FOMO Has Got to Go

Inspirobot will analyze and select the best market strategy for your collapsing integrity.

So, just a while after I spoke about Blackstone Fortress and the market strategy, Games Workshop seems to have taken everything I said to heart. 

Warhammer Quest: Cursed City was open for pre-order April 3 of this year.  As of April 28, it is completely gone and is never coming back.  It's not on the GW webstore, and all records of it ever existing have been expunged.

Recently it's been determined that Cursed City will not ever get a reprint.  It wasn't ever mentioned that this was a limited release, and essentially if you don't have one you won't get one unless you pay scalper prices.  Based on what we've come to expect from Warhammer Quest games, this is definitely a step up on the FOMO game as GW has shown us the don't care what anyone thinks about anything they do, or don't do, or how they do (or don't) do it.

No reprint?  What?  Why would they develop an entirely new game system only to be done after one print run?  Again, this is a Warhammer Quest game and it came with certain expectations, such as support from the parent company.  Expansions and you know - remaining in print long enough for people to buy it. 

The pre-order itself was sold out in around 2 hours, so what bean-counter at GW was responsible for the decision to halt reprint manufacturing ALTOGETHER?  Not a delay, simply no reprints.  Cursed City is gone forever.

Is GW's capital down?  Are there manufacturing issues?  They haven't said anything about it, so one is left to assume that this is all on purpose and GW will be catering to the FOMO market from here on out.  I don't blame them really.  

With 3d printing getting better and better, as a company they are going to have to start offering something other than hastily written and janky rules and overpriced plastic.  The answer, they seem to believe, is making the plastic even more limited.  Probably so they can all scalp on the secondary market.

The FOMO Market Creation was something I only thought existed when I spoke about GW's practices, but it appears that it is not only very real, but that's what all of these will be targeted at from now on.  It's official.  Games Workshop games are only for scalpers and collector fanboys only.

...but mostly scalpers.

Fanboys will gawk at limited edition releases more and more as GW attempts to regain relevance.  It's hard to watch, but instead of leading the pack of game companies as the renowned rules and model makers they were, GW has decided to become the ultra niche-market of the already niche-market.

I wasn't going to buy Cursed City anyway.

I hate anything Age of Sigmar related with an irrationality that could only be born of the oldest neckbeardia.  It's just not gonna happen.  Call me when the Old World drops.  Maybe.  Honestly we don't NEED GW anymore and other gamers are starting to figure that out, mostly due to their questionable practices and policies.  Plus there's just better stuff out there.

...but I'm gonna scalp the hell out of the next boxed set, baby.  Pre-order 10 of the next set and wait 3 weeks.  Then double the price and stick it on Ebay.  After 6 months and every 6 months thereafter, add the boxed set's price.  Once it's gone too big and you need to lose the stock, break the remaining ones open and sell the components at a huge markup.

You can't lose with that strategy now that GW is a non-trusted entity.  Invest!  Buy!  Sell!

Capitalism!