Is the Games Workshop Pay Wall Coming?

Before I get into this article, I want to state up front that I am super excited to see unofficial Warhammer digital content creators getting the recognition they deserve and Games Workshop working with them to bring more projects to life! It was a great announcement earlier this week to see and Games Workshop learning from past legal mistakes and embracing the use of their IP by others. Now with that said, lets talk about something that was buried deep inside the announcement and trailer for The Exodite.

Games Workshop teased it and in the most GW possible way with the following…

Now, there’s one last question that we’re sure you’re dying to have answered: “How will I be able to watch all of these great shows, and when will they be released?” We’ll have more news on all of that really soon. For now, you’ll want to make sure you have a My Warhammer account set up and ready to go.

Well so what does this exactly mean?

First off, if you go and check the YouTube channels for any of the aforementioned digital animation content creators you might notice they have taken down all Warhammer 40k related content. In fact, Games Workshop has already made a little page on Warhammer Community for the Astartes short. So whatever agreements made with Games Workshop required them to remove their content. Then we have Games Workshop unifying of My Warhammer account across all their various retail and community channels. 

I think it is safe to say Games Workshop is prepping us for something big, it would also explain why we have not really seen much more about the other animation projects announced over the last couple years. Projects like the Angels of Death whos trailer and antiquated animation wasn’t well received, giving folks Ultramarines movie PTSD. In fact, you might have forgotten Angels of Death was supposed to be released back in 2019! Maybe Games Workshop learned another lesson, don’t pay shitty animation studios to do work, instead invest in people who have a real Warhammer passion and proven track records.

If we ever see Angels of Death or any of the very cool traditional animation projects, depends entirely on what Games Workshop has up their sleeves. My guess is we are in for paywall Games Workshop, they ain’t going to make all these things for free, they have seen subscription models like Disney+ and DC Universe Infinite, and asked themselves why not us? Sure those are larger companies and properties than Games Workshop, but the content subscription model is simple, clear cut, and done across almost every sector from computer software to education for years. 

This makes Games Workshops latest actions all about content collection; it is also very possible Angels of Death is complete, but no one was going to pay $9.99 a month for one thing. Games Workshop doesn’t have a volume of content to throw up like DC or Disney instantly. Though I would say Games Workshop would be wise if and when they bring us Warhammer+ that they include everything! Like the 40k and Sigmar digital apps, Black Library digital access, and dare I say maybe a return of digital codexes. If they did that, they would have enough content for anyone to feel good about paying another monthly subscription. I know I would if I had access to the entire Warhammer catalog of products. 

The problem is Games Workshop is a still a few things; they act like a mom & pop shop, they are cheap, and litigious. This means that the chances are very high they will screw this up at least on the first go. It doesn’t mean they won’t get it right eventually, but at first expect the worse. It will then be our job as the community to let them know what is wrong; because buying plastic crack, and paying a monthly subscription are two very different things, and people value each differently, something I think Games Workshop might already be learning with the horrific launch of 40k App.

So I guess the only question to ask yourself is, how much would you pay Games Workshop monthly for their content?