World of Tanks 8.0 Review
What is World of Tanks?
In a nutshell World of Tanks is the best tank simulator MMO out there. Think of it like a modern day Panzer Commander. They’re basically the same game except that World of Tanks is infinitely superior in every way: more units, online multiplayer, it’s free, it’s updated all the time, it has excellent support and community, etc. Then again I was comparing it to Panzer Commander which was made by the defunct SSI (Strategy Simulations Inc), which back in its day was sort of like the modern day company Paradox Interactive, who still make classic strategy games and other games that SSI would make back in the day!
If you still haven’t played World of Tanks then stop wasting your time playing stuff like Hello Kitty Online and get it here. Nothing against HKO, I play it too! If you want my advice with World of Tanks, read my World of Tanks strategy guide for beginners.
World of Tanks 8.0 Review
Chances are if you are reading this 8.0 Review you already know what WoT is, so let’s get down to what’s so good and bad about it!
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWlAwC4P0rY[/youtube]
Graphics:
The game has a completely rewritten game engine that makes it look a more real than before. The graphics to me feel so much cleaner now almost like the difference from a DirectX 9 to DirectX 11 game. It’s that good of a change.
On most systems I’ve tested it, it has gained much performance. I compared it to it having the same settings. On my girlfriend’s laptop which has a really poor integrated video card by Intel, she went from getting usually 6 fps to getting 16 fps while having the game look much better. I went myself, on my 2011 main gaming PC, from getting about 35 fps on max everything to now getting 45-65 fps with the same settings.
Physics:
No longer are we faced with invisible immortal air walls that prevent your tank from running off a cliff or a slope. Now not only can you do that if you want but you can push people off areas, or even flip them over if you run into them hard enough. Shooting, especially from a light tank will make your tank move along with the direction of the recoil. It is now possible to slide down a hill if you don’t have enough traction or the correct momentum to make it up. Tanks also now can be destroyed by putting themselves in places that they are not designed to be in, such as under water.
All this is really great but it also presents a problem because now I often, in at least every other game, see what I call “a bunch of retarded 12-year olds” do stuff like try to jump over a river then smash into it and blow up. I’ve also seen the 12-year old retards do things like try to jump fly over a bridge that is 200 feet high in the air and then have their tank shatter into pieces once it hits the ground. I report them because this is the kind of thing that ruins a game. To me it’s the equivalent of griefing the team such as feeding would in another game League of Legends.
If I were in charge of Wargaming, I would dramatically increase the penalty for committing suicide in the game in such an obvious way over and over to be the equivalent of team killing. Sure, the game already had team killing prevention but it’s simply not good enough to prevent all the 12 year olds from ruining the game, especially for the people playing who have spent money on the game and don’t have all day to game.
Maps:
Most of the maps have been redone either to fix some annoying exploits or to take advantage of the better terrain and more destroyable features of the landscape. This in itself completely changes how you now play the game. It’s time to relearn most of the minor details of maps and that to me makes the game more interesting again!
Sound Effects:
Most of the combat sound effects have been improved to make them sound more real. All the cannons have a unique boom that’s specific to the specifications of the weapon. Armor damage, ricochet, and dings sound a lot more impressive than they did pre 8.0 Even the noises the ground makes as you drive over it and break stuff sounds a lot more real. This greatly improves my enjoyment of the game.
I wish though they would finally hire some voice actors to talk in the native language of whatever tank I am using. It’s really annoying to hear some American sounding guy saying “Well that’s gotta hurt!!!” or “Let’s move out!!!” as I use my German, French, or Russian tanks. Fix it! The quick fix would be just to remove the voice that’s there right now. I’d rather hear just the sounds of warfare than this guy talking!
Conclusion:
This is the best update I’ve ever seen for World of Tanks. Wargaming really keeps me coming back to this game with the monthly updates as well as the promise of World of Warplanes and World of Warships. Since the games will eventually share your unified account, it’s not a big deal to grind on World of Tanks since I know one day I will be sharing my XP, Credits, and Gold with my other “World of (blank)” accounts!
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