Tanks for the massive battles in World of Warships [Preview]

I’ve been waiting to use that headline for a long time. Teehee!

World of Warships looks massive. Wargaming’s take on naval warfare puts the battles on an epic scale, through huge environments and with giant vessels. Last year at E3 the game was just in its early stages of development, featuring nothing more than a few thematic videos of the kind of game we would get. Since then, and after numerous closed Alpha sessions and dev cycles, the game underwent significant changes.

During my session with the developer at E3 earlier this month, I was able to see exactly what those were, and came away impressed with the game’s new direction.

Key to the game’s update is the shift away from a sort of top down perspective for shooting to a more “sniper-style” view. We now look through the sights of the guns instead of above them. It should translate easily for fans of FPS games. The overhead view makes the game feel more like a strategy sim rather than an action sim, so the new view is intended to make the battles easier to jump in to.

Additionally there is now a “torpedo view”, which sets the camera on as the eyes of the underwater missile while it hurtles towards its target.

Going more of an action route for the firing doesn’t mean that the game is any less of a tactical warfare endeavor. The game is all about positioning and momentum, where planning ahead of movement is just as key as aligning and rotating our ships to fire. Being successful in a battle means understanding these macro- & micro-management decisions and what each can bring in value.

Realism, like in the other games that Wargaming produces, is an integral part of the experience. Torpedoes can only be shot through tubes aligned in the right direction. Buoyancy of a ship in water affects movement and positioning. Ship design needs to be as accurate as possible, down to weight and volume.

It seems like a lot of verisimilitude is needed, but there’s one area that the St Petersburg dev team opted to take creative license: historic battles. Many of the actual battles of naval warfare throughout history didn’t necessarily take place in amazing environments. It was a lot of open water, with water surrounded by more water. Instead, they chose to focus on themes of the battles. This allows for rocky terrain, glaciers, and jungle bays as battle options, based on aspects of famous battles that people remember and expanding on them.

The changes that Wargaming has employed in Warships look like they could turn out to be extremely welcome, allowing for new players to jump in and strategy veterans to still be able to manage to their hearts’ desires.

World of Warships still doesn’t have a release date, but it’s been through a few Alphas this year already.