Update 1.0 Is Here!

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After years of internal work, over a month of public testing — and then even more internal iteration — the biggest update in the history of World of Tanks is nearly upon us! It elevates the game to 2018 standards in graphics and sound with the switch to a completely new graphics engine, Core, and introduces a new authentic soundtrack. The result? The world has been totally reskinned. It has all the bones of the original but a radically different face: crisper graphics, more detailed textures, higher-resolution images, and tunes that are timed and matched perfectly with what’s happening in the game. Better still, we worked a lot on performance optimization, reducing the overall memory footprint of graphics so that everyone can enjoy new visuals.

The sheer number of improvements and the level of effort that went into making Update 1.0 is comparable to the release of a completely new game. And today, we're bringing you a deeper look into what you can expect to find when you launch the game tomorrow.

DOWNTIME
PREMIUM ACCOUNTS & PAYMENTS

DOWNTIME

PREMIUM ACCOUNTS & PAYMENTS

New Graphics Engine

The most significant part of Update 1.0 is the overhaul of the underlying client tech. World of Tanks was visibly constrained by the BigWorld engine that simply couldn’t keep up with advancements in graphics technology. So we replaced it with a new Core engine.

Developed by our in-house team, this solution is tailored to the game’s needs and provides a baseline mechanism for advancing the game’s visuals. Core uses the latest technology for graphical content processing and rendering, enabling photorealistic graphics, complete with highly requested Havok® Destruction Technology, Global Illumination, responsive water, volumetric terrain, and other effects. Effectively, it’s the backbone of the game’s modern looks and has enough capacity to let us advance graphics in tandem with technology, ensuring World of Tanks remains fresh and sleek further down the road.

What does this mean for the player? New technologies and effects add harmony, realism and diversity to the picture. They boost your immersion, injecting each map with a myriad of small details, regardless of the client type you use (HD or SD). From the simple moments, like watching seasons change as you switch from a summer to a winter locale or embracing how sunlight plays across lush foliage, to the full-on visual assault of crushing environments when you’re rolling over them.

Performance Optimization

With this healthy increase in detail and effects, you're probably wondering what kind of framerates your system will be able to produce. Worry not, we put in extra hours of work to optimize code for graphics and performance, tweaking graphics sub-systems and using streaming technology to reduce the graphics footprint on your rigs.

Virtual Texturing

Screen Space Reflections

Adaptive Shadows

UI Optimization

Revised Tank Track Calculation

Advanced Tree Model System

Level of Detail

Particle Multi-Resolution Rendering

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The team fussed over the smallest details to make every location shine and provide an enjoyable experience. In addition to purely visual improvements, we revisited certain maps with extra scrutiny, fixing imbalances you brought to us over the years.

Erlenberg: The middle area received a solid makeover: it’s much easier to read now, with visible lowland, denser forests, and fewer environments that have little tactical value.

Fisherman’s Bay: It now has a more balanced frontline and offers both teams equal chances at pushing key directions.

Fjords: Tweaks to the terrain across the map make it possible to choose various angles of attack. These routes are viable for all classes, allowing them to move more freely.

Ruinberg: In addition to visual enhancements, we tried to fix imbalances that made the battle easier for the team that starts off in the northern section of the map.

Steppes: Newly added hills and cover spots in the lowland area should make the right flank more playable for both teams.

New Map Glacier

This post-apocalyptic wasteland of Glacier with its blend of beautiful snow and ice has been in development for quite a while now. Initially, its release had been timed around the addition of Swedish tanks. However, the team agreed that BigWorld didn’t have the capacity to show the wintry landscapes in all their glory. Now that Core’s up and running, we can finally present this deserted and serene locale hot with hot springs, geysers, and elevated ridges.

1. The active zone for light tanks. Thanks to the landscape and terrain, you won’t be left out in the open. But be careful, those pesky tanks might be hiding up by the carrier.

2. Tank destroyer spots. Good viewpoints, often with concealment, and even with a thinly armored vehicle, you can still do some damage.

3. There’s a large number of small shelters that won’t protect you from enemy artillery fire here and bushes. It’s a perfect spot for the mediums and not a bad location for tank destroyers either.

4. Tank destroyer spots. Good viewpoints, often with concealment, and even with a thinly armored vehicle, you can still do some damage.

5. In the case of a successful enemy advance to the center, take position on top of the aircraft carrier. By controlling the aircraft carrier, your team can help your heavies break through. Even by locating yourself by the sides of the carrier, you can help support your team in the center.

6. Designated spot for heavies. The perfect place for the heavies to fight, covered from artillery fire, there’s a plenty of options to maneuver amongst the blocks of ice and frozen shipwrecks.

Class-by-class strategy:

If playing a heavy tank, consider the north-west with destroyed ships and a large aircraft carrier stuck in the river of ice. It offers decent protection from arty shells and ample space for maneuvering.
Mobile light tanks will feel at home in the central area, where they can leverage multiple open spaces and use their view range to uncover enemy positions and hunt down enemy LTs.
Support vehicles can thrive in spawning areas to the south-west and north-east. Use concealed positions and the good viewpoints they offer to wear down enemies and support a push.
The northern area close to the aircraft carrier and the south-east part of the map are best suited for medium tanks. Secure the spot near the aircraft carrier to help friendly heavies break through or support your team in the center.

New Music Score

If dramatic graphical enhancement alone weren’t enough, Update 1.0 gives each map a signature sound with new soundtrack: over 60 unique pieces composed by Andrius Klimka and Andrey Kulik. Original loading screen tunes, rich in local musical aesthetics, reflect the atmosphere and mood of the map, amplifying your immersion in battle. Dynamic battle themes evolve and change as two teams fight for control, while closing themes for the battle results screen reflect the battle outcome.

1. Andrey Kulik and Andrius Klimka - Main Theme

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New ambient sounds are there to further boost your immersion, creating a feeling that there’s a living, breathing world around you, disturbed by the sounds of conflict. Each shell type has its distinctive sound. Gunshots and explosions don’t sound the same in a forest, village, or urban area. Just like in real life, what you hear depends on where you are, where fire is coming from and which obstacles it encounters along the way.

What About Graphics Settings?

Graphic configurations get reset with the switch to the new engine, and we’ll help you hit that sweet spot between visuals and performance. Here are a few simple tips to help you with settings.

Run auto-detect test: There’s no need to customize the client manually by disabling some settings to improve performance. The auto-tuning system, updated ahead of the 1.0 launch, will do it for you, finding the right balance of performance and appearance for your rig. Run the test to get the preset option that best suits your PC or laptop.

Use advanced settings (if you’d really like to): Choose the preset option offered by auto-detect and work from there to adjust the game’s visuals manually in Advanced Graphics Settings: pick Standard or Improved graphics render and tailor the settings to your needs.

Some graphics settings are more important than others. Reducing the right settings may get you comfortable FPS without severely reducing the image quality. You should start with special effects — antialiasing, texture and object quality, draw distance, lighting and post-processing. These are taxing, and toning them down can help you boost frame rate.

If you want more in-depth explanations on each advanced settings option, check out the complete guide.

Looking Ahead

This is by no means everything that’s been done so far. With this foundational refresh complete, the team will continue with other big improvements including general bug fixing, enriching the roster with new maps, national lines, modes, and more. We are keenly focused on what’s in front of us — an exciting, brand-new opportunity to deliver the ultimate experience for World of Tanks fans past, present and future.

For now, check back with Info Hub for a deeper look at each feature jammed into Update 1.0 and hit the battlefield to see the remastered game with your own eyes!

Click/tap the images below to see in-depth detail on each feature.