AMG announced that they have no current Armada products in development. This has caused a bit of frustration among the community. I think some of it is justified I myself am a bit disappointed I was expecting a break from releases, but I was hoping for at least one more wave of clone wars content before that happened. Many have likened this announcement to Imperial Assault’s however there are multiple reasons why I think this comparison is misguided. I understand that emotions are high right now and I am sure that some will give me backlash for my comments in this AMM, and others may simply read the title and comment without reading this at all. However, I think it’s important for me to say the sky is not falling.
First, it is no secret that AMG is a bit understaffed to work on 4 games. They are a very small company and yes they did let go or have individuals walk away from the company that were sent over to finish pushing out the products FFG had announced. Now that that has been done AMG needs to build a structure that can support the 4 games they are currently producing that will take time. As much as it pains me to say it Armada is probably the best choice to put on pause the game is in a good spot, and its community has demonstrated that it can endure periods with little content in the past.
Second, we are still in a pandemic, and world production and shipping are all sorts of messed up right now. In the current global situation, it makes sense to not develop new products if your current product is selling well and you are having issues keeping it in stock. AMG and just Asmodee, in general, need to build up strong framework to support these games, and the transfer has not been the best, however a lot of that I believe has to do with everything currently going on in the world.
Third, AMG put up an Armada rules forum and higher a subcontractor to help moderate it. That would seem like a complete waste of time and money if they were just going to let the game fizzle out and die. While the pause is for sure a business decision it is not one saying the game is no longer supported, in fact to the contrary they specifically said they wanted to support Armada through organized play despite this pause. The rules forum seems to be an indication that while armada is on pause it has a future.
Forth, unlike Imperial Assault Armada does not have another Star Wars game stepping on its toes. Legion is what really did in Imperial Assault in my opinion. There were a lot of other issues from my understanding like licensing issues involving Hasbro having rights to star wars board games etc. Armada is for sure a niche market, but it is one with few if any competitors internal or external. In the movie industry, corporations try not to launch blockbusters too close to each other as they compete for an audience and both Imperial Assault and Legion at least in the eyes of Asomdee appeared to be competing for the same audience, while it is sad and terrible that that happened to the Imperial Assault community Armada does not have this problem.
Lastly, some reasons to hope. The announcement says they have no new products for armada in the works. However, rules changes, point changes, and errata are not products. This pause in production may also be a time for AMG to get a grasp on Armada makes a few changes like increasing the point cost of Onagers, or reducing the cost of the Home One, or any number of those things. Changes like these can honestly have a bigger impact on the game than any product ever could.
AMM was created during a time where Armada content was few and far between. It was made to provide consistent content for the community to stay engaged in the game we love even during thought times, and AMM will be here though as we move into 2022 and hopefully beyond as well.
One of my favorite stories as a kid was from Greek mythology when Hercules needed to get golden apples that grew in the garden of Hera. Only the titan Atlas that held up the sky could get the apples for Hercules. There are two telling's of the story, but the one I have a preference for is that Hercules builds the two pillars of Hercules to hold up the sky and free Atlas of his burden of holding up the heavens. While I am by no means a Herculean Pillar in the Armada community at large I would say I play a meaningful role in my local community. It has only grown as I have hosted a weekly game night, and run regular tournaments, and I don’t plan on stopping that anytime soon. The sky is not falling because even the smallest contributions of the Armada community help build the Herculean Pillars that hold it up. Until next time have a great week!