Commanders!
We would like to thank you for participating in the second Balance 2.0 testing round! We have already analyzed your early feedback and reached several conclusions.
There are currently three major issues with Balance 2.0 that we identified. These issues are:
- Uneven mobility changes, where some vehicles such as the Abrams series are noticeably faster while some AFVs (for example) became sluggish
- Autocannons have lost their role on the battlefield by losing the ability to deal a significant amount of damage per clip. This is especially noticeable on higher Tiers
- Vehicle classes aren’t diverse enough in Balance 2.0 – much of the feedback did mention that vehicles of different classes essentially play the same
To counter these Balance 2.0 issues, we will in the near future deploy a number of changes to Balance 2.0.
The mobility of MBTs will be improved (especially the reverse speed and hull traverse) – for some vehicles, these changes will be significant. In general, other classes will be more mobile than MBTs, but especially modern MBTs will not feel sluggish. On the other hand, the accuracy on the move will be somewhat reduced, especially for older MBTs. It will still be better than the one in 0.18, but not so much that it makes no difference whether you fire on the move or stand still. AFV mobility will improve as well, but each line will have a bit different characteristics to improve gameplay diversity.
The biggest change will, however, involve autocannons in order to make them more fun to play and to improve their performance. Autocannons in Armored Warfare will lose their magazines; it will be possible to fire them continuously (until the total ammunition runs out). It will also be possible to switch between AP and HE shells instantly (to simulate modern autocannon dual feed system).
On the other hand, autocannons will suffer from overheat accuracy loss: the longer the burst, the lower the accuracy. Continuous, accurate fire will be impossible; it will only be effective at short distances. Firing at medium or even long distances will require the players to fire in short bursts.
To address the gameplay diversity issue, we will introduce a number of additional changes to existing shells. Kinetic damage will not be influenced by caliber only, but also by their materiel, weight and velocity. HE shells will be further rebalanced as well – splash will play a more significant role and HE shells will do more module damage.
Additional changes will also be introduced to Tier 10 vehicles in order to make them a bit more different. The Armata will, for example, have a powerful stock gun and we are considering returning the 152mm gun (the vehicle will focus on single shot damage). The Abrams will receive an autoloader based on the Fastdraw design, allowing it to fire two shells in very short succession.
These – and other – features will be tested soon in order to deliver Update 0.19 in the near future.
We would once again like to thank you for your feedback and will see you on the battlefield!
