Early spring breeze brings change
to World of Tanks:
the Update 9.14 features improved physics
and sound.
Developers will also delight us
with more than twenty HD vehicles,
a new map Ravaged Capital,
a refined Sacred Valley,
improved functionality of the minimap,
and much,much more.
You can try this all out right now
by joining the Common Test
for this update.
Learn more in our video review.
The main news
from the Common Test
is the introduction of improved physics.
Now the vehicles move much more naturally,
the hull inclines depending on the maneuver performed.
For an onlooker,
the vehicles may now seem slower,
but this impression is deceptive.
In reality,
the overall speed of the game hasn’t changed.
Thanks to the improved suspension,
the road irregularities
are now much quicker and easier to negotiate.
We have solved the issue
of catching on stones and offsets.
Driving over railway tracks
has become much smoother.
Besides this,
everyone received a new tool
for their inventory.
By pressing the direction keys
and the spacebar,
you can send your vehicle skidding.
This option is disabled for artillery
and tank destroyers
for balance considerations.
But this option will undoubtedly
become widely used on light,
medium, and heavy tanks
as it’s not only impressive,
it’s also practical.
And for all of this
to not only work well,
but also look good doing it,
the game now has new visual effects.
Another milestone of the test
is the upgrade to the new sound platform,
Audiokinetic Wwise.
It allows sounds to make use
of multicore processors.
But for the average gamer
that’s not the only important news:
most of the game now features
completely reworked sound content.
There are numerous new and more realistic sounds.
Shots now sound deeper and more authentic.
You’ll now be able to tell by the sound
whether it’s a petrol engine
or gasoline engine,
ride with the wind in your ears,
hear the suspension working,
and the gears being switched.
This will immerse you more deeply in the atmosphere
of the battle.
In addition to all these changes,
huge work has been done
to add informative value to the audio.
Many sounds convey useful information.
Now it will be easier to distinguish
the shell type by the sound of penetration,
or guess the caliber
from the sound of non-penetrating hits.
The much loved Sixth Sense notification
accompanied by the characteristic sound
is now back in the game.
Also, another important
setting–Dynamic range–has been added.
New functionality
affects the quality of sounds and
allows you to choose between wide and
narrow audio ranges.
The former is more suitable
for high-quality sound systems,
the latter—for simpler ones
and notebooks.
And this is just the tip of the iceberg!
Learn more in our WoT Development
video series,
the first part is already available
on our Youtube channel.
Improved physics and
sound is just one small part
of what we have in store
for players in the Common Test.
Around two dozen vehicles
have been redesigned and are now available in HD.
Among them are both the good old machines,
and the new ones.
The Rampage mode
now features a new map,
Ravaged Capital, which places players
in the streets of the city of lights.
In random battles,
the Sacred Valley
will never look the same again.
Both flanks of it have undergone
considerable changes,
and so has the central part.
The map now offers
many more opportunities for attack.
Finally, the minimap has become
even more informative—the much loved
dynamic spotting range circle and
the draw distance circle
are now available in the game by default.
That’s all for now.
Join the Common Test
for the Update 9.14,
test the game and
leave your comments on the forum.
Good luck on the battlefield