 | Another great interview for our readers about the upcoming World War II dogfighting MMO World of Warplanes by the russian Wargaming.net. We sat down with the producer, this time, mister Anton Sitnikau. This is what he said to us... |
Anton Sitnikau: Since our last meeting in October, many exciting things have happened. We’ve chosen the main battle mode – “Superiority.” While polishing this mode, we dropped many ideas that negatively affected gameplay, for example: “planes fly over an area that equates to base capture” or “kill all ground targets and win.” We felt that these concepts were not interesting or broke the game balance. After fine-tuning, “Superiority” aligns with the dynamics of the World of Tanks battles, and pilots will gain points for destruction of air and ground targets to achieve victory.
We have updated the list of vehicles as well, and players will be able to choose warplanes from biplanes to jet fighters. We’ve also implemented a basic version of the matchmaking system to balance the teams. The information on the “tech trees” is also being constantly updated – we’ve already revealed the German and US trees and the Soviet tree will be unveiled shortly. The UI has been improved greatly as well. Planes are obtaining different customization elements, including camouflages, emblems etc. So the game is constantly accumulating new content. And this is just the beginning.
MMORPGITALIA: Gaijin Enterteinment, in a past interview with our site, said, about the differences between World of Planes and your game:
First, World of Planes has PvE - Dynamic Campaign, Custom Mission, Single Mission, Quick Editor – and a huge selection of battles against AI opponents, offered both for single player and for cooperative playing with fellow virtual pilots. Second, the flight model and the performance characteristics of our aircraft are worked out so that we can offer not only a semi-arcade flight mode for beginners, but also an advanced realistic mode of aircraft control and combat. This feature should be appreciated by skilled virtual pilots as well as beginners who want to get the full range of experiences from piloting the realistic aircraft we have in the game. Third, we have worked and continue to work on very rich game content. We already have over one hundred aircraft to choose from, with numerous models of ground vehicles and naval ships participating in the game under AI control - and this is just the beginning.
Anton Sitnikau: We do not want to compete against our respected colleagues; we have a totally different approach. For example, their title will introduce three modifications of P-39 Aircobra as three different warplanes. We prefer to offer maximum possible modifications as a part of the modernization process for every aircraft. Players will be able to upgrade their vehicle to the modification level that they prefer. In this instance, we’ve opted for interesting gameplay and modernization process instead of historical accuracy.
Additionally, we will present not only campaigns and PvE-only missions. Our trilogy, starting with World of Tanks, is totally aimed at PvP battles both on random and clan levels. WoWP will just also feature AI-controlled gun operators, AA guns, ground and naval vehicles. The latest release from Gaijin announced a similar series of MMO games, dedicated to ground and naval combats as well. So the market gets even more intriguing.
MMORPGITALIA: What are the main things that you learned from the development and the current feedback of World of Tanks that helped you to create an even better game, in this case, with World of Warplanes?
Anton Sitnikau: WoT was our first serious MMO title. New departments were created from scratch to ensure a successful launch and provide a massive 24/7 service. Many lessons have been learned, so the WoWP team started with a solid foundation of experience. The most important thing here is that we have found a special gameplay formula that works well, and we are going to use it in our upcoming titles.
MMORPGITALIA: How many players will be able to player together in the same battleground?
Anton Sitnikau: We are planning 15 vs 15 combats, but the number of players will depend on game modes. We are still experimenting with different modes and performing internal tests. After finishing the main game mode, we will introduce other modes to our testers.
MMORPGITALIA: What about the premium accounts for World of Warplanes? Do you have in mind something different from WoT?
Anton Sitnikau: The concept will be quite similar to WoT for now. New features will appear in the integration of two titles: World of Tanks and World of Warplanes, including common events, contests and bonuses
MMORPGITALIA: Something new about the visual customization?
Anton Sitnikau: If you take a look at our new screenshots, you will surely notice historical camouflages, emblems, symbols, frag counters and additional paint schemes. After the release, players will be able to customize all of these.
MMORPGITALIA: How many maps do you plan to introduce at launch?
Anton Sitnikau: At launch we will introduce 7 or 8 maps. We are focused on constantly improving the quality of our arenas, more than the quantity, but will look to balance the two.
MMORPGITALIA: Do you think that to translate WoT in many languages helped the title to better hit the market? What about the localization plans for WoWP?
Anton Sitnikau: After its release, WoWP will support several languages. Localization will cover game client, website, chat and crew voice over. We plan to make voiceovers for the crews match the nationality of an aircraft, not to the chosen localization. Also, players will be able to choose the language of their voiceovers.
MMORPGITALIA: In our last interview you said: "Well, clans from all the three games will be able to cooperate on the Global Map supporting each other. For instance, a tank clan and a plane clan that control the same province will be able to provide each other with certain “clan supplies” – the plane clan will get an AI-controlled anti-air tank(s) that will help it secure the base, while the tank clan will get a specific model of AI-controlled fighter(s) that will be used in combat. This sort of mutually beneficial exchange of “gifts” will be possible within the battles for this particular province only." Could you give us a little scoop about this important feature, something more in depth or more detailed?
Anton Sitnikau: We do not have any additional information to provide on this at the moment. Integration of the titles on the clan level with such features as Commander’s tank, “clan supplies” and AI-controlled elements should appear first in World of Tanks. We will perform the necessary testing and then will be able to share more information.
MMORPGITALIA: How will the various beta phases be structured? Do you already have an approximate date for launch?
Anton Sitnikau: We are at the threshold of a new stage. The testing structure will differ from the one we used with WoT: CBT-OBT-Release. And we will be inviting thousands of active testers into the game very soon.
