Introducing OnTableTop
May 25, 2018 by lloyd
Over the next few months, this web community and platform is going to be getting a new name and identity...
Why?
As the development of the new BoW 2.0 progressed we realised that the whole environment was going to evolve into more of a shared space, where you could share all kinds of projects, and with the channels functionality in the works, we are hoping to share and develop other new and existing content creators.
Couple that with the massive changes taking place in our industry and the diversification of styles and genres in Tabletop Games - and our stats showing that you guys are enjoying a much wider variety of games than ever before - we felt that a new top-level Name and Brand for the community, one that was more all-encompassing and inclusive, felt like a good idea.
So, we decided to develop a new and inclusive brand for us all as a community to feel like we can take ownership of and work alongside.
What About Beasts Of War?
Don't worry, Beasts of War isn’t going anywhere. It will gradually become one (or more) of the selected channels here on the platform and will retain its focus on miniature gaming (and the odd willy joke) and will not allow any of our genres or interest groups to fall by the wayside. We are still completely committed to Historical, Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and the PPHW genres in miniature form.
How Was The New Brand Developed?
We started about two years ago, around the time we had solidified what the specification of the initial 2.0 launch was going to be and spent a few weeks on and off brainstorming and conceptualising in-house. We wanted to explore lots of possibilities and all sorts of wacky ideas, but there came a point where we really wanted to bring in some outside perspective to help solidify our thoughts and settle on a direction.
We then had the good fortune to hook up with a group of Branding Mentors and a Brand Developer, David, from Bag of Bees. David is a wonderful chap who spent a lot of time with us and with you guys in the background browsing around and reading. He instinctively ‘got’ the changes the industry and community were going through and the opportunities we hope to create with you guys.
He then, in true ‘designer’ style, promptly took all our hard work on ideas…and chucked them in the bin!
He and his team then came back with the concept of OnTableTop, and while of course we were uncertain to begin with, something about the concept and how we could use it really struck us.
For anyone who has ever been involved in this kind of thing, you will know that, as with all things in life, there is no perfect solution, and Brands and Identities take time and effort to build and establish. However, the key is finding a Brand that you can ‘work’ (or in our case ‘play’) with, and do interesting things with to communicate what you are about rather than just a badge to stick on stuff.
OnTableTop ticks a lot of those boxes...
It feels like an inclusive identity that can easily sit alongside the developing brands of other creators on the platform.
It is open and encompassing of the much wider diversity of games we play today and who we play with.
It is to the point, short, descriptive and meaningful.
Its primary feature that will be used in our visuals etc. is the circle, a powerful symbol that represents:
Inclusiveness - Wholeness
All-Encompassing (you’re getting everything about a game) - Totality
A circle of friends (a community) - Oneness
A Zero, a Starting point - Potential
Within the circle we then have the representation of the TableTop, the place where we all meet, compete, build stories and friendships together.
So What's The Plan?
The whole process is going to take some months to fully pan out, and a big part of that is we are in no rush and want to gradually work on this with you guys in the community and give it all time to settle in.
In the meantime we will be giving the identity a bit of a tour at the major conventions for the rest of this year, beginning with its first live unveiling at UK Games Expo next week. We believe this Brand will work well in the diverse environments of UKGE, GENCON and ESSEN etc.
We will be live streaming and live blogging all next weekend, while sporting some very fetching new OnTableTop threads...trust me, we can scrub up well!
So this one's for you guys; especially for you budding content creators who fancy showcasing the aspects of the TableTop Gaming hobby you love.
Let’s see where we all go with it and thanks so much to our wonderful community who has supported us every step of the way.
We have a big new leap into the unknown before us and we can’t wait to share that adventure with you.
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@lloyd I thought you might strike a blue steel pose 😉
Ah, I always preferred Magnum.
Lol
caramel or plain magnum?
Caramel?…That Nightshift has changed you
what about double raspberry ?
hmmm yummy
Yahoo!
All in all its been quite a week guys lol
Lots going on, but a heck of a relief to start getting a lot of it finally out here with you all. 🙂
This was probably something you had in mind in February when you said you needed to speak more with us in the future!
It’s been a very tough first quarter of 2018, but no pain no gain right? Lol
Looks like it’s been and incredible week for you guys, must be nice to see his stuff all finally out there 😀
It does feel like a weight off our shoulders, but daunting too as there is a mountain of work still ahead of us now lol
So basecamp has been made on the climb to reach the summit of OnTableTop mountain?
Surely you should only climb on to the table top if you’re wearing your official Titan or battlemech costume, and even then only if you get a +4 after turn 3 to claim a flanking deep strike
That it has, new brand has potential for a truck driving arm wrestling segment too…. (Crap Stallone film reference)
lol
Crap? It was a tour de force!
Testing
More test
Sounds like a good move! Looking forward to seeing this progress, and as a content creator myself, I very much look forward to the coming months!
I like the direction this is going, a portal for different aspects of gaming and hobby all with their own brand.
there is obviously a lot of work going into all of this, and as with any business, risk as well, so I wish you good luck with it all, I think it has a lot of potential.
Looking well guys ?
The new logo reminds me of the sight picture on a couple of my favourite airsoft guns(hint: they go with the helmet) which is appropriate for you guys since you always seem to set your sights high. It also kind of looks like a nail, which hopefully you’ll hit on the head…
Sounds great, good luck! I dig the little “cards” with the characters coming out of the O’s
Trying to be ‘all things to all men’ is a risk. I hope you can pull it off, and not become a rather bland brand that doesn’t have an identity.
Yep that very thing is and has been at the forefront of our minds all through this. Another reason we will take some time to ensure this is done correctly.
Thanks for keeping us honest! 😉
I think the combination of OTT and BoW as a pair of distinct brands will allow a mix of characterful content and a corporate platform brands. Allowing other brands to grow on the platform, thus leveraging your capabilities and reputation in that area is a nice move.
I think this may take me a while to wholly get my mind around this, but I feel like I can see all the value this promises just on the other side of all these fearful big changes.
Forward then, FORWARD!
I suppose if we are not going forward, we’re going backwards! 🙂
Or side to side…or up and down…or in little circles…
?
Were you nervous in that picture, @lloyd ? Your hand is shaking so much it’s blurry. 😉 😛 😉
@enginseer – Well I was concentrating hard on sucking up me gut, so I’d look sharp lol
Considering the new name I’m going to be really disapointed if you haven’t nabbed Wil Weaton and shanghighed him into the team. ;P
Will the BoW name be retained as your wargames arm under the OTT umbrella, or will that name fall by the wayside eventually? Wasn’t sure if your ‘it’s not going anywhere’ comment referred to the name or to what that name refers to.
Our intention is to keep it as the wargaming part. There will be a little bit of shaking out the kinks but we’ll be working on that over the next months. (We want to be sure what we come up with is simple too) 🙂
🙂
How about ‘Beasts of [insert topic]’ for consistency and building on the existing brand? 😉
Oh, and you didn’t comment on the Weaton Conscription observation. 😛
We’d need a bigger budget and a warmer, dryer climate to get Will in with us lol
That’s why I said shanghigh him – slip the Beast’s Shilling in his drink, then when he drains his flaggon, bonk him over the head and clap him in irons.
?
I’ll have a word with @dignity 😉 but he’ll need some timber and about 10 men
We just want someone kidnapped not a Cathedral built
Lol
Ha! But how long would it take him?
Best guess… 6 months 😉
New brand, same jokes ?
That’s our brand though, this is being developed to be shared 🙂
Just noticed ‘Weaton Conscription Observation’ sounds like the name of an episode of tBBT, lol.
Or a prog rock band…
This looks OTT! Nice place on words 🙂
And also a little tribute to OnTheTable which became lovingly known as OTT – the coincidence was not lost on us when David unveiled it for us. We had a little giggle at coming full circle in many respects:)
On the Table is how I found you guys lo those many years ago! Hopefully OTT does that for others!
*gasps of surprise* but but …..we fear change!
seriously though, it looks really interesting and I’ll be excited to see where things develop to down the line,
but will you be able to lock away CCG players into their own oubliette so they don’t scare the rest of the community?
Lol
You mean there already loose?….Noooooooo
They move freely amongst us now. As long as they conceal the signs of their heresy, they give every sense that they are acceptable people….
I am free! Let Magic The Gathering into your life!!!!
Remember the key I mentioned was “concealed heresy”.
Before I would to carried away with M:tG again, I’d look into more affordable, reasonable pursuits like, say, Scientology…. 😉 😛 😉 😛
Will this bring back the On the Table show? There has been a distinct lack of green screen of late. 🙂
Lol despite how much we’d love to do that, it’s not on the cards right now 🙂
Boo. It was a great synopsis show. I am sure it was a ton of work but it is how I found this place.
Mate I pester the team about it nearly twice a year lol 😉
If not the show, can we get the old theme music for that back? I still get that stuck in my head sometimes >.>
You’re not alone in that mate 😀 Duh duhduh duhnduhn dahdadadah, bum bum badaaah 😀
This seems like a good move to me. Would it really have hurt to have an extra ‘T’ for ‘the’ in there though? TTT, that’s what i say. It’s nothing a few hours and some tipex couldn’t fix.
LOL
If I understand this correctly this means something like:
OTT to BoW is Alphabet to Google
How does this comparison (BoW and Google) sound?
We’ll stick with the don’t be evil mantra though 😉
I reckon you’ll break that mantra within the first 15 minutes of a ‘Let’s Play’.
Ha ha! Lol very true! 🙂
they could modify it to “Don’t be a Dick” …
That might attract Wil Wheaton 😉
Love the new Brand, let us see where it will get in the next year.
I’m going to get some flak, maybe? But I still believe the entirety of “tabletop” gaming is a niche hobby. Yeah there’s boardgame cafe’s now, and sites like BGG and of course BoW!
We’re in a hobby that is not an instant reward kind, “These things… they take time.” sums it up nicely. I can also add that maybe WE look at more games now than ever before but still only have the same 24 hours a day to play them! 😛
Let’s take “OnTheTabletop” and break down some of those stereotypes and walls about US wargamers eh?
The basement or the attic nay not be, the only place of adventure!
No flak from me I agree with every word 🙂
Well this is all very exciting, I hope I can get invovled.
All sounds very interesting, going to sit back and watch it develop as I’m not sure where it leads at the moment. I definetly love the new artwork and style of those banners 🙂
I tend to share alot of views and mantras with you guys so I have complete faith you’ll take this to good places, looking forward to what you guys are doing next
Also guys it’s been good to Llyod this side of the screen a bit more, snazzy pic dude, very snazzy 😀
It’s also Over The Top ;-P
On a more serious note though loving the new site and the concept of the re branding 🙂
And ‘over the top’ also links back to WW 1 … so we’re back into wargaming territory 😉
Exciting stuff! Will be sad to see the BoW brand take a backseat but onwards and upwards!
Hmm…. not quite sure how to feel about this… let’s see where the journey takes us…
We felt the same, but we’ll do our best to make it a fun journey 🙂
Will there be lot’s of beer, cursing, pillage and plundering? 8)
I thought all that was a given.
That come with my job: always ask back… customers can’t be trusted! (From the life of a Sysdmin aka Bofh)
Awesome. Love the new umbrella branding.
Sounds and looks great! Huge move for BoW, and perhaps eventually to the whole table top gaming industry. Congrats guys!
Nice branding..looks a lot slicker and more like a professional media outlet which is what you guys have basically become.
Absolutely LOVE the new branding! And at the risk of an eyeroll from Gianna, I can’t help but hear the song OPP in my head with new lyrics- Who’s down with OTT? Yeah you know me! 😉
Glad you like it US Studio lol! 🙂
I’ll soooooo be working on the lyrics. I expect a full music video later 😀
Where’s my pen and notebook?
Change can be daunting, it can be bad but in this case, it’s a good direction to take. With the huge uptake in gaming, the boundaries between different types of games are getting increasingly blurred. So it makes sense to widen the brand and the net. Hopefully this will drag more people into the wargaming hobby while opening the wargamers to other types of games.
The slow adoption approach looks sensible. The obvious risk is to over stretch too quickly and with limited resources have a real problem meeting expectations. Good luck!
Keep things the same!
Keep things the same!
Keep things the same!
wait a minuite…you know what that logo looks like?
It’s the head of Gort shooting twin lasers out of it’s vision slit!
*Approved*
My old job use to be re-branding, this a good move. It makes you look more like a grown up operation. The new site is great as well. Its a lot easier to navigate and feels more community inclusive. Great stuff so far, looking forward to seeing the other aspects of the site come on-line over the next few months
You hinted at the possibility on XBLS a few months back and ever since then the idea of it has niggled at the back of my head, and the more I thought (and think) about it the more I think this is the right more.
There’s very few companies that could even possibly consider pulling this off (snarf snarf), but hearing @warzan talk about the various decisions made in the design of BoW2.0 made me realise more and more that they are absolutely the right team to do this. Clearly a tonne of work ahead of you but if anyone can do it, it’s our boys in Coleraine.
So I can’t wait to see this unfold, and be a part of it in any way I can. Good luck guys!
Oh and you may want to work on ontabletop.com the current design is a little…dated 🙂
Lol we will
Makes a lot of sense, I’m in. Nifty logo too.
I really like it! It’s a good progressive move, the new branding looks really sharp and you could see it drawing in a broader audience too. Nice work!
It’s a tough one this. I love the idea of the spirit of this community spreading wider and being open to other parts of this hobby. I also think the branding looks great, for what my opinion on these things are worth!
However, I don’t want to see “barriers” created between parts of the community because they are posting/blogging in the “wrong” place for something. There is so much hybridisation between board games, card games and miniature games, that it seems an odd time to start trying to split the audiences up.
On the other hand, I can see value of things that are really well outside the miniature focus (e.g. “Card Against Humanity”) wanting to sit elsewhere. However, I have heard things like the walking dead game being considered more in the board game category, and if you could sensibly quantify such things (you can’t!) I’d say it was like 80% wargame, and 20% boardgame. But would you pull content relating to Walking Dead out of BoW as part of this process? I hope not.
For one thing, I don’t want to miss something cool, because it’s been categorised away somewhere that isn’t considered appropriate for whichever channels I happen to be consuming.
I’m a natural worrier though, and I’ve great faith in the OTT/BoW team and there work, so I am sure you’ll have considered these things and will find ways to navigate these exciting and dangerous rapids into great and golden pastures new.
I really like this. BoW has, slightly ironically, been part of me moving beyond just painting miniatures and into playing war games, board games, RPGs, and the occasional CCG. No LARPs yet but probably coming! So to have this be made ‘official’, and also to have a bit more of a professional brand around it is both natural and awesome.?
Just, please, keep the video game stuff light. There are other places for that and it is a different sort of hobby ?
I’m actually hoping to start making more LARP related stuff in the future myself 🙂
Love the new branding – very modern. That said I’m glad you’ve decided to retain BoW for the miniature arm of the new brand!
It has inclusiveness and stuff, but what it doesn’t have is the awesomeness Beasts of War has. To me this new title and logo feels kind of bland and corporate and thus boring. Beasts of War has character and personality. Let’s see where this goes and hope that you guys don’t lose your awesomeness and character due to this change.
The simplicity is deliberate so it doesn’t over power the developing brands of channels and content creators that join us on this journey. (Including Bow:) )
I probably should have wrote a bit about that too:) lol
Well I go out for a few hours and find the Big Push has happened!!!
Interesting idea and look forward to seeing how this works out… Or is it all just OTT 🙂
I definitely like where this is coming from. And although I appreciated the corny-ness of ‘Beasts of War’ I’ve long thought that it doesn’t very accurately reflect the content or the tone of the site (or the hobby). As I’ve introduced my girlfriend to various bits of the hobby over the last year it always seemed a little weird going from ‘gateway games’ to what sounds like a violent metal band…
I think the new name and logo are a little bland, but perhaps that is just because they’re new. (I can see the table logo as a stylised skull, which makes it a bit more acceptable!)
I know branding is important, but what probably really matters is how it develops over the next year or so. If you make it a success, the branding will accumulate positive connotations. When you’re starting with something new you it’s probably impossible to do any differently.
I can certainly see the new brand being an easier fit for people from elsewhere in the hobby, who even if they know you and ‘get’ BoW nevertheless don’t feel particularly comfortable with the idea of their blogging on RPGs for pre-teens being hosted on something which sounds a little inappropriate.
So basically… Good luck!
WOW!!! “It’s time for Go Big or Go Home”.
This all sounds so exciting, I can’t wait to check in and see what’s next.
Well done!
OK so is the new 2.0 shifting into this new brand? I’m liking the ideas that I’m seeing with all this new stuff. I feel like I can contribute and add my say in new ways. All very good 🙂
Completely understand the rebranding, ‘Beasts of War’ is great for war gamers but hard to market to other companies. But how am I supposed to refer to content on ‘onTableTop’ without sounding like I’m stuttering…. ?
It’s gonna take some practice … by all of us lol
I have always admired and respected BoW for always expanding the envelope and to me right now you are on top of your game, and at a lost to there being any need for change at all. But understand that board games, RPG etc are not just about fighting battles on the tabletop, and BoW needs to brand to the ever expanding universe of other games and this is your way of doing it. Respect to that.
OnTableTop, is hard for me to say, unless from Yorkshire, I feel I need to add the word THE in the middle. Love the logo, but does have a comparison with TTT (Mel Bose) who is already out there in our mininature world.
Back in the 70s a small company was branded as Warhammer, then changed to Games Workshop, and is now back to Warhammer. As that is the name that stuck, fickle lot us TableTop gamers.
I love what you guys do, where you are going and hope I can pay more as the 3.79 is just so cheap today. Needs to be at least a fiver.
Loving website update, and all that it can now do.
I will still be with you, but forever a beastie.
All good things evolve or die. I think this is a great move, and will not only freshen things up for everyone, including us ‘the viewers’, but will reinvigorate BoW to go from strength to strength.
Loving the look and feel of the new site, and have started to rate games already. Just waiting for the ability to add games now.
Good luck for the future guys, it looks very promising indeed.
Just one complaint, no Weekender today! ? XLBS tomorrow?
Yeah sorry about the weekender, the deployment of 2.0 took a bit longer than expected and all hands were needed for that so weekenders just weren’t possible I’m afraid 🙁
Congratulations with the new platform BoW (or TT ?) very modern love what you do for the comunetie. the Bow team can be proud on itself and we on you ???
Good luck with the changes, hope that that they exceed your goals.
Personally I really like them.
In an increasingly maturing and sophisticated industry a little influx of style every now and then is very welcome.
While I find the new name and logo rather corporately bland and unfortunate I do see the need for a company to progress. Being more inclusive is certainly the way forward and as long as you keep the BoW section and its awesome and authentic logo somewhere I shall be happy. Good luck guys!!
And in God’s name don’t start wearing suits now..
I would tend to agree
This is probably not gonna be an easy thing to navigate and ‘get done right’. But if anyone can do it, it’s you guys. The fact that you’ve spend two+ years on BOW 2.0 gives me confidence in you. Good luck with it all. I’ll definitely be here for the ride 🙂
This new branding is making me warm and fuzzy on the inside – or is that the whisky from last night….. not sure.
This is awesome – can’t wait to see what you do with it
Evolving and adapting makes sense and I understand why you would do this from the first time it was mentioned months ago. Getting in other content providers allows for more offering and takes some of the burden off you.
You need to be careful though you don’t dilute what you do though and in becoming one of many lose your own identity. There’s a balance between being big enough to be really interesting and being so big it loses its charm and sense of community.
I love this! Great idea to rebrand the site and be (even more) inclusive and diverse; diversity in games and diversity in people. Godspeed to you.
I must say im thoroughly enjoying the new BOW 2.0 and the direction its going ive been on here a number of years and although ive watched and interacted during that time it felt slow and restrictive on the old system, hard work even to get something nice for folk to see. it probably wasnt if you knew what you were doing but now within hours of you going live ive been playing and exploring and find it easy to post stuff and even have a project of my own the Mythic Battles pantheon titans painting (with more rattling about in my head).
Being so easy im hoping it will invigorate our younger members to post and ask questions more. so congratulations and thanks to the team behind 2.0 this old fart is loving it.
I am excited and willingly follow my brothers into this very exciting adventure as we are centurions and pathfinders in the gaming world.
Does this mean we will be seeing OTT merch added to the store?
I’m gonna get a sit down with Annie and see what she thinks 🙂
At which point I will “BUY MERCH!”
Ok i confess i read ONTA…. Bletop. And my first thought was “is this referring to a catoblepa with a pun i don’t under….. OH! I’m an idiot!”^^
Should we be worried at how OTT the Beasts will be until the new branding settles in? They were rather exuberant before the change.
Sounds great may get people into games they were considering but never took the plunge into them or see things from a new different angle improving a piece of a game.
Not sure if I like the name change. Seems like a massive change that is a lot of a start from zero stuff
Loving this new direction! can’t wait to see it all come together. 😀
To be honest, the first thing I thought of when I saw the new logo is “Corporate Branding” which feels soulless to me. Where I understand the need to diversify and be all inclusive with new creator content and channels. It feels impersonal and distant.
When you look at the gaming industry you have many companies that are exciting! For instance, Mantic Games, Games Workshop, and Fantasy Flight. They have dynamic names and they grab your attention and make you want to be a part of their world. Beasts of War is right up there with them.
But OnTableTop doesn’t grab my attention, and I am not sure it will do what you think it will. I truly hope I am wrong in thinking this because I really love the content you provide. When I speak of my love of tabletop gaming your channel is the first place I send people. Every time their reaction to your name is WOW that sounds really cool. They seem really excited and interested in checking out your content.
Beasts of War draws people in because it is unique and different.
Right now the social climate in regards to corporations is not good at all. I should know, the company that I work for is going through a merger and rebranding. They just released our new logo and Mission statement which mirrors yours and it is corporate speak. Not at all how I see Beasts of War.
I would love to hear more about what it means to be a content creator. What incentive do we have to start up a channel under the Ontabletop umbrella? Is this going to be akin to Youtube, twitch etc were content creators get part of the ad revenue?
I do love the new website, and I think it will help people to create better project logs as well as making it more user-friendly. Well Done!
I would compare this all to Alphabet and Google, Youtube, etc. Alphabet is the main company, Google is a brand. We know it all as Google, because that is the product we are most aware of. Likewise, when you direct people to wargaming stuff, you will say “Beasts of War”, but it will be located in the architecture, and business framework of “OnTableTop”. And I can see the merit of doing this, as it allows Beasts of War to perhaps refocus on miniatures, and siphon off the type of content they do for board games etc new channels they operate.
This also makes sense from my point of view as Darker Days Radio will be aiming to be one such channel under the banner, as we provide content that is beyond what BoW can deliver. It also opens up the chance to do more, and better, video content for ourselves, and get the right mentoring and support for that.
Obviously I don’t know how channels will operate yet, but to be part of the BoW family on a shared platform would be great.
That’s exactly how I feel. Well said @rayven
I’ve listened to ‘advisors’ and their corporate talk for long enough. Cant believe it’s creeping into my hobby as well now..
Bland is a word that springs to mind. I do wonder how the name will stand out in people’s mins with all the other gaming sites that have table or tabletop in their name
I’ll echo the others. Nailed it. You’ve said it best. This is corporate speak embodied.
I’m with you on this new identity; it definitely looks bland and corporate looking. It looks more alienating than all inclusive. Games these days, especially new ones, are bold and bright and/or exciting, like film poster fonts. This looks dull and boring, and not cool at all.
If ya did a Yorkshire version of this it would be On’t table top. Teas on’t table sausage. Looks great guys! Feels strange but that’s just me with any kind of change. Hahaha
The pedant in me feels obliged to point out that in Yorkshire (at least my part) “‘t” is an abreviation of “to” not “the”. The “the” is always implied rather than spoken – i had assumed BOW had designed the new name specifically to appeal to hobbiest in god’s own country! 🙂
Good luck! I really like where this is going. Assuming I understand the intent of this change. I hope that a number of content providers come on board.
I was looking over the UKGE map and the names for the avenues and streets, and there at the bottom of Hall2…”On TableTop Street” Nice one. 🙂
“On Tabletop” really doesn’t roll off the tongue. It feels like “the” needs to be in there…
It’s a good idea though – boardgames are becoming a big thing and minature boardgames are growing quickly.
Will this mean a change to the videos too? I stopped watching them years ago because they were 3-4 times longer than they needed to be for the actual content. Some editing and a more structured plan before filming would make a huge difference. I understand the chatty relaxed style can be popular, but an hour video with 15m of information is excessive.
“Will this mean a change to the videos too? I stopped watching them years ago because they were 3-4 times longer than they needed to be for the actual content.”
There already has been a significant change to the videos in the last 2 years.
Not the few I’ve watched, but perhaps I should try some more. All the battle reports I’ve watched are tideous – lots of stating everything that’s going on as though the audience are a bunch of 3 year olds! GMG do a much better job, but generally their reports are still way too long for the average person to watch.
I certainly applaud the direction. But the OTT name and style is really bland. I’m a graphic designer and a professional critique I’d be sure to see at the pitch table is that it doesn’t stand out from the myriad “tabletop” this and that names out there. Will someone remember the name if I tell them “check out ontabletop” during a discussion? Will they find the right site when they do a web search or will the site just drown among the other hits? The logo made of initials is always fun, but closed shapes aren’t generally what we use to convey “inclusive” without other elements (such as stick figures holding hands in a circle). The name is forgettable even with its unnatural syntax. It lacks joy and personality. It doesn’t have any of the passion you guys show so often. I do wish you folks the very best and for great success, of course. I like the site and love the greater goal. Since it’s done and paid for, beyond this post I won’t offer any negatives and will endeavor to lead my gaming peers to the content because I’m earnest in wanting to see you guys thrive. Perhaps one day it’ll be all the other tabletop guys that have to fight to be noticed from within your shadow!
Will be interesting to see how this turns out. The name isn’t great but neither is google, Apple etc. It’s what you do that makes the brand and so far what you have done has been great, hence why Beasts of War is such a good brand now. My concern is OntableTop is so similar to tonnes of others out there that it could get lost.
However if this means more minis content then I’m all for it.
I like the idea of the brand, but the brand image and name sounds bland. Corporate bland. Bland blue and a boring bland circle that looks like an ON/OFF symbol. Or cricket stumps. It also sounds like poor grammar; every time I read it I can feel the word ‘the’ being missed out: On (THE) Table Top, which is aggravating to read. Maybe drop the ‘On’ part of it. The name reminds me of On Cinema at the Cinema, a purposefully awkward name to read and say because it’s part of the joke. https://youtu.be/83mWOlEqvk4
Anyway, I hope it works out and gets more people interested in tabletop gaming.
I’d like to add that I have ended my 7 year long subscription to Backstage a couple of weeks ago. This is mainly because my budget is low, but also because I found myself watching less and less Weekenders, which was all that I was interested in watching these days, bar the odd Designer Interview. I had got to the point where I didn’t feel I needed to see them anymore. And when I didn’t see them, I didn’t feel like I missed anything important. I found myself checking Facebook and YouTube more often for wargaming news on the games I’m interested in, as well as the Warhammer Community website.
Now that the site is going to cover an even broader range of games beyond what I’m interested in, and BoW is being sidelined somewhat, I see even less of a point in myself staying subscribed when I don’t watch all the Backstage stuff. Over the years I’ve found what I’m really enthusiastic about, and it’s only a couple of games that I can realistically afford and maintain an interest in. And since that’s the case, I have less use of the site these days.
Even if I was earning more, I would still have to put my money into something that I am interested in.
I must also add, that since the On Table Top branding is so, so, very uncool and bland, and corporate looking, I can’t support that either. Beasts of War was fun, cool, and it represented game’s logos. I can imagine your brand advisers saying “War is too violent and non-inclusive to use in a brand name. Change it to this”. …”War” in Warhammer is plastered everywhere in their games and they’re doing pretty well. They’re even producing Warhammer Adventures for kids (which looks lame, but that’s another story).
Don’t forget who your customers are, because when you do, you’ll lose them.
For now, I’ll just chip in for free when I have something to say. In the words of the Kurgan: “It’s better to burn out, than to fade away!”
I hope BoW doesn’t fade out into a bland abyss.
Love the new brand. It works really well. Looking forward to next weekend’s live blogging.
I’m in two minds about this, on the one hand i think it’s a great idea to be more inclusive and to really push forward with a site that can encompass everything we love about all the various aspects of the hobby.
On the other i cant help but feel like it might push these various aspects away from each other, and the danger of splitting the communities into very separate entities. I mean I assume there would be separate forums as an example, separate home pages for each channel all with there own unique content. I don’t want to feel like I’d have to spread myself over all of this for fearing missing out.
That then leads me onto backstage,do I get access to everything? Or am I only backstage for the BoW channel? Would I need a separate subscription to access the backstage content on say the boardgame channel or the tcg channel?
While the post says the Beast is not going anywhere, it looks like it’s being put into an enclosure where people can visit it.
I’d rather the beast be free for all to see. 😀 And be the major attraction. Seeing the logo reduced to a monochrome stamp with illegible text in the corner of the page with the name written in a bland font is sad to see (unless it’s a placeholder for something better).
I appreciate the idea but this brand is very corporate sounding and a bit sterile for my tastes. My whole attraction to Beasts of War is the edgyness you guys bring and this makes me nervous.
My company has done this kind of thing and hired probably some of the same types you have. Marketing types who look for the most inoffensive and neutral ways to market you to a wide audience. This is usually the first step of a small company to become a big company. Fine, I get that, but you lose some of who you are along the way, and more often than not, you lose some of the best parts of your core identity that attracted people to you in the first place.
I don’t see this happening yet, but the direction is very fishy.
I feel the same. It looks like the beast is being tamed with a corporate identity, thus losing it’s identity.
lead the way to the tabletopsummit – beasty boys
I am really disappointed. The new logo looks like the soulless logo of any old IT company. The font is a real embarrassing fail just one step above comic sans. Whatever Designer is was, fire him.
The new name is lame. Is there a reason you couldn’t pick a more original name? It can also be confused with Whedon’s work.
O.T.T…. Makes me think of a younger Chris Tarrant presenting an adult late night Live version of Tizwas. (I’m not sure if that was ever broadcast outside England so some people won’t remember that TV show or the controversy it caused).
I’ve got used to the name “Beasts of War” now, but I remember initially thinking it sounded a bit laddish and off putting despite the Shakespearean reference, and not very clear what it was about. So maybe it’s time to come up with an umbrella title that’s more inclusive and welcoming to new viewers.
My one worry is that it might not mean anything at all to the uninitiated. Would it be a good idea to work in the word “games” into the name so people stumbling onto it for the first time have some more idea what you cover? O.T.T. Games is less ambiguous that OTT on it’s own.
Or are you planning on eventually hosting channels that cover more different hobbies than just just games so want a more ambiguous name that won’t box you in later?
And amazingly great move ; well done guys. I love this progession
Thanks @loudmouthman great to hear from you on this!
I like the name and logo! And the OTT abbreviation is good too.
Although I’d quite like to see the BoW name go altogether, TBH – I can honestly see it putting people off. When two of the words in your name are ‘Beasts’ and ‘War’ people form an instant impression of what the brand will be like, and I’m not sure how many of the gamers I saw wandering around the Expo yesterday would be attracted to it. It’s difficult though, as the name has years of familiarity behind it, and it’d be a big hit to just give that up.
I don’t see the OnTableTop brand as selling out, or going corporate. It just looks like expansion to me; in the same way that most of us start with 40k, or some mainstream boardgame like Monopoly or Cluedo, then realise there’s a whole world of tabletop gaming to explore. BoW is maturing… like a nice piece of Cheddar! 😉
I love war games at big scales, but don’t have that much money…. yet passion is the key to success! Passion and free give aways! 😀