NEW White Dwarf - Is it worth reading?
/Review – To much fanfare and hype Games Workshop has revamped White Dwarf to a new format, new staff and new content. The cover hints at going back to its roots a monthly magazine that provided new rules, hobby tips and inspirational articles. Is that truely the case or is this just a new look for the same crap? I'm going to review this on three key points the look, the content and the value.
The Look: I do have to say the new format is impressive looking nice heavy paper, with spot UV varnish and giant sized photographs of models in all their glory, oh and don't forget the gate folds it seems that someone in their art department has just realized you can add them to books because they're showing up everywhere. Just flipping through their are tons of photos and detail shots showing off each new model with a small blurb about them. Purely based on looks this is a four star publication (not quite five as some of the shots in the battle reports are grainy and blurry)
The Content: With the shiny new coat of paint what's under the hood? Well unfortunately not as much as you would think. At it's core White Dwarf is still a catalog showing off GW's various IPs. The first half of the book is all about new stuff you can buy. Completely focused on the new Chaos Marine stuff, the presentation is better and you get a bit more info about each release but after the third or fourth time reading "and with Finecast your get to see Jess Godwin's original in it's crisp glory" you realize there's a lot more words with very little content.
Once you get past the obvious advertisements there's the "editorial"sections with a battle report, opt-ed piece and some army showcases. Then there is a hobby section that shows you some kitbashed Ork Bombmas, a Realms of Battle Board with a cool theme that uses a dozen or so Bastions and other kits and a brief paint scheme guide.
One thing I'm happy to see is the addition of Forgeworld, Fantasy Flight and Black Library content. While yes these are essentially just more ads for upcoming product it's nice to see some hype building for these aspects of the brand. The Horus Heresy section is really great and I'd be lying if I wasn't looking forward to the releases and considering saving up (or taking out a second mortgage) to pick up the books and models.
If you're looking into picking up the new chaos book this month and starting a new army you can find some great deals here.