The last couple of weeks have been really busy and just plain wearing me out, so I've not accomplished much progress on gaming projects, but I have been enjoying the hobby in a little bit different way than usual.
When I got into the miniatures gaming hobby in the late 1970s/early 1980s, pretty much everyone involved was a do-it-yourself (DIY) gamer to some extent. Even though the 1980s were very much a transitional period for the hobby, with many new types of products coming onto the market, it was still really quite hard to find many of the products, and a huge proportion of gamers simply filled in the blanks, making whatever was missing for their games.
At that time, I happened into a great group of like-minded gamers, so the early 1980s was a fantastic time for me in the hobby. We had several members constantly contributing ideas, as well as everything from writing rules to scratch-building terrain or buildings, to experiments in casting some of our own miniatures.
For me, the most enjoyable element in the hobby was the creative part; the opportunity to design and build drove me deeper into the hobby.
As the 1980s progressed, the range of products rapidly grew, and the marketing approach evolved from largely cottage industry to the beginnings of the corporate marketing of instantaneous gratification by Games Workshop. Though I didn't see it at the time, my DIY hobby was already fading into the background.
Recently, I came into a large number of "Miniature Warfare" magazines. I had completely missed out on them previously in my hobby journey, not seeing my first miniatures magazine until 1988, and not even really being aware of Miniature Warfare until about a year and a half ago.
As I've been reading through these old magazines, dating back to 1969, I've entered into a stage of miniatures gaming that I missed completely, a world where the majority of the names are familiar to me now, but unfortunately were unknown to me in my first decade of gaming, and in many cases for far longer.
I received one of Featherstone's books in 1987, though as it was unrelated to my immediate gaming interests, I skimmed through it and didn't give it a much thought. I didn't really read any of his books until Covid was casting its shadow on us. Since them, I have become heavily interested in what many of those "forefathers" of gaming were doing back in the day, discovering that my contemporaries and I were largely reinventing what these gamers had already done years or even decades before.
Now, a big fan many of these "forefathers" and particularly of Lionel Tarr and Bish Iwaszco, I find myself exploring Miniature Warfare like I've found a portal to an ancient empire, totally captivated by this "early" world of DIY gamers that is so familiar and yet so distant.
Despite predating me, it is like going home again, reminding me of both a warmth from my early days in the hobby and instilling a longing for a time that I was never a part of. I contrast the time spanning that of the magazines through my first years in the hobby with more recent experiences, such as when a young gamer at a local shop, who on finding that I scratch-built almost all of my own terrain and even cast many of my own miniatures, seemed distraught or even irritated while asking me why I"...don't just buy everything I need and game right?"
The hobby has surely changed through the years, and I guess that I should appreciate that I have opportunity to embrace the best from both worlds. The internet fills a part of the void left by this evolution, allowing me to find and share the hobby with others who still embrace the DIY, but I do miss the immediate interaction of gaming with and working on projects with such gamers.
In any event, this nostalgic adventure has been tremendously enjoyable, and maybe has made me more aware of appreciating the most favorable aspects of the present; though, despite all that is available in the today, I still question whether I've maybe lost more than I've gained. In any event, I do miss the age of the DIY gamer.
Very interesting post. I reckon many of us from a certain generation were “DIY” out of necessity and ignorance. “Necessity” because dollars were few and “ignorance” because information was imperfect. I had no idea what others were doing. Those early years of discovery were an enjoyable journey, in itself. We grew with the hobby. That reward can be lost on younger generations.
ReplyDeleteHappy Times indeed. I've run a few games using Lionel Tarr rules, although we used old Airfix Panthers instead of his plaster cast versions! I still make or convert a lot of my own stuff, even when I don't need to, it is one of the things I enjoy about the hobby.
ReplyDeleteI often find myself flicking through a massive pile of old MW and WI issues from the 80s and 90s. No glossy ads or pages of photos. No commercial pushing of products. Lots of free rules and campaign ideas, loads of articles on uniforms, tactics, terrain modelling etc. Happy Days.
ReplyDeleteI spend far more time making scenery and painting stuff than I do actually playing. I still remember the fun I had running games for my Scout Troop, going out to the local DIY shop with them to buy all the supplies for making a load of scenery for our games day.
ReplyDeleteI started in the mid-70s and it was very DYI back then. We used the rules from the old Avalon Hill Midway game and built our own warships out of balsa wood to have epic naval battles. I even tried my hand making microarmor. Anyone remember Wargamers Digest magazine?
ReplyDeleteI wish I hadn’t given my many years of Wargamers Digest away! Jeepers what Memories you just invoked. Still have Panzerfaust, from Guidon Games
DeleteA great post of what is lost when a hobby grows enough to become an industry (even if quite small).
ReplyDeleteHow much time do we spend on terrain now that we have some many options compared to the 80s & 90s.
Being in Australia what was available before the internet was very limited. A small fraction of what could be purchased in the UK or US. Now everything is available and the choices are not dictated by what you can buy but by your wallet and time. 😊
I wonder what the hobby will look like in 30-40 years.
The good old days... sort of. For me, this is the best of times because I meld the DIY aspect of the hobby, channeling my obsessive need to do mecha my way, with the proliferation of new toys and technology.
ReplyDeleteBut, as you suggest, the commercialization by GW is not easily ignored.