World of Tanks v.0.6.4 update: Discussion of preliminary patch notes
Дата: 11.05.2011 13:32:59
ChrisK: 0.6.4 patch notes have been finalized - http://forum.worldof...post__p__530122
This patch should be out on Russian servers now and will come to NA/EU servers in about a week (maybe less!).
More of my comments here: http://forum.worldof...post__p__530234
The mythical Russian bias is likely based on the common misperception in the West that German tanks were mechanically superior - in fact, they were pretty temperamental and very complicated. Even during the invasion of France in 1940 (Fall Gelb), the French armored forces outweighed the Panzers in both quantity and quality. Although the quality of German tank production was excellent (armor plate, optics, gun barrels, shells, and welding in particular), especially compared to the Soviet tanks, the Russian vehicles general had greater maneuverability (both in terms of ground pressure and power-to-weight ratio), thicker and more heavily sloped armor, and bigger guns (with accordingly larger shells). The reason the Germans beat the snot out of the RKKA so badly at the beginning of the war was the excellent training, tactical initiative, organization, and combat experience of the German forces. The Soviet Union didn't really catch up in this area until 1943 or so, and Germany still managed to maintain a higher kill ratio until the end of the war (around 1:12 in 1941 with an average of about 1:7 throughout the war, lower ratios against the Western Allies). Why does this all matter in World of Tanks? Because players don't have the German tactical advantages or the Russian weaknesses (for example, very few cars in a mostly agrarian society meant few decent drivers for tanks), and we all know the technological advances because they happened in the past, all that matters are vehicle stats and player skill. Of course, crew skill plays a huge role, but since all players start out evenly matched, that is balanced, which the real war was not. For a more "realistic" balance, perhaps German tank crews should start at 60% and go to 110%, and Soviet crews should start at 40% and go to 90% (leaving the Americans at 50%/100%)? Of course I'm joking - this wouldn't be fair to the players - but the fact is, the Soviet tanks were well ahead of their time in the balance of production, armor, firepower, and mobility, even though they lacked quality technology and skilled crews.
OK, enough ranting - I'll address armor issues elsewhere.
This patch should be out on Russian servers now and will come to NA/EU servers in about a week (maybe less!).
More of my comments here: http://forum.worldof...post__p__530234
The mythical Russian bias is likely based on the common misperception in the West that German tanks were mechanically superior - in fact, they were pretty temperamental and very complicated. Even during the invasion of France in 1940 (Fall Gelb), the French armored forces outweighed the Panzers in both quantity and quality. Although the quality of German tank production was excellent (armor plate, optics, gun barrels, shells, and welding in particular), especially compared to the Soviet tanks, the Russian vehicles general had greater maneuverability (both in terms of ground pressure and power-to-weight ratio), thicker and more heavily sloped armor, and bigger guns (with accordingly larger shells). The reason the Germans beat the snot out of the RKKA so badly at the beginning of the war was the excellent training, tactical initiative, organization, and combat experience of the German forces. The Soviet Union didn't really catch up in this area until 1943 or so, and Germany still managed to maintain a higher kill ratio until the end of the war (around 1:12 in 1941 with an average of about 1:7 throughout the war, lower ratios against the Western Allies). Why does this all matter in World of Tanks? Because players don't have the German tactical advantages or the Russian weaknesses (for example, very few cars in a mostly agrarian society meant few decent drivers for tanks), and we all know the technological advances because they happened in the past, all that matters are vehicle stats and player skill. Of course, crew skill plays a huge role, but since all players start out evenly matched, that is balanced, which the real war was not. For a more "realistic" balance, perhaps German tank crews should start at 60% and go to 110%, and Soviet crews should start at 40% and go to 90% (leaving the Americans at 50%/100%)? Of course I'm joking - this wouldn't be fair to the players - but the fact is, the Soviet tanks were well ahead of their time in the balance of production, armor, firepower, and mobility, even though they lacked quality technology and skilled crews.
OK, enough ranting - I'll address armor issues elsewhere.
World of Tanks v.0.6.4 update: Discussion of preliminary patch notes