Review of WH+ It's current state and it's potential

[archmagos]

The Battle Reports have been the biggest unexpected highlight for me so far. I’ve tried to sit through countless other BRs on YouTube before but always found them tedious for one reason or another. These are the only ones of watched which have managed to hold my attention. 1hr is a palatable amount of time, the editing is really tight and the presentation is excellent. Additional bonus was the 1k game - it’s a fantastic format which doesn’t get enough airtime. Big win for me.

[Grotsmasha]

The Battle Reports have been the biggest unexpected highlight for me so far. I’ve tried to sit through countless other BRs on YouTube before but always found them tedious for one reason or another. These are the only ones of watched which have managed to hold my attention. 1hr is a palatable amount of time, the editing is really tight and the presentation is excellent. Additional bonus was the 1k game - it’s a fantastic format which doesn’t get enough airtime. Big win for me.

 

I have to agree with this, for the most part whenever I try to watch a battle report, it invariably fails to hold my attention, but the Warhammer TV ones have held my attention for the full time, they are quite well done.

[AenarIT]

Imho battle reports make sense if:

- watched at full lenght, seeing every dice roll, hearing about every rule and ability applied, etc. All in order to familiarize with the rules and see how the game works, both at core and codex level. This is even more valid for beginners;

- watched with a specific goal in mind, like seeing how a certain list or a certain “trick” works (eg: Art of War competitive 40K streams);

- watched in a really shortened version (or even better in written form) in order to quickly absorb information regarding matchup, lists and terrain.

 

“Narrative” battle reports are incredibly boring to me, no matter the duration nor how well painted the armies or the terrain are. Campaigns, crusade games, narrative games and so on are not my thing: I’d much rather prefer playing a game than to watch someone else doing it :)

 

As for “informative” battle reports, I’d rather get some info from an independent source.

Just like I’d never dream of listening to the official radio of my football team for my daily fix of news, commentary, criticism and drama, I’d never consider any data or commentary regarding the state and the balance of the game coming out of the company itself.

The comparison of last week’s official metawatch and the unofficial Goonhammer articles is shocking.

 

Yet “informative” battle reports, even from independent sources, can still be completely useless.

Most of them are over-engineered to be a fun and close games to watch: if the matchup is meant to be a stomp, let me see a stomp, don’t build nonsense lists that nobody would ever use in a real matched play game or a tournament.

[Lexington]

I’m…really trying with Angels of Death. There’s a lot to like, y’know? Cool designs all over. The animation’s got an interesting hand-cam style that brings home the realism. Voice acting isn’t bad, for the most part.

 

It just feels so unfocused. To some extent, it’s working overtime to try and be an intro to 40K (which makes me think it wasn’t always meant for W+), and it causes a lot of “as you know, Bob” syndrome, but even apart from that, the characters just act like dinks, and the plot is unfolding at a glacial pace for seemingly no real reason. The initial trailer’s still one of my favorite 40K things, so it’s been a real disappointment.

 

Still, the other stuff is nice. Liked Old Bale Eye way more than predicted, and the hobby/batrep stuff is also solid. Looking forward to the library expanding The app…might get reasonably usable someday, who knows. In any case, they’ll keep pulling $6/mo. out from my bank account for at least another couple of months.

[Cap'm Heckus]

Little annoyed that one of the 3 “new” items listed today was last weeks orks/blood angels batrep. Feels like a clumsy attempt to make it look like more is there.

[archmagos]

I’m finding myself humbled by W+. Was extremely cynical from the outset and expected it to fail, but am really enjoying the content so far and finding myself looking forward to each Wednesday release. Loremasters was an excellent addition. Excited to see what’s coming next week.

[Felix Antipodes]

Having sat back and let the dust settle, and having now made my way through everything on offer so far, I’m happy I decided to subscribe.  

 

The Vault was my main reason to join and it has been good so far.  The image quality is excellent and the range adequate.  It will need to expand significantly in the future to achieve its full potential, but I’ve heard they have a team digitalising their older, pre-digital age stuff, so that appears to be in hand.  I’d love for the old FFG RPG books to end up here as well but understand the reasons why that wouldn’t happen.  One can dream though.

 

The first episode of Loremaster was great as well.  Well researched and put together.  If it maintains this quality it will be a must watch.  I wonder if Wade’s podcasts will end up here sometime in the future?

 

While GW used the animations as the major lure for W+ I can’t say I’ve been overwhelmed so far.  Angels of Death is okay visually but a bit weaker storywise.  The three episodes of Hammer & Bolter the reverse, better stories but in an animation style not to my taste.  As others have pointed out, Old Bale Eye seemed the weaker of the three but was probably deemed more kid friendly.

[ThePenitentOne]

Loremasters: I was so happy to see Wade back in top form. I missed his crisp annunciation, and I think it is really well suited to the show. I also thought the detail was solid, though for avid BL readers, they may know a lot of this stuff already.

 

Angels of Death: Damn, that techmarine in episode 3 eh? Dude knows how to use an axe and servo arm, that's for sure. The GSC is one of my two favourite armies in the game, so I hope that rabbit hole goes deep, even if the lens through which we view it is marines.

 

Batrep: Loved both so far, but looking forward to a battle that isn't marines. I understand that they are a HUGE part of the fan base, and obviously GW had to lead with them. But we are getting to the place where I need some Sisters and Admech filling the Imperial role. I suspect we're most likely to see only factions which have 9th ed dexes. I agree about how nice it was to see a 1k game. I'd like to see an Open Play game. I eventually want to see Crusade too, but I really want them to get that right, so maybe not hit it til next month. The key to Crusade is that in order to do it right, it has to be a series. So you're better off to get lots of stand-alone batreps up so that all factions are represented before you start a Crusade batrep series. Of the many batreps that go up in a month, probably only one should be a part of the Crusade series.

 

Hammer and Bolter: I've liked all three, and I LOVED Death's Hand. I was disappointed that they aren't adding one every week, because I know this is going to run into the same trouble I have with White Dwarf: I'm not as interested in AoS as I am 40k, and H&B has no choice but to do both. Having said that, I will totally watch AoS episodes- I have three pet rats, and I can't wait for a Skaven episode. I'd love to see some Daemons or some Hedonites.

 

Masterclass: This is the only thing I haven't watched so far. I might check them out tonight- if not, next week for sure. I have some personal projects that don't involve hobby that I need to get out of the way, but I anticipate doing some model assembly and painting next week. I hear there's a black power armour tutorial, and Deathwatch are on the painting table, so the timing is good. Knowing what a slow and weak painter I am, I've been biding my time.

 

General: One of the things I hate about subscription services is that you never actually own anything. Your favourite video could disappear whenever the powers that be decide they no longer need to host it. I have software that allows me to capture and store video from the Internet, and I almost used it on Death's Hand. I didn't- I feel like GW needs to establish a back catalogue to make the service valuable, so everything that goes up should theoretically stay there for quite a while. If I ever do capture stuff, I'm not the kind of guy who'd share it. But as far as I'm concerned, I'm paying for it, and that makes me feel morally justified in wanting to preserve it. 

[Cap'm Heckus]

I enjoyed the (one and only) loremasters and both batreps. They were very well put together (nicely paced and edited), but would it have hurt them to produce more of this ahead of time and have it available at start?

 

We pay slightly less than we would for a Disney+, Hulu, or other similar service but there’s hundreds of shows available many of them hours long. You could sign up and watch for months and still find new stuff.

 

I watched all of the W+ content in a work day including the three hype trailers for various games. And next week I’ll get maybe an hour of content. The trickle is kind of disappointing. And sadly, they’re hurting themselves because they’re gonna get review-bombed for lack of content and then GW will drop it faster than a specialist game. OR lumped in with HBOmax like the DC streaming did (and DC had YEARS of content under their belts).

 

I like what I’ve watched so far there’s just not much there.

[Red_Shift]

I love that the battle report with the orks uses Louise's actual orks - really nice and characterful conversions. Will be great to see more of the studio staff's own armies over time

I would love to see Matt Hudson’s Imperial Fists army in a battle report. I agree the Orks were really great.

 

I'm enjoying Warhammer+ so far. Not blown away but it’s quite entertaining and not too bad a deal. 

 

Would be nice if as one of their subscriber offers they made it possible to order the “not Dillon from predator” catachan model.

 

[Marshal Reinhard]

angels of death continues to be a win. It's like i've installed a high res and frame rate mod for my Richard Boylan flick.

[Redcomet]

I enjoyed the (one and only) loremasters and both batreps. They were very well put together (nicely paced and edited), but would it have hurt them to produce more of this ahead of time and have it available at start?

 

We pay slightly less than we would for a Disney+, Hulu, or other similar service but there’s hundreds of shows available many of them hours long. You could sign up and watch for months and still find new stuff.

 

I watched all of the W+ content in a work day including the three hype trailers for various games. And next week I’ll get maybe an hour of content. The trickle is kind of disappointing. And sadly, they’re hurting themselves because they’re gonna get review-bombed for lack of content and then GW will drop it faster than a specialist game. OR lumped in with HBOmax like the DC streaming did (and DC had YEARS of content under their belts).

 

I like what I’ve watched so far there’s just not much there.

Honestly if people expected more content then this, or anywhere near the other streaming services, it is completely on them and not on GW.

[Noserenda]

The trickle of content coming out right now does make me glad i didnt go for the annual plan though, ill probably cancel after the voucher and let it build up again. I can understand animation taking time (Though it felt like more than one a week was likely given how many were announced) but surely you can crank out the battlereports/masterclass/loremasters* on a weekly basis? 

Expecting something like netflix is unreasonable sure, but id rather not be able to be done with Warhammer tv for a week in one lunch break.

*Loremasters is i think reasonably going to be a bit slowed down by Wade having his lungs crap out. 

 

[StraightSilver]

I pointed this out on another forum, and apologies if it's also been pointed out here, but it's disingenuous (in my opinion) to say that Warhammer+ is the same price as Netflix.

Netflix in UK £5.99 a month (or £13.99 if you go premium).

 

Warhammer+ is £5.99 a month or (£59.99 per annum). However, if you include the mini, worth £20, and the £10 voucher with an annual subscription it actually works out as £19.99 per annum.

This is £1.67 per month as long as you stay for a year.

I was already an app subscriber so Warhammer+ actually saves me 32p a month.

Obviously Netflix has a huge amount more streaming content, but tbh I either have no interest in or have seen about 90% of it.

I would say I maybe watch a maximum of 5 hours a week watching Netflix, but some weeks it might only be an hour.

So far the weekly content for Warhammer+ is variable, but around an hour a week most weeks.

Obviously my evidence is very anecdotal, but for me Warhammer+ is hugely better value for money than Netflix.

Edited September 13, 2021 by StraightSilver

[RWJP]

I pointed this out on another forum, and apologies if it's also been pointed out here, but it's disingenuous (in my opinion) to say that Warhammer+ is the same price as Netflix.

 

Netflix in UK £5.99 a month (or £13.99 if you go premium).

 

Warhammer+ is £5.99 a month or (£59.99 per annum). However, if you include the mini, worth £20, and the £10 voucher with an annual subscription it actually works out as £19.99 per annum.

 

This is £1.67 per month as long as you stay for a year.

 

I was already an app subscriber so Warhammer+ actually saves me 32p a month.

 

Obviously Netflix has a huge amount more streaming content, but tbh I either have no interest in or have seen about 90% of it.

 

I would say I maybe watch a maximum of 5 hours a week watching Netflix, but some weeks it might only be an hour.

 

So far the weekly content for Warhammer+ is variable, but around an hour a week most weeks.

 

Obviously my evidence is very anecdotal, but for me Warhammer+ is hugely better value for money than Netflix.

Worth pointing out that Warhammer+ is actually £4.99 per month, or £49.99 for the year if paid in one go. GW also estimated that the mini would be worth £25 rather than £20.

 

As such, that makes those savings even better.

 

Personally, I paid for the year, so subtracting the Mini at £25 and £10 voucher I am effectively paying £14.99, or the equivalent of £1.25 a month, for the 40k app for a year and all the Warhammer+ Content. To me, £1.25 a month for app access plus what's been released so far for Warhammer+ is pretty acceptable.

 

Of course, GW have also said there will be other subscriber offers as well with Warhammer+ so if they offer further vouchers, discounts (we can dream) that value proposition only gets better.

[StraightSilver]

Oops, I actually thought I had paid more....  Even better then.

[Medjugorje]

watched the Abby lore episode. Hmmm. Just rare basics. Some things were missed like the duel of Abby vs Sigismund. I mean thats important when the main setting (the long war) is declared by the death of the emperors champion. The former best swordsmen. And then most of the achievements werde made by Abby ( Dorn is missed since that ) but that very unspectecular Vigilus (were nothing is happened) was noted.

 

I really expected a huge episode where we can get insides and maybe things were the community is not aware of... or is devided into more groups where GW can clear a bit. But that was just average like each other YT channel already have.

[MegaVolt87]

Been tossing up a WD sub, but even though its more than W+ I will still have the mags if I cancel I guess. Maybe if the vault gets more content, I don't know why it didn't have at least the last 5 years worth of WD's at a minimum at launch. I would definitely sell the mini though, I don't like them honestly. Any news on more vault content?

[Cerberus1775]

I am in a minority here it seems re: Loremasters.  I was severely disappointed in the content.  Luten09 and Oculus Imperia just trump the first episode with their "went on a tangent" episodes.  Dont even put Loremasters up against the deep dive and narrative "serious" content they put out.    

 

GW is always eager to remind everyone the IP belongs to them.  They are 100% right when they say that.  No argument from me at all.  But if you are going to take a hardline, almost using another additive there, line; then your lore show better stand out from day one.   It didnt.  It was reading from Lexicanium more or less to me.  I am also on the record in liking Wades voice.

 

Still happy with the value and dearly am enamored with Hammer and Bolter stories, have enjoyed the battle reports, the Master classes have been like sitting with my late friend and talking painting again.   My wife is enamored with "Angels of Death" and has been heard to say "Wow!" at least once an episode.  More the universe/story, but she is starting to get into it.

[theSpirea]

Decided to catch up on WH+ over the weekend with my girlfriend and thought I would share our thoughts. I have originally posted Loremaster review in a different section, didn't know a general thread for WH+ reviews existed (I don't really venture outside of + THE BLACK LIBRARY + subforum).

 

Loremaster

I always enjoyed Wade's Vox when he did interview with BL writers, you can see he genuinely loves the universe and it's always a pleasure to hear him talk about it. I had high expectations for this series when they originally announced it.

 

I'm not really sure who's the target audience. For newbies this is a really weird choice to start with Abaddon. My gf knows only basics about the universe (read around 10 books so far, all set in 40K, and watched a few lore videos on YT) and it was too fast for her, she was getting lost in the amount of information and has no desire to watch another episode. Her reaction was "why talk about Horus's son, Abaddon, I've never even heard of him, why not Horus at least?" She would appreciate a brief summary/history of the universe, main conflicts, introduce main factions, etc

 

At the same time, it doesn't provide any new info for people well versed in the WH lore. It's an odd choice; confusing newbies, not offering anything new to "veterans". I will check the next one or two episodes to see if it's going to improve but so far this is a pass for me/us. The already existing YT channels provide way better content. If they at least provided "recommended reading material". This was a solid marketing opportunity to advertise BL books...

 

Angels of Death

I applaud the visual style they decided to go with but the overall visual quality is poor. My gf compared the face animations to The Sims 4 and I agree. The sound quality is even worse, especially the sound effects. At least the writing is decent but that alone is not enough for us to continue watching it.

 

Hammer and Bolter

We both enjoyed the first three episodes, especially Bound for Greatness, it has that John French's vibe. Excited for future episodes.

 

Rest

I don't play TT and in the past 10 years I have painted three Stormcasts figures so can't comment on the remaining content.

 

 

Overall impression

I had no expectations and yet I'm still disappointed. The service is provided across various apps, rather than offering it all under one. This is already a huge fail. It shows GW's technical incapability as they have  demonstrated many times already with their buggy apps. The pdf viewer is an absolute joke. The content quality, of what I have watched, is mediocre. AoS is completely ignored (I don't count years old battle campaigns and such as content, those books goes often for $1 and I see them all the time in used books stores, book barns etc. It's advertised as Warhammer Plus, not 40K Plus.

 

The main issue I see with Plus is this is a replacement of all the amazing fan made content we got in the past, this content is now banned and no longer produced. I understand those interested in TT/painting will get more out of the service, that's why I'm not commenting on the price.

[SkimaskMohawk]

So why is the log in info wiped every week and we get to sign in and enable biometrics every time? Other apps don't erase all information when they unlock more content or update.

 

I also thought we'd be getting more hammer and Bolter. It's been 5 weeks and the only television that's been released on a schedule is Angels of death. One show doesn't require your own streaming service.

 

Also I have to chime in about the services. I thought the vault was part of the plus app, but it's not, it's a seperate website you have to log into. The 40k app is seperate, the AOS app is seperate. Is there another app/service you get with +? I honestly can't remember and it makes it hard to appreciate the value when it so spread out and out of sight.

Edited September 23, 2021 by SkimaskMohawk

[Orange Knight]

We're now almost a month into the service. I stand by my original opinion, especially as the price is so low when you factor in the model, but I will admit the roll-out of new content is slower than I would have preferred.

 

I think I'll check in to the service every other week going forward, so I can sit down for a better length of time to enjoy the content.

[AenarIT]

Having already two Vindicares, I am not interested in the current model.

I did not subscribe to WH+ also because I was under the impression that there’d be not enough content to justify the price, once you factor out the Vindicare. I know you can sell it and make some mony back but it’s still a year down the line and it’s not certain how much you can sell it for.

 

I was hoping to be proved wrong but it doesn’t seem the case so far.

Maybe it will become a worthwhile subscription a few months down the line, once they add (way) more content.

[Domhnall]

Having already two Vindicares, I am not interested in the current model.

I did not subscribe to WH+ also because I was under the impression that there’d be not enough content to justify the price, once you factor out the Vindicare. I know you can sell it and make some mony back but it’s still a year down the line and it’s not certain how much you can sell it for.

 

I was hoping to be proved wrong but it doesn’t seem the case so far.

Maybe it will become a worthwhile subscription a few months down the line, once they add (way) more content.

 

Fair point. I think if you remove the additional incentives like the model, then the price is ok(ish). If you like lots of reading, it's great (all the back catalogue they've got just now), if you're only interesting in viewing things, then it's a bit lacking. 

I'd say if you're only interested in the animations and general videos etc, based on current release schedule, it'll probably not be until sometime next year it'll become a worthwhile subscription.

 

 

Value for money is an entirely personal choice, some will find it acceptable, others not. As long as you've looked at what's available and decided it's not worth it, then it's all good 

 

 

On a different topic, I also not keen on the argument folk are using comparing it to netflix/disney+ etc. Mainly because they are competing in different fields. I understand the arguement, and as a direct comparison WH+ is mince compared to them regarding price. I agree in that regard. But it's only a reasonable excuse if you watch what they have, and all you're getting out of it is shows.

In my personal experience, Disney+ has shed tons of content, and I've had it pretty much since it was available, but I've only watched the Marvel shows such as Wandavision, Falcon & WS, etc. So I'm paying about the same, for about the same content. I'm the perfect customer: Give me something shiny, and I'll throw my hard earned pennies at you 

 

And if anybody even dares to argue this point, I'll bore you with a massive false equivalence argument, throw in a sprinkling of strawmen, and end with a catastrophizing cherry on top. You have been warned  

Edited September 24, 2021 by Domhnall

[Noserenda]

Im certainly not happy with the release schedule at the mo, though i think thats largely their own fault when announcing so many shows, i didnt realise that was the next decade of content ;)