I have always striven to publish long-form content on this blog so that the articles won’t go out of date before my single reader has a chance to look at them so the releases from Games Workshop rarely get any time given their blazingly fast turnaround (I’m struggling to think of a list of all miniature games they have released this year let alone plastic figures) however for the purposes of reviewing all miniature games publications I thought I would buy a copy of the long reviled Warhammer Visions for £7.50 ($12, €9) the 180 page monthly magazine from Games Workshop.
I would describe it best as a curated look at the best painted Games Workshop and Forgeworld miniatures either released that month or picked from reader submitted pictures, as there is minimal text in the magazine I will simple break down the pages devoted to each different format in the copy I picked up.
Games Workshop or Forgeworld releases this month or the store directory, 79 pages. This is the bugbear of most people who have have an issue with the magazine because all of this content is already being shown as advertisements by Games Workshop.
Readers armies, 70 pages. 90% of this is nicely painted or converted curated content. People might argue that this can be found online either by a Google image search or on Pintrest, however I would counter that the success rating of either of these mediums is significantly less than 90% and the nice photography, instant access and the accompanying explanatory text of a hard copy magazine makes this the preferred medium.
If you like this kind of material I would suggest Pintrest
Golden Demon showcase miniatures, 16 pages. Just because this section is curated from a professional painting competition it sadly doesn’t mean it’s all 100% great, some is truly exceptional but a quick search on Cool Mini Or Not could have produced a better selection.
If you like this try the Official website of Golden Demon here or the unofficial version here
Blanchitsu 4 pages. This is more reader content but labelled under Blanchitsu as it fits into his personal style.
If you liked this try the Iron Sleet.
Forgeworld diorama 8 pages. This is a quite spectacular diorama that you really only could see at a gaming event or a ForgeWorld open day, although it is all stock miniatures and gaming tables that are produced by Forgeworld and the quality of painting is mainly batch airbrushed so personally it’s not that inspiring.
If you like this try the actual Forgeworld website
Eavy Metal painted showpiece miniatures, 4 pages. A subdued effort by Games Workshops professional painting department, these models are showpiece style and very nice but take up the smallest total amount of space in the magazine.
Now as you can see most of this content can be picked up for free online, the quality of the paper and photography is great and I truly believe that miniature painting is one of the most undervalued of all the arts, however the execution of this magazine simply doesn’t justify its high price. If you can pick up a copy on eBay for half price or less you might find an interesting conversation starter for your coffee table, if you own a hobby shop you should open one up and chuck it on a gaming table to intice newbies into looking at what kind of things are possible in the hobby but otherwise I can’t imagine buying this again. It’s the magazine equivalent of fast food, nice but filled with empty calories.
This is for someone who:
- Wants to buy a magazine but doesn’t like reading
- Has the GW spending bug
- Wants content curated for them available in one place
This is not for someone who:
- Has a budget
- Wants a long and engaging experience
