Miniatures and the Game Industry

In my college days, the centerpiece activities of my game club's members were usually (1) massive, campaign-scale, 6-12 player wargames (World in Flames, Empires in Arms, Imperial Starfire) or (2) homebrew RPG campaigns. We did a few odds and ends with board and card games, but that was just filler. The priority was always on providing large-group social activities. This makes a certain amount of sense, since this is the one dynamic that computer games couldn't match. Of course, that was two decades ago, and now MMOs are stealing that portion of the market too.

What's left? Miniatures. I think they've survived for a few reasons. First, they can't be replaced by a computer, since so much of their appeal is based on tangibility. A computer rendering of a battlemech still can't quite eclipse the satisfaction that comes from actually moving a little model of your Atlas around a hex map. But more importantly, I think, it's the only remaining profit margin in the industry. Everything else has been replaced by pdfs, and in a world of bit-torrent pirates, pdfs are probably stolen instead of purchased, nine times out of ten. Minis can't be downloaded, so they're safe.

Recently I found this breakdown of sales components from a Friendly Local Game Shop owner. It's eye-opening. Miniatures (and accessories to customize them) make up something like 70 percent of all profits. RPGs are maybe another 25%, and everything else (card and board games) is just slivers. This is probably because collectibles are considerably more likely than other products to turn customers into "whales" who provide a reliable income stream, allowing stores (or publishers, or designers) to weather economic downturns. Other games are too faddish and cyclical, or involve making initial investments that don't prompt any need for further purchases.

In some sense all those games I played back in college were "too good", providing so much replay value for their price point that they could be played for years without needing to spend another dime. An RPG system, or a six-month-long wargame, will keep a creative group of players busy for a decade and free up their disposable income for other uses. That's great for players, but terrible for business.