Does accepting free products change how honest a review can be?

One of the quiet but powerful forces shaping modern hobby YouTube is the rise of free review products. Rulebooks, miniatures, paints, tools, and even entire games are regularly sent to content creators in exchange for coverage, often with the promise of an “impartial” review. On the surface, that seems harmless, even helpful. After all, it lets viewers see new products without having to buy them first. But beneath that surface sits a much more complicated question: Does accepting free products change how honest a review can be?

In this video, I explore that tension from the perspective of a historical tabletop wargamer and miniature painter. Over the last few months alone, I’ve received more than a dozen offers of free products to review, including three different 3D printers, despite never having used one on the channel. I turned them all down, not because they weren’t generous offers, but because they would have pushed the channel away from what it’s actually about. Accepting a free product doesn’t just mean opening a box; it means committing time, energy, and creative focus to something that might only be there because it costs nothing.

That’s where the real danger lies. Free products don’t automatically make someone dishonest, but they can quietly distort priorities. They can pull creators toward what is being offered rather than what they genuinely want to explore. In a hobby built on long projects, deep dives, and slow creative work, that shift can be damaging.

The video also looks at the other side of the argument: are reviews of things we buy ourselves really more objective? Paying for a product doesn’t remove bias; it just changes it. We all want our purchases to feel justified, and that can colour how we talk about them. Whether something is free or bought, what really matters is transparency, context, and a willingness to talk about both strengths and weaknesses.

Throughout the discussion, I argue that trust in the tabletop and miniature painting community doesn’t come from pretending money and freebies don’t exist. It comes from being honest about them. Viewers deserve to know whether something was bought, gifted, or part of a larger collaboration so they can judge the opinion for themselves.

If you care about historical wargaming, hobby YouTube, and the future of honest reviews in our niche, this video digs into a topic that affects us all, whether we realise it or not.

Three products that change how I paint forever

I've been painting miniatures for over forty years, so it is inevitable that my style of painting and the products I use will have changed over the years. But what are the three products that have changed the way I paint and have become permanent features on my desk?

Why is Undercoat so controversial?

This weeks video from The Quarantined Wargamer discusses the apparently controversial subject of Undercoat and how it gets some painters quite worked up. This is a 'discussion' that has a long pedigree, certainly its been a subject of heated discussion for as long as I have been painting and looks set to continue for many years to come. I discuss some of the issues around what colour your undercoat or primer should be, and why I think a lot of the debate is actually just as a matter of definition. As always, my conclusion is that whatever works for you is the best choice. 

From next week The Quarantined Wargamer videos will be broadcast on Sundays rather than Fridays. I decided on the change for a variety of reasons, mostly to do with my own workload and time constraints. Since April I have been sticking to a fixed timetable for publishing on my blog and the videos and it's really helped instil a bit of routine at a time when in all other aspects of my life (especially at work) nothing has been routine. So from next week, TQW will be released at midday on Sunday with a simultaneous announcement post on my Blog. I'll continue to post a weekly article on the blog on Wednesday at noon, but now I have space in my schedule to do a second Blog article on a Friday if I have something to talk about. 

As usual, I'd ask that if you enjoyed the video please hit the like button and of course consider subscribing to my channel. Next week I'll be taking a tongue-in-cheek look at how we throw dice and ask, are you doing it wrong? Until then, stay safe, and keep rolling high!

Art of War T-Shirts

I don't often endorse products on this blog but I've had my arm twisted (in a good way) and felt it was high time I mentioned Art of War Shirts. I've been buying shirts from Art of War for a while now, regularly picking up one or two every time I visit a show, and it suddenly dawned on me that the majority of my current t-shirt collection are from this company. I bought another two shirts on Monday when I visited Military Odyssey, including the new and rather amazing Rorke’s Drift design.

The shirts come in a wide range of sizes suitable for the smallest to the largest of wargamers. Crucially they are made in 100% pre-shrunk cotton so they retain their shape even after several washes. And for a 'large' fella like me I like the fact these are longer than most T-shirts. Typical shirts are too short and leave the belly peaking out the bottom edge (most definitely not a good look!).

 

Like I said I don't often endorse a product but over the years I have got through a LOT of T-Shirts and I usually struggle to find designs I like in my size and when I do the quality often doesn't match the price tag. I'm glad to say that thus far I haven't been disappointed by any of the T's I have from Art of War Shirts and given the quality I think they are very reasonably priced indeed. Take a gander at their online shop and if you like what you see Like their facebook page to keep up to date with all the latest news and releases.