The Internet Got Out, and It's Ruining the Hobby Again

Hey folks, SinSynn here.

As far as I'm concerned, the Internet is an integral part of my whole hobby

I get a kick outta the seemingly incessant 40k Sixth Edition rumors. I do. I won't deny it.
Shush...don't you judge me...

The release of Dust Warfare had me watching 'unboxing' videos on YouTube, and I was all up in Fantasy Flight's website like a Xeno STD.

Blood, Guts and Glory, the new Flames of War book, bought with it a new American Tank Destroyer list. Over on the FoW forums, admins are locking down a 25-plus page thread, since that list clearly heralds the end of life as we know it, and it's ruining the game.

Corvus Belli, makers of Infinity, seems to have slipped a new rule in with their monthly releases, causing some consternation amongst their fanbase, as well.
 ..it's all so deliciously amusing to me.

And vitally important, too. I build all my army lists on the Internet now. All of them.
Then there's my stalking obligations, of course...

*Megan pic for the Blogrolls today! :D*

The Internet taught me how to paint my lil' dudes, their transports and tanks. While the paint was drying, I took in some strategy and tactics posts, and learned to maybe play not-so-bad. I'm not the sharpest knife in the drawer when it comes to that kinda thing, so any help is appreciated.

The Internet's influence on my hobby is plain to see, as well. It gave us the 'netlist,' and a buncha other neat hobby terms, like 'WAAC.' While the merits of these things are debatable (we could always discuss the 'meta'), one cannot deny that they've given us oh-so-much to chat about.

I can't really say I'm surprised. After all, in this day and age, the Internet is simply a part of life. We carry it around on our phones now. You can sit in a coffee shop with a tablet or laptop and enjoy free broadband. The Internet is how business gets done, for every business in the modern world.

Our hobby, however, seems to be home to a large percentage of 'Internet Deniers.' These are the people who show up in the comments section and snap off a tired old line that always goes something like this:
'The vast majority of hobbyists pay no attention to the Internet, or to the small, vocal minority that comes here to complain. These people are ruining the hobby. Fortunately, the companies that make our games don't cater to this nonsense.'
The wording varies, but the gist of the statement is always the same- despite the untold numbers of hobby related websites, blogs, forums, etc, only a bare handful of people are involved. Yet somehow, these people are responsible for affecting the hobby in a negative way, overall. Also, pay no attention to the multitude of gaming companies with a large, active presence on the web. It's a ruse.

*Go back to that other website*

I've read some variation of this statement so many times, in so many paces, that it's lost it's ironic stupidity and is no longer funny. It's just...sad, now.
Most of the time, it's Games Workshop that people have in mind when they bandy that old sentiment about, but I've seen it in the official Flames of War forums as well, which kinda borders on bizarre.
Battlefront could be running their extensive forum as an elaborate hoax, I guess...and gaming companies in general could be relying on the absolutely zero feedback, suggestions, praise and criticisms they get from everyone that's not on their forums, right?

As far as GW is concerned, hobbyists have been fixing their stuff for ages. From humble home-brew scenarios back in the day, right on up to the INAT FAQ and the increasingly popular Nova tournament system, the Internet has enabled GW gamers to make of their games what we want, despite the baffling wall of silence the company has seemingly erected.
And somehow, I'm not convinced GW doesn't hear a little of what goes on out here, and that they don't have an Internet connection somewhere in their offices.

*Petty sure this is their browser logo*

Companies like Privateer Press, Battlefront, Corvus Belli and a host of others are using the internet to nurture a loyal fanbase. That fanbase is made of customers. Seems like a decent strategy.

Outside of the official domains, there's a slew of sites that basically provide free advertising for these games. Companies producing a quality product will receive positive press, compliments of the house. Since game companies are sending free stuffs to the bigger websites for reveals and reviews, it's pretty obvious to see that they're hip to the whole Internet thing, I think.


It's a simple equation. For example, since I'm someone who:
A) plays Flames of War
B) attends tournaments and events
C) comments on forums and blogs


That means that I:
A) have an active interest in the brand
B) already own a bunch of FoW product
C) will probably purchase more

Now, how is Battlefront going to let me know of upcoming releases, new products and the like?
How about:
A) a gigantic website
B) social media, like Facebook a YouTube channel, etc 
C) weekly e-mail subscription

Battlefront won't be advertising on the TV or radio. They won't be putting up billboards on the side of the highway. They won't have biplanes pulling a banner over the beach in summer.
They'll use the Internet.

*You don't even hafta be Einstein to figure this one out*

Right now, there's a 25-plus page thread on their forums, filled with complaints about the new American TD list. Guess what? Battlefront will absolutely be addressing the issues that arose in that discussion, since the consensus is that there are some  problems with the rules as-is.
Every comment in that thread was left by a paying customer. A smart company caters to their customers.They won't become successful by ignoring them, after all.

Somewhere in the middle of that thread, an Internet Denier shows up and spouts the usual line. Fortunately, an Admin was around to remind him of where he was.
;)


Until next time, folks- Exit with catchphrase!

-SinSynn