Welcome to the eighth issue of the Developer Digest series - find out more about the development of the game straight from the developers themselves!
The Loot Crates seem to be dropping less and less each day, why is that?
We haven't made any tweaks to loot rates since it went live. The system basically runs itself. During the first couple of days the sample size and population base was comparatively low. For example, it's harder to score in the top 10 percent server-wide if the theoretical pool of eligible players is 1000 vs. 100. After the statistical curve has been saturated, scores will average out and you'll end up with more stable "loot brackets". Also, keep in mind that your score modifiers your chance at getting a good loot box. You can't compare your own scores vs. the quality of loot boxes you've received because it's not a 1:1 comparison.
Aren’t the Basilisk map rewards a bit too low?
We will take a look at the rewards for this map.
What about introducing night vision?
Night vision is something we are planning to add in the future.
I don’t like the Highwall map, are there any plans to change it?
We are going to take a hard look at Highwall. Until then we may pull it from rotation in Update 0.17 once we introduce the next PvP map.
When rotating camera in third person view, vehicle models disappear if your point of view is from another tank or a wall or another hard object.
This was an intended change since we felt it was better than having the camera clip through other vehicles or your own hull.
I have a large number of low quality Insignias in my inventory, what shall I do with them?
We will eventually be adding the ability to "consume" items of a lower quality in order to get a better version of the item. So for example, you may consume 5 bronze commander insignias and get 1 silver insignia in its place. Also, in Update 0.17 we will be adding the ability to open multiple boxes at once.
Some PvE maps are offering much higher rewards than others, any plans to change that?
We are planning to overhaul the entire reward system in the near-ish future.
Any plans to change ATGMs?
It is our intention to completely rebalance ATGMs and potentially provide those who could fire on the move (albeit at lower speeds) the ability to do so.
Tell us more about the upcoming rebalances!
We are working on some major rebalances to the game across all vehicle lines. While I cannot provide the exact details at this time, they will be far reaching and have a major impact on the meta of the game. All of these changes will need to come at once in order to not skew the balance by piecemealing them out one by one. Once we are a bit closer we will release a number of articles detailing these changes.
Were there any recent changes to module design? Modules seem to be getting destroyed a lot!
Nothing changed in the latest hotfix as hotfixes are isolated patches which do not bring in outside mechanics which are not part of the patch. As always, the only recent module changes have to do with ammo racks and external fuel tanks. These came with the base Update 0.16.
Have you considered reworking viewrange mechanism into “cones” instead of “bubbles”, simulating actual crew lines of sight?
We tested this at one point and it led to players spinning their turret/camera around non-stop to always scan in every direction. At close range, the proximity spotting simulates "hearing" an enemy vehicle approaching as they are quite loud in real life.
Are there any plans for personal rewards for completing secondary objectives in PvE missions?
This is still planned and may potentially come in 0.17.
What about the SPG class? It seems neglected as of now!
While SPGs are indeed on the lower-end of the totem pole when it comes to overall vehicle balance and direction (due to a number of factors) it has not been forgotten or abandoned. We are still planning to add retrofits/equipment which will specifically boost SPG reload rates and we are looking at other areas we can improve the overall enjoyment of the class. That being said, we are taking a hard look at ALL classes right now to reevaluate how they play in AW and see what ways we can make those interactions more meaningful.
Are there any plans for PvE Matchmaker changes?
Yes, but not in near future.
Any plans to buff the Terminator vehicles?
Yes, the entire line from the BMPT to T-15.
Are there any plans to introduce new HD models and maps with 4K (Ultra-HD) texture resolution?
Certainly not this year. Our statistics show that the majority of players can’t run 4K resolution even now with existing models and textures.
Will you separate newbies from veterans on lower tiers?
This is currently not planned.
DRACO is more of a Tank Destroyer, not an AFV!
We are planning to change the DRACO class to “Tank Destroyer” in one of the upcoming patches, but this decision might change yet.
What about more Base upgrades?
We haven’t forgotten this feature, but there won’t be any changes to this feature in the upcoming updates. Currently we are dealing with more critical issues.
Will you introduce new Commanders?
We are planning to introduce new Commanders after the Commander mechanism overhaul, coming in the future.
That's it for today. See you in the next issue!
