There are probably a whole bunch of issues intertwined here. As a plane nut I see the question as how rapidly Ares can hit the market with something approximating a representative collection. That brings us back to Blackronin's posts about important planes from the fighting powers in WWII. A couple of hundred types would do the job. A hundred would establish a powerful bridgehead. A big selection of planes as nice as the WoG would effectively ensure total domination of the market for a generation. The question for Ares and their distributors is whether that is financially viable. The prototyping, tooling, finishing, packaging and shipping requirements for a WoG model make introducing large selections very costly.
Bringing out something like a dozen (or fewer, as Keith writes) new models per year, split between WWI and WWII has to be considered as an experiment. If Ares recovers its costs between new offerings, any failures will not kill them. Once you get down to a handful of new types per year, how might you as a producer make the choices? Should you be guided by fame and achievements, which would call for a whole bunch of Mustangs, Spitfires, 109's, 190's, Sturmoviks? Maybe numerical importance? Add in the B-24, B-17, Halifax, and other aircraft produced in huge quantities. As a game-oriented producer, I am a bit surprised we are not seeing selections built around game scenarios. A B-17F or B-17G is a natural centerpiece for a selection built around the 8th AF, with companions representing AAF and RAF escorts and Luftwaffe adversaries. The Lancaster brings up the Blind Man's Buff of massed night raids, but it also (by simply changing bomb bay fairings and ordnance,) lets you reenact all the Tallboy and Grand Slam missions. Those likewise call for a distinctive set of support pieces. Just trying to hit the Tirpitz in a deep fjord and protected with torpedo nets would be a gaming challenge. ( If you were as perverse as I, you would wait until your buddy builds a Tirpitz and then send him a homemade X-Craft Royal Navy midget sub, which actually sealed the fate of the battleship by planting explosive charges under the keel.)
I really like the models and will keep ordering regardless. But at a few a year I could get even more annuated waiting for particular treasures.
Andrzej, please tell us more about the new "unofficial" releases.
Ron
Bookmarks