Aside from playing video games and watchin’ anime, I love to read. Sci-fi preferably. Games Workshop’s Warhammer 40K novels published by Black Library are some of my faves. These are brutal, complex and thought provoking titles, I think, are made for kooks over 18. And yes, these reads are weeby. Recently, the hobby games company announced it is gearing up to introduce smol freaks to 40K with a new line of young adult fiction.
I’m a huge fan of 40K’s incredibly detailed lore. The world is grimdark. That’s the beauty of 40K. So, when I hear Black Library is going to pump out YA novels starring 12-year-old protagonists, I get a little tripped out. How will grotesque, warp creatures be handled? When a space marine gets shot in the face, will brain matter splatter? Will the horrors of war creep off the pages? Maybe, they will be set in an alternate universe where things are just a little less brain matter-y. But stepping away from grimdark results in less beauty…
In the end, I appreciate the decision by Games Workshop to go this route for the youngsters. It shows that the company hasn’t given up on reading like many have. We need weebs to read. Read Warhammer, read manga, read whatever, just as long as you have real or digital pages in front of your eyes. Your brain will be haute couture in no time.