For us, War Thunder is a kind of joint training ground for military equipment of the 20th century. In our game, in one battle we encounter equipment from different countries and schools of design. The game allows us to simulate vehicles with a sufficient degree of realism to show our players the capabilities of these machines. And despite the deep elaboration of the implementation of all systems and components of a wide variety of equipment, control of tanks and aircraft in War Thunder remains quite accessible to players - which means that players can focus not on studying the operating manuals, but on the gameplay itself. Post-war main battle tanks (MBT) fit perfectly into our game.

What are these cars good from a gameplay point of view?

They have high mobility and powerful armor in a narrow sector, making the game more dynamic and encouraging tactical thinking. The sides of even the most modern tanks can be pierced at right angles by a T-55 or M-47 armor-piercing shell from a distance of more than two kilometers. At the same time, in the frontal projection in zones of maximum protection, MBTs of the latest generations can withstand hits from weapons with armor penetration up to 1000-1200 mm. Therefore, if you position yourself correctly in relation to the enemy, you may be slightly vulnerable, but if you let the enemy into the flank, you will be penetrated. In addition, almost all post-war MBTs were equipped with a weapon stabilizer, allowing them to fire on the move, which also has a positive effect on the dynamics of the game. Also, post-war tanks from all countries were equipped with smoke screen systems, which can give a second chance to a player who made a mistake.

The game already contains tanks from the post-war era, up to individual vehicles from the 80s (Japanese ZSU Type-87), while at the fifth rank there are vehicles whose production year differs by 30-40 years. The use of post-war machines, dividing them by rank, will make the senior levels of research branches more logical and balanced. Therefore, from the point of view of developing a player’s progress, it is logical not to limit oneself to individual tanks, but to use all vehicles that satisfy the conditions for an interesting gameplay.

Our plans

• We plan to add a new, sixth rank in the development of ground vehicles, and we will begin filling it with those vehicles that were representatives of the second post-war generation of tanks - such as the Soviet T-64, American experimental MBT-70, etc.
• We will consistently, from patch to patch, fill the new rank with interesting and well-known examples of equipment (not limited to MBTs alone) of all nations available in our game.
• The game economy was not originally designed for six ranks, so the new rank vehicles in this regard will not directly follow the previously established rules. In other words, when moving from rank 5 to rank 6, there will be no sharp increase in the cost of equipment in OG and Lions - unlike the transition, say, from rank 4 to 5. The cost of researching and purchasing equipment and modules, as well as the cost of consumables and repairs at rank 6 will differ slightly from the similar characteristics of rank 5 vehicles. Moreover, subsequently, when a sufficient number of rank 6 vehicles appear, we plan to reduce the cost of researching and purchasing vehicles at rank 5 (and possibly at lower ranks) - so that the time for players to reach top-end vehicles remains approximately the same as before entering rank 6.

Questions and answers

— Will there be Abrams/T-90/Leopard 2 and other modern vehicles?​

​Over time, we do not rule out the appearance in our game of any modern tanks from those that we can simulate with a degree of detail in appearance and combat capabilities that suits us.

— Will there be thermal imagers/night vision devices?

We’ll decide after creating prototypes and gameplay tests of night battles with similar devices.

Rank VI strike aircraft can also be represented by helicopters, which have quite interesting gameplay in joint battles. So far, the specific answer to this question and the actual list of strike aircraft have not been finalized, and not all internal tests have been carried out.

— Are there any plans to introduce modern aircraft?​

​Unlike tanks, combat on airplanes, as aviation develops, becomes more hardcore, less spectacular and reveals less and less aerobatics skills. This can be seen even in the example of the Korean War jet aircraft, which were presented in our game from the very beginning. But missiles with seekers, which do not require escort after launch, especially change the tactics of air combat. And while beyond visual range missile combat can be interesting gameplay, it is entirely focused on working with instruments and is very hardcore (since it requires special knowledge and a lot of “games in the head” without feedback from the decisions made). Therefore, making modern aviation combat interesting, accessible, non-hardcore (i.e., understandable enough to a player without special training), while at the same time maintaining the level of realism set in the game, is an extremely difficult task (if not impossible at all). Consequently, most likely the tank and aviation components of the game will diverge greatly in terms of the time period of the equipment presented.

However, we plan to first test internally the gameplay of Vietnam War-era jet aircraft, where the first guided missiles were used. These missiles had a lot of restrictions on launch conditions (angle and, most importantly, maximum and minimum distances to the target), and their maneuverability characteristics were not as high as those of modern missiles. Therefore, speaking with great caution, we can assume that over time this stage of aviation development will find its embodiment in War Thunder.

— Are there plans to change the BR of vehicles at the fifth rank with the introduction of the sixth?

Yes, most likely some of the tanks of rank V (for example, ATGM carriers) will receive a new armored vehicle, and some of the tanks already in the game may move to rank VI. Only this will not happen immediately with the release of the patch, but after some time, sufficient to collect statistics.

— Should we expect the introduction of features, such as remote control, on vehicles already in the game?

You need to understand that the presence of such protection, both passive (T-62M) and mounted remote sensing, will increase the effectiveness of the tank, so the introduction of such modifications will be made for balance reasons, with a concomitant increase in the Battle Rating.

— Should we expect the appearance of premium vehicles of rank V, since it is no longer top? What will happen to the bonuses of premium rank IV vehicles for leveling up a new top rank?​

We do not rule out the appearance of premium rank V vehicles. The reward bonus for premium rank IV vehicles when upgrading VI vehicles will work the same way as it does now when upgrading vehicles 2 or more ranks higher, i.e. with a fine.

— Rank VI tanks will appear immediately with the release of patch 1.71 or will there be a closed beta first?​

The equipment will be available for research immediately after the release of update 1.71.

— Will rank VI tanks be added for other countries?

All nations that have their own ground vehicle research tree will receive rank VI vehicles. We will add tanks from other countries to the game as soon as they are ready.

My passion for flight simulators began twenty years ago with the game F-19 Stealth Fighte r , which my brother got for our ZX Spectrum. Then there wereMicrosoft Combat Flight Simulator , Jane's Attack Squadron , « IL-2: Sturmovik" And LockOn, timid attempts to get used to the peaceful sky MSFS and much more.

There were hour-long flights and high-altitude battles reminiscent of a chess game, the need to cram algorithms for the operation of the propeller pitch, control the radiator dampers and monitor the engine speed... But the frantic pilot routine was redeemed by a fun maneuverable battle near the ground - it is called a dog fight, a “dog dump” , - when dozens of planes rush back and forth, tearing up the sky every second with sparkling stitches of tracers.

Unfortunately, it was difficult to find such fun online. The great and terrible IL-2 died of old age, unable to give birth to a worthy heir, and he himself, admittedly, was too hardcore. And when it seemed that there was no hope left, thunder struck...

Sat down and flew

On November 1, an open beta test of the Russian session game, formerly known as World of Planes, started. The game is considered the main competitor World of Warplanes, but is developing in a slightly different direction: the developers plan to add ground equipment and ships to the aircraft in one game, and not in three different ones. However, only airplanes are available for now. Let's talk about them.

Even those who have not played simulators before will be ready to go into battle after a short introductory flight. A joystick is useful, but not required. It can be used to perform more complex maneuvers, but in terms of shooting accuracy, the mouse is unrivaled. And in battle, this, you understand, is by no means superfluous.

As you progress in multiplayer, you can unlock a lot of interesting single missions: night raids on airfields, interception of bombers, air defense attacks...

War Thunder is mostly based on PvP, but for those who like to shoot at bots there are single missions, as well as the system of “static” (manually created) and “dynamic” (automatically generated) campaigns familiar from “IL-2: Sturmovik”. You can go through them either in splendid isolation or with friends. Campaigns from developers are not bad, but they are not free. For 360 rubles, the player receives a campaign, game currency and a premium account, which in themselves cover this amount, and in addition - a high-level aircraft. With such “bonuses”, the missions themselves begin to look like a bonus.

The main thing is to follow the regime

Among the offline tasks there are also quite peaceful ones: for example, an original test - to land the “Seagull” on a narrow and short breakwater.	The mission editor allows you to quickly create a battle with a couple of dozen bots and shoot to your heart's content.

War Thunder has three modes: arcade, historical And realistic battles. In the "arcade" planes do not collapse upon reaching critical speed, do not fall into a tailspin, do not overheat, and have more powerful engines. The battle begins in the air; Each pilot has a substantial supply of cars - on average, five to seven pieces.

In historical battles, the start takes place at the airfield. The flight model becomes noticeably more complicated, ammo and fuel are not endless, and each side is equipped with vehicles of only one nation - if we play as the Germans, access to Soviet pilots is prohibited. In realistic mode, mouse control is prohibited and you cannot use a third-person view (cockpit only), and only allies are marked with markers, and then almost point-blank.

The density of fire in arcade mode sometimes goes off scale. Tracers are everywhere, step left, step right - and they will shoot you, and not necessarily enemies.	In battle there is no time to be distracted by beauty. Even these!

In addition to realism settings, there is a choice of victory conditions: in the first mode you need to destroy all ground equipment and ships, in the second mode you need to occupy airfields. Both are still raw. A light-hearted dogfight would be very appropriate here, but for some reason the players are stubbornly forced to hunt for ground targets.

Or land on airfields for capture, which in the midst of an air battle is often tantamount to suicide.

Eight guns and the whole sky in airplanes

A typical fight in arcade mode. Something is shooting somewhere, something is exploding somewhere.	Explosion further away - a plane that tried to shoot down a P-40 on landing, but instead came under fire itself. A closer explosion - another shot down.

There are already three hundred aircraft models in War Thunder, and in the future they plan to increase their number to five hundred. Almost all cars are historically accurate; Developers use design and prototypes with great reluctance, only to plug holes in development branches.

The developers cheated a little by adding a bunch of modifications that, at first glance, differ only in paint. However, this is more of a plus than a minus - given that you can take reserve planes into battle, it’s absolutely useful to have several options for your favorite build in the hangar.

Aircraft are divided into levels, from the first to the twentieth, although the distribution among them is quite arbitrary. They have almost no armor, and bullets, shells and those parts of vehicles that make holes in battle have never heard of levels. Therefore, the simplest biplane may well shoot down (which it often does) a top-end jet monster. If he catches up, of course.

Fasten seat belts, tuck diapers

Recently, the game launched random selection of weather and time of day. Instead of a boring clear afternoon - the most beautiful sunrises, sunsets, clouds...

The War Thunder beta test is in full swing: the balance is constantly being improved, many vehicles are not yet fully configured, and some modes and maps are not included in the rotation. But all these are temporary difficulties. The main thing is to play already Interesting. This is an adrenaline-pumping Quake for fans of air shooters. And there are prospects for serious virtual pilots - a powerful hardcore lobby on the forum and among internal testers reliably defends the interests of this audience.

Publisher Gaijin Entertainment Localizer Allcorrect Group Announcement date April 1, 2011 Release dates November 1, 2012 (beta test)
December 20, 2016 (edition) Latest version 1.91 (September 11) "Night vision" / September 11, 2019 Genres Age
ratings 12+ Technical data Platforms Windows
macOS
Linux
PlayStation 4
Xbox One
Game engine Dagor Engine (5.0) War Thunder Game mode multiplayer, single-player Interface language Russian, English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Polish, Czech, Hungarian, Serbian, Romanian, Belarusian, Ukrainian, Turkish, Chinese, Korean, Japanese Carrier Steam Control keyboard, mouse, joystick, gamepad Official site

System requirements

Minimum Featured operating system Windows CPU Intel Core 2 Duo, Core i3 2.2 GHz; AMD Athlon 2.2 GHz Intel Core i5, Core i7 3.0 GHz; AMD Athlon, Phenom II, 3.0 GHz RAM capacity 4 GB 8 GB Amount of free hard disk space at least 16 GB Video card DirectX 9 compatible, 512 MB memory DirectX 11 compatible, 1 GB memory Sound card DirectX compatible Net Permanent Internet connection Mac, Linux operating system Mac OS X, Linux (64bit) CPU Intel Core 2 Duo 2.4 GHz RAM capacity 4 GB Amount of free hard disk space 7 GB Video card Nvidia GeForce 660 / corresponding AMD Radeon series

Story

The development of a new global online flight simulator began in 2009. The company already had extensive experience in developing flight simulators - Il-2 Sturmovik: Winged Predators, Apache: Air Assault and Birds of Steel.

On April 1, 2011 the project was announced World of Planes. Some gaming media took and rebroadcast this announcement as an April Fool's joke, but the news turned out to be true: Gaijin Entertainment confirmed the fact of development World of Planes- massively multiplayer flight simulator. During 2011-2012, closed alpha and beta testing was carried out.

On January 24, 2012, the game developer and publisher Gaijin Entertainment announced a change in the official name of the project to “War Thunder” due to the fact that in the future the game universe will be expanded beyond the flight simulator and will make it possible to control both ground and sea equipment in one battle . On the same day, the official website of the game was relaunched; On November 1, 2012, the open beta test of the game started.

On May 15, 2014, after a year of closed beta testing, an update was released in which ground vehicles became available to all players in open beta testing. On November 6, 2014, the game became available on the Linux operating system for 64-bit systems;

On November 5, 2015, along with the next major update 1.55 “Royal Armor”, in which the British branch of ground vehicles became available, the transition to the Dagor Engine 4.1 and new rendering of water surfaces began.

On June 10, 2016, update 1.59 “Fire Arrows” was released, in which ground vehicles armed with ATGMs were added.

On August 11, 2016, the Navy was announced. Instead of large ships, the game will feature a “small” fleet. Visitors to the Gamescom exhibition in Germany, as well as owners of the Starter Set, will be the first to try out this innovation.

On December 20, 2016, the game was officially released with update 1.65 and the addition of the Japanese armored vehicles development branch.

On May 25, 2017, update 1.69 “Regia Aeronautica” was released with the addition of the Italian aviation branch and the removal of Italian aircraft from the German aviation development tree.

On August 22, 2017, at the Gamescom exhibition, the developers announced the 6th rank of armored vehicles, calling it “a new era of War Thunder.”

On December 20, 2017, a large-scale update 1.75 “La Resistance” was released with the addition of French equipment and two new locations.

On March 16, 2018, update 1.77 “Storm” was released with the addition of M1 Abrams, T-64 B and other post-war tanks. And also, along with the update, a new version of the Dagor Engine 5.0 was released

On June 19, 2018, the game entered Early Access on Xbox One.

On August 21, 2018, the first helicopters that will appear in update 1.81 “Ride of the Valkyries” were announced.

On September 19, 2018, update 1.81 “Ride of the Valkyries” was released, new tanks and aircraft were added, and closed beta testing of helicopters began.

On October 24, 2018, update 1.83 “Masters of the Seas” was released, open beta testing of the fleet began, and a German helicopter development branch appeared.

On December 17, 2018, update 1.85 “Sound Barrier” was released, which introduced supersonic aircraft, air-to-air missiles and several new ships, and beta testing of Italian armored vehicles began. And also, the British flotilla was released.

On March 12, 2019, update 1.87 “Target Captured” was released, in which the 7th rank of armored vehicles was introduced, new items appeared for aviation and navy, as well as an expansion of the list of models of ground combat vehicles.

On May 29, 2019, update 1.89 “Imperial Navy” was released, in which the Japanese fleet was added, and some nations received new SPAGs.

On September 11, 2019, update 1.91 “Night Vision” was released, which introduced NVGs, thermal imagers, a map filter, F-4C Fantom II, MiG-21F-13, Chinese tanks and aircraft, new maps, equipment, and the sound was also updated engine.

Game process

Modes

In War Thunder, players have access to various game modes.

Multiplayer session battles- battles, where two teams, each of which has from 6 to 16 players, fight among themselves, completing assigned tasks - capturing airfields/bases, defending/attacking territories. In addition to completing the assigned task, the battle also ends if all the equipment in one of the teams was destroyed and/or all players left the battle.

Single and co-op missions- battles where the enemy is equipment controlled by artificial intelligence. The player’s task can be either the destruction of all enemy equipment or the completion of special tasks.

Events- a type of battle where players are assigned a specific historical event with a fixed choice of equipment.

All game modes are divided into arcade, simulation and realistic. On March 17, 2017, patch 1.67 “Assault” was released, named after the new mode - “Assault”.

• Air battles
  • Arcade mode is the easiest to learn. There are: lead marker, markers above aircraft, 3rd person view, replenishment of shells in flight, simpler flight model. The battles are fast and dynamic. You can be revived on all aircraft of the setup once (2 times, if there are backups). Representatives of the same nation can get into different teams.
  • Realistic mode is more complex, suitable for more experienced players. Available: markers above airplanes, 3rd person view. Replenishment of ammunition occurs only at the airfield. Only 1 revival is available on the aircraft that was selected in the hangar. Representatives of one nation are placed on one team.
  • Confrontation ( simulator mode) is the most difficult and longest mode. 1st person view only. There are no markers. Only 1 revival is available on the aircraft that was selected in the hangar, and an unlimited number for revival points (RP) and Silver Lions. Representatives of one nation are placed on one team.
• Tank (joint) battles:
  • Arcade mode is the easiest to learn. There are: markers above all tanks, an indicator of ballistics and probability of penetration, increased speed and maneuverability of tanks, the ability to continue moving after 10 seconds. after an engine breakdown without repair, but with a penalty in power. There are 3 tank respawns available. During the game, revival points for aircraft accumulate, when used, the player is given a random aircraft of the selected class that matches the Battle Rating. Representatives of the same nation can get into different teams.
  • Realistic mode, by analogy with air battles, is more difficult to master. Unlike AB: there are no markers of enemies and armor penetration, all technical characteristics correspond to real ones, players for one nation end up in one team, damaged modules fail until they are completely repaired. You can use your own planes. Revivals are limited not by crews, but by RP (revival points).
  • Simulator mode in many ways similar to the realistic one. Unlike the latter in SB: the third-person camera is fixed above the turret (commander), the sight is located in accordance with the real position, there are no markers, the player has only one revival on ground vehicles (two on light and medium tanks) and one by air. In the new update [ When?] new mode rules have been introduced: 1000 RP (revival points) are issued and distributed by the player throughout the battle, allied markers (test mode).
• Storm
  • Storm. Air arcade is a new mode in the game. The bottom line is that a team of players on planes of any nation defends its base from the successive invasion of enemy bombers and attack aircraft controlled by AI. The player can use all the equipment he took into battle. Every day, for the first game of Assault, the player receives a “Battle Trophy”.

Also, playing Assault brings less experience than in joint battles.

• • Storm. Tank arcade is the same as Sh.VA, only on tanks. Players' tasks: hold the strategic point until the end of the battle. Opponents can capture a point (your team will lose points).

Damage model

The game does not have the usual health points. The damage caused to enemy vehicles depends on the type of weapon and projectile, point of impact and many other parameters. The parameters of the gun itself include such values ​​as dispersion and the maximum technical rate of fire of the gun. Projectiles have different characteristics: mass, caliber, initial velocity, fragmentation effect, explosion power, etc. When hitting, the characteristics of various types of materials are taken into account - glass, armored glass, wood, various types of metals, both aviation and tank. For example: 80mm layer of cast armor would be equivalent to approximately 75mm of rolled armor. One of the most important issues is determining the point of impact on the enemy. If a hit destroys one of the modules of an enemy tank or aircraft, this will immediately affect the combat capability of the enemy vehicle. In addition, not only the car, but also the crew may suffer. The game has a “HULL BREAK” system, in which vehicles that receive damage greater than the “threshold” are destroyed.

Technique in the game

The project has a separate reference site on technology, which is filled out using the technology of the site wikipedia.org

Aviation

The game features various classes of aircraft from the 1930s to the 1970s: bombers of various types, attack aircraft, fighters, etc.

Aviation is divided into the lines of the eight countries that participated in World War II: the USSR, Germany, the USA, Japan, Great Britain, Italy, France and China.

In total, there are more than four and a half hundred different aircraft models in the game, and the developers plan to increase their number in the future.

On August 21, 2018, the first helicopters that will appear in update 1.81 “Ride of the Valkyries” were announced.

On December 17, 2018, in update 1.85 “Sound Barrier,” a sixth rank of aviation was added, which included the first supersonic aircraft and air-to-air guided missiles.

Armored vehicles

Closed beta testing of player-controlled ground vehicles began on December 4, 2013, and open beta testing began on May 8, 2014. Tanks and other armored vehicles are available in the lines of all eight countries - USSR, Germany, USA, Great Britain, Japan, Italy, France and China. In total, the game features more than 200 different models of ground vehicles.

Fleet

The fleet's closed beta test started in November 2017. On October 9, 2018, update 1.83 "Masters of the Seas" was announced with the announcement of the fleet and the addition of the British fleet.

After the official release of the game update 1.89 “Imperial Navy” on May 29, 2019, the first large heavy ships and new ship classes and subclasses were officially added to the game, respectively. For example, the very first Japanese heavy cruisers and destroyers in the game were added, along with the first branch of Japanese warships.

Cards

The game features more than 50 different maps for aviation, ground vehicles and navy. Airplane maps are noticeably larger than tank maps and can cover an area of ​​more than 15,000 square kilometers. Many game maps recreate real battlefields of World War II: Volokolamsk, Stalingrad, Kursk, Berlin, Poland, Normandy, Maginot Line, Japan, Italy, Rhine Crossing, Ardennes, Mozdok, etc., as well as post-war: Vietnam, Korea and etc.

Historical accuracy

Great attention is paid to the historical accuracy of military equipment in the game. When creating game models, developers use materials from museums and archives in different countries. The development of one combat vehicle takes on average from one to several months. All modifications for each model are studied in detail, after which the most suitable for the game are selected. The purpose of such a serious approach is, first of all, to accurately match the technical characteristics of game models to real prototypes. [