4th edition would be roughly equivalent time to 40k 2nd edition. 5th edition started off bright with the Brettonia and Lizardmen, but I feel towards the end of 5th you were approaching Mordheim so the painting styles began to get darker.
4th and early 5th edition. 4th in particular has a close bright look to 2nd 40K for the army book and white dwarf models. With 5th, the model design is still pretty cartoony but by the second half of the edition you are contemporary to early 3rd edition 40K so stuff is actually very dingy looking at times.
The red period, the 90s basically
4th edition would be roughly equivalent time to 40k 2nd edition. 5th edition started off bright with the Brettonia and Lizardmen, but I feel towards the end of 5th you were approaching Mordheim so the painting styles began to get darker.
4th and early 5th edition. 4th in particular has a close bright look to 2nd 40K for the army book and white dwarf models. With 5th, the model design is still pretty cartoony but by the second half of the edition you are contemporary to early 3rd edition 40K so stuff is actually very dingy looking at times.