Hello everyone!
I’m Anton Pankov,
and today my colleagues and I
will tell you about
the development history
of the improved physics.
We realized that we needed
to continue working on
game physics right after
the release of Update 8.0
It was the update when we
added the first version of physics.
It went down well with players.
Tanks stopped hanging
down from the steeps,
so the game became more realistic.
We implemented those physics,
and it solved a great number of problems
When we implemented it,
we had an incredible feeling of euphoria
as we managed to make
such a high quality breakthrough,
which we’d never have dreamed of before.
As these physics were being used,
we started accumulating many ideas
for things that we could do
in the future to further
improve the game.
We thought about how we could
make the tank move more realistically,
like what people see
in real life on parades,
on the firing ranges,
in the movies,
and so on.
We went to the tank testing grounds
to watch them
and shoot video references.
Then we watched those video materials
over and over to have a
better understanding of how a
combat vehicle should move.
In our work, we came to the point
when the core for the physics was ready.
A tank could already move correctly
and we could adjust its settings
using the tool that we had developed
specifically for adjusting them.
The physics were very close
to real life; it had a lot of
internal mechanics features
that could be adjusted
any way you wanted.
We could have any settings,
from the realistic behavior
of the T-34 in 1943, for example,
to the realistic behavior of a race car.
The first prototypes of the
improved physics were exactly like this.
We tried to make the behavior
of tanks very realistic,
sometimes to the detriment of how
the tanks behaved in the game,
on the maps.
The very first prototype
of the new physics model
was implemented as a
separate application.
It wasn’t built in the server,
but it used the physics engine
created for the physics in Update 8.0
We started testing
our realistic physics.
We did internal testing
within the company
and with the involvement
of anyone interested.
Well, those tests showed that our
physics are indeed realistic.
But perfect realism is not what you need
for action-packed tank clashes.
So, sometimes the tanks moved
too slowly, took a long time to turn.
They could get stuck
and weren’t able to climb hills
or get to the other places
they can get to now.
So, we eventually realized that
completely realistic physics
were not an option.
I mean we could easily have done it,
and you can see that in our early
version prototypes.
The thing was that the players
wouldn’t like those changes
because the game would have become
much more difficult.
For example,
it takes a while for a tank
with realistic settings to reach
its maximum speed, about two minutes.
Some tanks could never reach
its specified maximum speed.
So, we chose various
iterations of settings,
prepared a small group of tanks,
and sent them to the first
non-version physics common test.
We gave players the opportunity
to try the improved physics.
On the one hand,
we received a lot of positive feedback
and saw that the community
was very interested in this.
But on the other hand,
we got a lot of critical feedback.
Most comments were about the places
and positions you could now reach
with the new physics.
The old physics didn’t allow you to
climb some steep hills,
you couldn’t go there.
Players got stuck
on those parts of the map before.
So, the new physics opened
new opportunities,
but at the same time
brought a number of problems
to the map balance.
There were a lot of comments about
passing through certain areas
like railway crossings, and so on.
This was what we had to work on.
Well, the first Common Test
showed that the community
wasn’t really satisfied
with that small degree of realism
we had during the first Common Test,
because realism is one thing,
but the loss in dynamics is another.
To a greater extent,
World of Tanks is not
a realistic simulator,
but a game with arcade elements.
It has a certain degree
of historical authenticity.
It was very important
for us to find the balance
between playable physics and realism.
Finding the balance between the
physics visual “perceptive” component
and gameplay component
was a hard task that took a lot of time.
But manually adjusting all
in-game vehicles would take even longer.
There are about 1,650 different
combinations of suspension and engines.
So, to adjust them all manually,
according to our estimates,
we would need four years.
And since we didn’t want to
postpone physics for four years more,
we started planning to improve
the system and developed
a new system that could adjust
and check any vehicle automatically.
So, during the period
between the first common test,
or non-version test,
and last version test,
we were developing the system
for automatically adjusting
and checking the vehicles.
So, following the results of
all tests and adjustments,
we launched common tests
from time to time to check
what the balance between gameplay
and aesthetics was.
In the following iterations
of the common tests,
we took the feedback from our players
into account and such main problems
as aiming below the depression angles
when braking.
We removed this option.
Then, we started looking for
a reasonable balance in dynamics,
so that players could still perform
such gameplay elements as baiting,
and the vehicles were not too slow.
We worked in that direction.
There were positive changes,
but when we were running
common tests in September
and after that,
we couldn’t find that balance
between enough realism
and convenient gameplay for players.
We received tons of feedback.
We analyzed it all.
Then we launched two common tests
one after another within a week.
During that week,
we fixed a lot of things
we didn’t want to fix but had to.
We readjusted the dynamics of vehicles,
doubled the number
of researched test vehicles,
and launched the second
common test right away.
We knew we were on the right track,
because the physics that brought
new features, improved dynamics,
used more types of terrain,
and allowed implementation
of new sounds we hadn’t used before,
was accepted well by the players.
It’s better than if we put players
in a real tank simulator
and made them struggle against
their own vehicle,
against difficult controls.
The vehicle dynamics
and firing depend on its control
and movement, so there was a big risk
of spoiling that feeling and impression,
both from the game
and the improved physics.
In the second common test,
all vehicles were available to players.
This test was accepted more positively.
We knew that we had abandoned
full realism, and that we were
moving in the right direction.
But still, there were many
annoying drawbacks.
Players still felt that the tanks
weren’t controllable enough.
They mentioned some resistance
in controlling the tanks.
So, we needed to make
the controls more dynamic.
But, at the same time,
we shouldn’t make some vehicle types
too dynamic or not dynamic enough.
The physics were ready for Update 10.0.
But…
Looking back now,
it’s perfectly clear that the decision
to release the new physics in
Update 10.0, Rubicon, was wrong.
And we’re very grateful to everyone
who pointed out our mistakes.
We didn’t just cancel Update 10.0
and replace it with an update
using another number
and without certain features.
The thing is that the players’ feedback
showed us that we were
on the right path
towards the new physics,
but we needed more time
to make everything work
properly and smoothly.
The physics available in the
Update 10.0 tests was very raw
with a great number of flaws
and bugs that we have now fixed.
And if players didn’t point them out,
we would have probably
released those physics,
and then heroically fixed it afterwards.
So, we had more time to improve physics,
and the players had more time
to test it in common tests.
So, based on the players’ opinions,
we made sure that we went in the
direction of gameplay rather than
make it completely realistic.
World of Tanks is a project
that many people have gotten used to,
and we couldn’t break their habits
or change them drastically.
So, in the common test we launched
before the release,
we tried to take into account
all comments that players
sent us during the year.
They were about certain map areas
you could now reach
with the new physics,
wobbling aim when braking,
lower maneuverability,
and slower response
when pressing a key.
So, after we launched the common test,
we received generally positive feedback.
Most things that players asked
us to take into account were considered.
And players like what we did.
The latest test iterations
showed that the current balance
between the quality of gameplay
and beautiful tank behavior
gathered the most positive feedback
from our players.
So, we released it in Update 9.14.
We’ll see how players use
different maneuvers,
how useful they’ll be,
and, according to the
players’ reactions, we’ll adjust
and improve vehicle behavior.
The work on the improved physics
won’t end after Update 9.14.
We will continue working
in that direction.
We also know about other issues
that concern you.
Among the biggest issues are
the team balance, vehicle balance,
and artillery.
We will continue working
on a solution to these problems.