At this stage in my life, I’m fortunate to be able to game with some great guys. We enjoy different games, campaigns, different genres as well as each others’ company. It may sound weird, but it’s a genuine blessing.
Because we play a lot of Post-Apoc and SF skirmish games, I took the plunge and ordered a high quality 4′ x 3′ mouse pad War Zone theme ProMatz from GameMatz.com. Not cheap but between the gushing reviews and the hankering for fun, great looking games, I figured it was worth a shot.
See below. Looks cool, eh?
Well…
Shipping was fairly quick and the mat arrived two days ago, rolled up in a clear plastic bag. I unwrapped it right away and set it on my table. As advertised, it is solidly built – it’s so sturdy in fact, it still hasn’t quite laid flat on the gaming table yet.
Ruggedness aside, I have two reservations: 1. the mat is MUCH darker than pictured. 2. the image is FAR MORE more grainy that anticipated. Now I hate to be ‘that guy’. I love supporting small businesses and so appreciate the global war gaming community made possible by the internet. I understand fabric might not accept the image transfer process the same as vinyl, but honestly… the mat I received is very dark and the details are not crisp. In fact, it kinda looks like someone used up all the black ink printing this one at a low resolution.
Will we use it? Sure. It’ll work just fine once I plunk down terrain and deploy some troops. GameMatz offers variety of sizes, this one certainly fits our needs for skirmish games, and like I said, it is solid. But would I recommend it or buy again from GameMatz? Ahhh….
*sense that hesitation?*
Now YMMV – Their other mats/styles might suit your needs perfectly. But I confess, given the reviews and the price, I expected higher quality.
It gets THREE STARS. (not bad but not great)
STALKER7 
Maybe ask if that is indeed how it should be. Could well be miss print. It is unfortunate that they only provide digital images as a previewm rather than real life pictures. Can you make one and show us the difference? I am also not a fan of that logo on the play side. I think that should be on the back or fused with the mat. E. g. if it depicts a stone floor chisled in the stone. Just subtle basically.
I have some terrain making to do, but I’ll take pictures this weekend.
As far as contacting GM or a misprint, the disclaimer about image variation on screens and media is posted in two places on their website pages. If indeed it was a misprint, they shouldn’t have sent it. Period.
I suspect this falls within their acceptable range of variation. Like I said: It’s decent but not great. I don’t think it’s worth the time/effort to complain/return/wait for a replacement, and so on. It’ll do, but it’s not ‘awesome bestest mat evar!’
The logo on mine is small and tucked in a corner. You’ll see.
Guess I should really take those pictures, eh?
have a good day.
Fair enough. Thank you for the review, I was thinking of getting a mat for DnD but might pass on this producer or maybe print my own mat on vinyl.
Its been fairly work-intensive, but the gaming mat I’ve been working on is turning out really well. I’m using silicone sealant with a little sand and some hand-sculpted texture work on top of a canvas drop-cloth. I’ve never liked the look of printed mats. I recommend giving it a try!
Sounds cool. Post pictures when you’re done, eh?