started carrying it when Battlefront took over. The very first Battlefront issue had enough FoW content that people complained... and Battlefront immediately admitted that they'd screwed up and dialed things down to the current level (though personally, I wouldn't be surprised if that had been an intentional move on Battlefront's part...). Every issue has either one or two Flames of War items, but that never takes up more than about a quarter of the content. When my local store first started stocking the magazine, they only sold one or two issues every month. Now they never have more than one left (if that) when the next issue arrives. It's selling much better now.

I never saw the pre-Battlefront issues, but my understanding is that the quality of the magazine has greatly improved since Battlefront took over. That didn't stop people from complaining, but there are always complainers and the overall response has been positive. As others have mentioned, every issue has a theme and the majority of the non-FoW stuff is focused on that theme. But there are usually at least one or two articles that aren't connected to the theme. An example of the latter is from a month or two ago when there was an article on creating warship miniatures for Age of Sail using corrugated cardboard. And when the theme is WW2 related, then the FoW material usually ties into it as well. The articles are sometimes AARs of battles, in which case you get some basic information about a game system which can be useful if you're thinking about getting started in an era that system covers. Or an article might give you information on organizational structure, appearence, and/or tactics of forces used in a particular conflict so that you can create your own battles. A recent example involved discussion of the recovery of the Rosetta Stone by the British, and a discussion of how things might have gone wrong during said recovery, in which case a battle might have erupted between the French and British. And finally, there are the ads. If you're having trouble figuring out who might have the figures that you want, or are just looking for ideas for a new army, the ads are sure to give you a nudge in the right direction. There are a lot of them, and they're dripping with gorgeous looking figures.

[Kron]

I would agree with what people are saying, it's a good magazine but slightly too much FoW articles at times. Since they focus very much on stats and gameplay they are of little interest to non-players, even those interested in WW2.

Having said that I enjoy reading the FoW battle reports, these are more entertaining and easy to follow.


What are people's thoughts on the other two magazines, Wargames, Soldiers and Strategy and Miniature Wargames?

[Panzermike]

It is an excellent publication and I highly recommend it. Being owned by BF you may think it would just become a Flames of War fest but actually not at all. Yes they cover new releases andhave covered third edition rules very well but it has not overwhelmed the magazine. It gives an excellent overview of so many games out there and the battle reports cover a large variety of games.

[AndrewGPaul]

From what little I've seen of the magazine, the Battlefront-specific content is less obtrusive than when they used to run sixteen pages of Wargames Foundry ads at the back of each issue. IIRC, they increased the page count, didn't they? So the Battlefront coverage is as well as, not instead of, coverage of other games.

[yabbadabba]

It is the advertising arm of BF and it has lost a littel charm; but saying that it's still worth a punt even for a short term. Are the Ts+Cs good eg sale or return etc? If so, give it a shot.

[DarthSte]

I buy a copy ever few months - they tend to theme their issues, which can be a bit hit or miss for me, some historical stuff I find interesting, others I don't at all.
It is a great way of keeping upto date on what other games/miniature makers are doing though, and I've picked up some models in the past having only heard of them through WI.

[IanR]

I like Wargames illustrated, its how White Dwarf should have stayed for the most part. the articles are good & also give uniform & modelling guides which are helpful (esp as i no longer buy GW products)& is just starting a painting series by Matt Parkes (formerly of GW). another wargames magazine out there that is similar to WI is Miniature Wargames also provides agood mix of Genre's & systems. i get these 2 every month along with wss.

[Gwyddyon]

I enjoy flipping through it when I'm the FLGS and it's always excellent even if it isn't covering a period I game in, but I find the cost a bit prohibitive. I have limited hobby funds, and for the cost of three issues I can buy a box of Perry or Warlord stuff. I know which one I'll get more use out of.

[6mmhero]

I find it really hit and miss, but that tends to be down to the theme of the issue. It is a magazine that is good.to look at and flick through but not solid month to month to justify a subscription (even though the subs offers are pretty good.)
I used to read miniature wargames down my club, but it went through a period of pulp and back of beyond style articles which just got a little tedious after a while.

[sigur]

I agree with Gwyddyon and 6mmhero in that combining the cost of the magazine and the very broad variety of topics they have in the magazine (which is really great of course) makes it an occational buy to me based on wether or not I'm interested in the main topic of the month rather than subscribing.

[tezdal]

I find it worth the money to buy, if only for the historical topics and good pictures. Not really into Flames of War so some of the articles are a bit "meh" for me, but good magazine over all(and about 1,000x better then White Dwarf)

[StygianBeach]

Its a good magazine. I only pick it up when I can though.

[sigur]

I've heard very good things about WSS, but it's just not available around here and also not at the online retailer I usually use so haven't had a chance to grab a copy yet.

[nzdarkelf]

In fairness to BF they did increase the page count of WI a few issues into their ownership of the mag. And they also dropped the price - at least down under. Throw in the freebie minies I have received from subscribing, I now get my old mag plus free minis, or now, free issues, all for less dollars, and effectively some bonus content in the form of the FoW articles. They also don't shy away from giving their WW2 competition article and advertising coverage. Now you won't see that in a WD.

[zoggin-eck]

Put me down as another "It's good, providing it's a period/subject I like". For instance, I bought one because it had lots of Hail Caesar and Rick P, and another because the viking/ gripping beast's saga theme meant lots of good models and terrain. World War battle scenario articles are less than worthless to me as I don't really like my wargames so modern. Lots of nice photos in every issue, however.

The history lessons are not for me, as I'd rather borrow a book on the subject. The gaming articles are more what I'm into. I must admit I haven't seen a lot of decent painting, modelling or terrain articles. Some issues are little more than reviews for games rules, which is cool, but often it's by the maker, so it's pretty much just "I wanted this in a rule set, so I put it in".

For me, the best bits are the table photo shots. I liked it when White Dwarf showed more of the dorky men playing the game in the battle reports, not just super posed miniature photos, haha. Some of the boards and photos do get a bt samey, though. "Oh look, tanks rolling through a villa" or "two ancient armies face off on a desert with a few trees in the corners"

I must admit, I don't get much "repeat reading" value form this mag. Once it's read, it's put away. Perhaps it's just me, because my interest in Warhammer/40k always stays, but ancients goes up and down.