What is the difference between the Vallejo Model Color line and Game Color line of paints?

[Helias_Tancred]

Subject says it all. Thanks. 

 

 

[andes]

Game Color tends to have more saturated colors, targeted to fantasy models. Model Color less so, more targeted at historicals. I've found both to be useful and nice to work with.

[Bryan Blaire]

Vallejo Game Color and the Heavy Game Color were also supposed to be close analogues to the old GW paint range, so had similar names.  Dead White = Skull White, Bloody Red = Blood Red, Gory Red = Red Gore, Scrofulous Brown = Leprous Brown, Chain Mail = Chainmail, Tinny Tin = Tin Bitz, etc.  Not sure if it’s still that way after they went to a new packaging, I believe that’s supposed to be a slightly new formulation, so the colors may have changed a little bit.

Edited September 7, 2023 by Bryan Blaire

[nilsh]

38 minutes ago, Bryan Blaire said:

I believe that’s supposed to be a slightly new formulation, so the colors may have changed a little bit.

 

Yeah the new formula is a big improvement over the old in my opinion, no idea how they match GW's paint range though as I hardly use them.

[andes]

I've switched over to AK almost exclusively but still have a few VGC paints in regular use... Hexed Lichen (which is a great basecolor for ork and goblin mouths), and a couple of their browns that I use for basing.

[nilsh]

4 minutes ago, andes said:

I've switched over to AK almost exclusively

 

I've only tried a couple of their Gen 3 range but they have been great and I've heard a lot of praise for them in both the gaming groups as well as in the bust/figure painting groups.

[Lord Marshal]

Can also echo that Gen 3 are pretty good.

Edited September 7, 2023 by Lord Marshal

[Firedrake Cordova]

The old Vallejo Game Colour line was developed as an analogue to the GW line of the time and is aimed at fantasy modellers - that means saturated colours and a satin finish.

 

The Model Colour (and Panzer Aces) line is aimed at historical modellers, so the colours are "more natural". The paints have a matte finish, and are less resistant to handling.

 

The Game Colour line was re-formulated this year, with some colours being added/removed, and the paint having a more matte finish in line with Model Colour (whilst retaining the handling resistance), and better coverage. The new Game Colour line can be identified by having clear bottles (instead of frosted), with tamper-evident seals.

Edited September 8, 2023 by Firedrake Cordova

[Helias_Tancred]

Ak? New company? ... I thought the big craze was Scale 75?

 

 

[andes]

AK have been around for a long while though definitely seem to be gaining popularity lately. Several popular painters are now using them in videos, etc. From a color range standpoint they're a Vallejo Model Color copycat in a lot of ways, but I find the paints texture to be more consistently pleasant to work with than Vallejo. I've found some Vallejo colors to be really very thick, while others are rather thin. AK are creamy without being overly viscous.

 

I know a lot of display and competitive painters like Scale 75 because they dry very matte, allowing the artist to position their highlights precisely via paint color without having to worry about actual-light reflections. I gave them a try, but don't like them because of how flat they are; I found that some colors were actually almost chalky when dry. I also didn't like the paint medium... some colors were almost gel-like and really hard to properly mix. Oh yeah, they also clog like a sob.

 

Of course this is all personal taste. Every paint range has fans... What really matters is finding paint that you enjoy using, whether within or across ranges.

Edited September 8, 2023 by andes

[Helias_Tancred]

I've been happy with a paint collection comprising GW, Vallejo, and Army Painter, with the majority being GW. 

 

 

[Bryan Blaire]

If you haven’t given ProAcryl/Momument Hobbies a go, and can get them reasonably, I recommend giving some of their line a shot as well.  They aren’t going to color match anything directly that I’ve noted, but they are fairly similar in some colors to the AK Interactive 3rd Gen line (AK Matt Red is very slightly darker than ProAcryl Bold Pyrrole Red is the one I have at the front of my mind).

Edited September 8, 2023 by Bryan Blaire

[Evil Eye]

I'd also like to throw my hat in the ring and recommend Warcolors. I've only bought a few of their paints (specifically 4 of the Nostalgia 88 range- Go Fasta Red, Electric Blue, Titillating Pink and Bilious Green) but they're very pleasant to work with. With the exception of Electric Blue (which isn't bad but is a bit translucent) they all have very good coverage, and the consistency is very good. Also Bilious Green and Titillating Pink are fluorescent but behave far nicer than the average fluorescent paint!