If you haven't been, Adepticon is a wonderful time. From product announcements, paint competitions, and endless halls of gaming, it's a perfect microcosm for the miniature painting hobby. We took some time to catch up with one of our favorite people in the industry, Will Shick, the VP of Creative Development and Strategy for Atomic Mass Games, took time to sit with us and give us some detailed answers about what's coming for Marvel Crisis Protocol, Star Wars: Legion, and Star Wars: Shatterpoint. This is the second of 3 posts, and for this one, let's dive into Legion!
Read our previous post about Star Wars: Legion
GT: The 'Alliances' expansion fills the gap for consumers between the TCG and full-blown model-hobby gameplay. As you had mentioned, AMG is releasing this to meet the consumer. Do you see this getting into big box stores as well as FLGS?
WS: Ultimately that will be up to Asmodee as they handle all the distribution of the studio’s products. However, we did build Alliances to target speciality retailers in addition to the core hobby FLGS. Our hope is that Alliances can serve as a potent bridge to bring people together from both the tabletop miniatures game and more general tabletop games communities.
With new Starter Sets and plenty of character packs, Marvel Crisis Protocol has a bright 2026 and 2027
GT: Is the move for out of print /out of stock models to be available in affiliation packs, or will there be a return to the 2-model packages?
WS: It is unlikely that we will see a return to the older style 2 character packs. As we have become more skilled at engineering we have been able to not only improve the quality of our miniatures but we’ve also been able to control costs via smarter production methods. This is a large reason why the newer releases include anywhere from 3-4 characters as the manufacturing and tooling costs, which are the most significant cost to creating a plastic miniature, can be better maximized at that number.
For older products that we have been reissuing, the repacking of traditionally 2 character packs into 4+ character boxes represents our commitment to helping control and manage the overall size of the product line. Line management like this is critical because it makes the line easier for both Asmodee distribution and retailers to manage and stock, even as it continues to expand with new releases.
GT: Consolidation or new location on the web to see all of the most current cards? With 80-85% of the characters getting updated, is this going to happen over the course of the year, or steadily as releases have reached a 'shelf life'?
WS: Currently the most current versions of the cards are available as Print and Play documents on the AMG website. We are pursuing options and looking for functional opportunities to be able to better provide the game rules to players beyond simply print and play. But for the present, this system has provided us the flexibility to be able to update and rebalance the game to ensure it remains the best play experience we can make it and ensure all players have access to the rules at all times.
GT: Will the Push Fit system become a part of the main line of MCP models?
WS: We certainly are looking at opportunities to integrate the F.A.S.T. press fit system from Alliances into new introductory starter products for the tabletop skirmish game. However, production timelines being what they are, we are likely 2-3 years out from seeing F.A.S.T. enter the skirmish game line.
The Alliances games promise new sculpts that can be used in the core game as well!
GT: When can fans expect a "fantastic" video announcement?
WS: Over the last 18 months we’ve been really focused on bringing back more cool and fantastic video trailers for the games. So hopefully it won’t be long until the next fantastic trailer drops to get people excited about what’s coming next. On a personal note it has been so fun getting back to making more video content. I love seeing what Tony and Dallas are able to come up with alongside our freelance video editors.
GT: With air support for Legion, when will we see big model releases for MCP, like Mole Monster, Celestials, Giant-Man, or even Galactus?
WS: We’ve certainly never been shy about pushing the envelope on big characters from MCP, from Dormammu who was our first truly big sized character to the upcoming Onslaught. Currently the only real limitation on characters is the size of the base, as in addition to making the most mind-blowing miniatures we can, we also always have to keep in mind how it will functionally work on the tabletop.
We at Gaming Trend are very excited about Alliances and the upcoming fantastic video trailer. What excites you? Let us know in the comments, and stick with Gaming Trend for tutorials, news, and gameplay for Marvel Crisis Protocol!
