What Nationality Would You Like Next?

[RichardPF]

:angry: Nationality? Arrrggghhh! :angry:

[Rabbit]

A lot will depend upon where Ares wants to go with this game, whatever we want.

GW Used to produce a large number of board-games, some of which made it to the small screen.


Space Hulk at least Three expansions were done.
HeroQuest
Judge Dredd:
Apocalypse
Battlecars
Block Mania - 2000AD Judge Dredd setting
Blood Royale
Curse of the Mummy's Tomb
Kings and Things
Quirks
Railway Rivals
Warlock
The Warlock of Firetop Mountain
Dungeonquest
Fury of Dracula
Talisman
Warrior Knights
Blood Bowl
Advanced HeroQuest
Talisman and all the expansions etc. to name but a few

The problem for GW was / is keeping sales going, some games had several expansions, some were one-off games, with no follow up sales possible, which is why, apparently games like Space hulk and Talisman are now out of print and can reach stupid money on evilbay. Hence GW now go for battle games rather than RPGs; more figures; more sales; more ££££! Furthermore the ranges are updated; new monsters; new armies; new weapon systems, once they have you hooked….

Ares will have that problem; there are few gamers who will collect the fleets at Trafalgar, and most customers will have two or three ships per side. Most will get maybe two or three nations at most, from what I have seen of the play-tests on You - Tube more than three or four ships per side is going to get messy. Battleships drawn up in lines as per a conventional wargame is going to be a non-starter. From reading around the subject a little, it seems that ships WERE captured and put into service with a new nation. I cannot imagine that many who play the game will be unaware of this fact and the idea that the Soleil-Royale, the Constitution or the HMS Victory can be captured and re-flagged will not have escaped many. The fact that Ares say it is a French, American or British ship will not amount to a hill of beans if little Johnny and his mates want to re fight the USS Constitution vs HMS Guerriere, and Ares have only produced French and Brits.

:angry: Nationality? Arrrggghhh! :angry:

I agree make another flag for it and play on...

As with Wings where there are few of us who have 20 or 30 planes, we just don’t need more than 5 or 6 ships per side for a good quick enjoyable game. There may be some who will not want to use the ships for Sails, but will use other rule sets, as they do not want to go through the tedium of painting, building rigging loads of ships. This may be the best market for big sales for Ares.

If we want the Sails franchise to work, we must accept that Ares is in this for no other reason than to turn a shilling. Many years ago, I knew a rep from a shotgun maker, trying to break into the US market, he dreamt of 1-2% market share, I was surprised at this low level of penetration until he told me that that could be 20-30,000 guns! The bean counters at Ares will have break–even point, if they don’t think it will fly, it will not get launched.

I have no idea how many people have Wings games, I have less idea how many will buy Sails. At least the kick-starter project will have softened the development costs, but at the end of the day they need to make sales, selling to old (previous) customers is easier than breaking in a new batch.

Like some others here, I have little intention of getting Sails models, so I have no axe to grind, I suggest therefore, that Pirates & Merchants are high up on the list of new ideas. Especially if a New Pirates of the Caribee film is made!

New nations for the less imaginative folk (Ares say its British so it must be British! ) Spain, Holland, Russia & the Ottomans can follow later, they need to strike the imagination of the poor young kids that might blunder into the hands of GW. :angry::angry::angry:

Rant over

rabbit