Commanders!
We would like to thank all those who participated in the Common Tests of the update, as your involvement has been instrumental in shaping the game’s future. Conducting public testing of updates before introducing them to the live game is a crucial step in this process, allowing us to collect reactions and gather feedback to create a better game for everyone.
Although Update 1.20.1 has introduced many new features and improvements, we have faced some challenges with two specific aspects of the update. WoT Plus will require some additional minor adjustments, while the Crew system will undergo more extensive changes. We are committed to addressing the issues raised by the community and ensuring that these features meet our high standards. Let’s dive into how we plan to accomplish this.
Changes to WoT Plus
Free demounting of “Improved Equipment,” the equipment type purchasable with bonds, was perceived as a bonus that would give subscribers an advantage. Our intention with WoT Plus is to provide subscribers comfort and convenience, not an upper hand in battles. Therefore, “Improved Equipment” will be excluded from the list of equipment that can be demounted for free with a WoT Plus subscription.
Changes to Crew Perks
The crew system has been an essential part of World of Tanks since its early days. It allows for fine-tuning a vehicle, boosting its best features, and mitigating shortcomings. These benefits stay with players as they advance through the tech tree, taking crews with them.
New perks and adjusting existing ones were meant to add more flexibility and diversity to the crew perks selection and make it more useful. However, this was negatively perceived as an increase in the disparity among the player base between competitive players, veterans with experienced crews, and new players. We do not intend to raise the number of perks needed to ensure that players can remain competitive during a battle in terms of vehicle performance.
As a result, we have made the decision not to introduce the new perks in their current state or proceed with the rebalancing of existing ones tested during the Common Tests.
Quality-of-Life Improvements to the Crew System
The revamped Crew System introduces several quality-of-life updates that were well-received by the community due to their usefulness. Additionally, these updates provide us with a solid foundation for future enhancements to crew perks and crew progressions. Thus, Update 1.20.1 will implement the following changes:
- Unifying perks and skills into perks that work from the start and become more effective as the level of major qualification increases. For example, the “Brothers in Arms” perk will start taking effect at 1%, even if only one crew member is trained in it.
- Removing experience penalties for injured crew members.
- Adding a battle interface for situational perks.
- Providing clear descriptions of perks and their effects.
- Displaying the effects of all perks in the vehicle characteristics widget.
With the current changes, the earlier-mentioned 30-day promotion for resetting crew perks for free and the crediting of 12 retraining orders will not be scheduled.
We want to extend our appreciation for your continuous support and valuable feedback, which has empowered us to take an exciting next step with World of Tanks in Update 1.20.1. With a host of new features and enhancements, we believe that the game will be even more enjoyable for all players. Stay tuned to the portal for further details on the update's contents and our upcoming roadmap announcement outlining the planned content for later in 2023.
Thank you for being an integral part of the World of Tanks community, and we hope to see you soon on the battlefield!
Roll Out!