Cipher Studios Have Sad News As Anima Tactics Is Discontinued
February 25, 2015 by dracs
Cipher Studios have today issued a rather sad press statement declaring that their long running miniatures skirmish game Anima Tactics is to be discontinued.
Anima Tactics is a strategic skirmish game set in the Anima universe first explored in the Anima: Beyond Fantasy RPG. The game drew heavily upon the style of Japanese anime and RPG video games to create a striking series of miniature sculpts and interesting gameplay.
Here is what was said in the official statement:
Cipher Studios announces that the Anima Tactics™ Miniature Skirmish Game is being discontinued. Anima Tactics™ has had a long run, launching in 2006 with over 150 unique characters released. The game has become unsustainable from a business standpoint due to market and global distribution changes, so the hard decision to discontinue the line had to be made.
We at Cipher Studios thank our fans for the many years of support in building a wonderful community of players and hobbyists around a game we have loved creating.
Anima Tactics™ and Hell Dorado™ will no longer be sold through distribution. The ranges for both product lines will remain available online through the Ninja Division | Soda Pop Miniatures web store.
The Cipher Studios web store will close March 13th. Stock will then be transferred to the Ninja Division | Soda Pop Miniatures warehouse and resume sale on March 30.
The last new figures for Anima Tactics™ will be released through the web store, including a special edition Celia model.
The Hell Dorado™ range will continue. Hell Dorado™ new releases will resume, with the next release wave beginning during Q2 2015.
While I am relieved to hear that Hell Dorado will be continuing, it having in my opinion one of the best set ups of any modern tabletop game, I can't help but feel sad that Anima Tactics will be no more. I was lucky enough to get my hands on a couple of the game's miniatures and the sculpts were superb.
Of course, players still have the opportunity to explore the Anima universe through the Beyond Fantasy RPG and in the video games Ark of Sinners and the upcoming Gate of Memories, so we still have the chance to experience the great setting. Still, Anima Tactics ticked all the right boxes for us anime fans and I hope it keeps a following even if it is no longer supported.
Did you play Anima Tactics? What did you think of the game?
"Anima Tactics ticked all the right boxes for us anime fans."
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Well that’s shame. I wanted to try this game but I never got opportunity.
Anima Studio, creator of the Anima brand (from RPG to videogame) have posted clarifications about this situation in second Gate of Memory Kickstarter: “Hi everyone. Regarding the announcement of Cipher Studios about Anima Tactics, I want to clarify some points to make everything clear. 1°) Will it have an impact on the videogame? Of course not! Gate of Memories development will go on in the same way as it was planed. The game is going to be finished and all the pledges will be given as promised, regardless if you are a backer of the first or extended campaign. Anima… Read more »
I was very disappointed when I heard the news; I do hope maybe someone can reinvigorate the IP and line somehow.
I gotta remember to put an order in real quick
Looks like the French Game Curse has struck again… Shame about Anima Tacitcs. It looked interesting and I always enjoyed the models. But I guess not enough people played it, myself included. Unfortunately it looks like Hell Dorado is also on life support and it is only a matter of time before they pull the plug on that one as well. I think that is pretty clear when you analyze the statement a bit…Hell Dorado will no longer be available for distribution but only sold on Ninja Division’s Webstore. That means no store will even be able to carry it… Read more »
Sad, but unsuprising, given the unbalaced factions right from launch, and later almost complete radio silence punctuated by some minis releases. Sadly it’s more of an Eurogame curse now than just french (wasn’t AT initially spanish?), I guess games like Alkemy or Helldorado just don’t have the same lowest common denominator appeal as US games like Warmahordes.
Hell Dorado does pretty well in my area of the US. At least people are still playing it and blogging about it. Warmahordes does better in general for the simple reason that Privateer Press actually puts effort into promoting and advertising it. The Hell Dorado folks’ only attempt at promotion was their Kickstarter and that was two years ago. If you’ve ever been to a US game convention (of which there are hundreds a year), then you know that niche games, homebrews, and weird stuff in general are alive and well. Please let us not “lowest common denominator” ourselves into… Read more »
Nooooo,a few months ago i have bought the rule book + 2 starter + 4 more mini to try the game , ……………. so i would be better wait till the WildWest Exodus stuff arrive at my local store so i would have bought more WWX mini instead of game that it’s about to die 🙁
Too bad. I hope some one picks up the sculpts at least, some of them where truly inspired and original and the would can never have too many foxy ninja chicks.
This is a game that deserves to be acquired and put back on the market. Just like cool mini or not did with ron&bones (also an incredible miniature line!). And i even think, given the fact that helldorado will be marketed by ninja division from now on, that the CMON recovery could be a scenario. I do hope so.
Anyway there are far too many games out there right now. They are almost all lookalike frankly so, a shame that the ones that are not, have to go. Still the market is saturated and that’s not just a problem for Cypher. Kickstarter is flooded by things that come in different boxes but that we have seen so many times before. I mean i like mcvey’s minis but is blood rage now really necessary? Why not focusing on 7 sins that at least sounds a little different from the usual viking setting?
Sad but it was bound to happen. They really didn’t support the game much, so it will just fall to the side like so many others before them. Marketing and support are key to keeping games relevant and thriving.
I’m verry sad that Anima tactics is going to be discontiunued. Theire mini’s are some of teh best I’ve got in my collection (Saint Hazael, Cordelia Roslind, etc)
Beast of war did a great review on Anima Tactics some years ago. Could the video not be linked to this article?
I found it
http://www.beastsofwar.com/anima-tactics/animatactics-spotlight/
It’s a real shame to see AT disappear as it’s not just a great line of figures but a really good game to play. The only thing that has let it down over the years has been the lack of support from Cipher
Or perhaps lack of interest in the game prevented Cipher from generating the resources to be able to support it. I’m always a little wary of the argument that game X would have done better if only the company promoted it better. It’s an accusation which even gets laid at GW over WFB. More often than not, the market decides what sells, not the company. If the company did, then making a successful minis game would be easy.
While it is a bit of a “chicken or the egg” argument, I would say there is some merit that Cipher could have done more to promote the game. There are plenty of other small companies that do everything they can with their meager budget to get their game out there. GCT Studios, Anti-matter Games, Megalith Games, and Pulp Monsters are all small companies but they hit every Con they can. They also tend to show a fair amount of life on their websites, usually providing weekly updates. (Pulp Monsters is a bit of an exception to this as they… Read more »
The last year isn’t really a good indication of what Cipher were doing with AT. They’d merged with SPM by then and AT had failed to find an audience for several years before that. That said, the point being made was that the only thing which let AT down was a lack of promotion by Cipher. I tend to think the interest needs to be there and the promotion feeds off it, but no amount of promotion will generate it. AT was a game that the market just didn’t want.
I own more than a few AT models, and though they are quite beautiful, I can’t say I am stunned by this news. In fact, I have long been amazed that the line was still in business at all. I don’t know anybody who buys it. I’ve never known anybody who plays the game. I’ve been to plenty of conventions, and I’ve never seen a single game being played. The models painted and on my con table do not sell, the ones new in the boxes get nothing more than curious glances and comments that they are “too expensive” even… Read more »