Recently World of Tanks developer Wargaming.net teased fans with an update and trailer for a series of developer diaries that would be coming through the year to explain the new additions and features they would be putting into the game. Now the first such video is here, and it's all about the physics of sweet destruction.
The video starts by discussing how the enjoyment of destroying things is part of the human psyche (err, according to Freud at least...) and they wanted to replicate this in-game. The main feature here is destructible buildings--truly reactive destruction where bricks and logs crumble and collapse when shot or run over.
It's more akin to what we see in Battlefield games where buildings and cover are destroyed when shot, but it makes a lot of sense to be included in a game where every player is a mobile, turret-wielding multi-ton metal wrecking ball.
The video demonstrates different levels of destruction and explains how different ammo types affect it differently. Armor piercing rounds, for example, will just shoot a hole through a structure, while explosive rounds will scatter pieces of a building in all directions, which is pretty cool.
The changes are brought about by the inclusion of the Havoc physics engine, which we've seen in a multitude of other games. Now, tank pieces and suspension will rock and bounce along realistically while it travels over the terrain, and the turrets of tanks can fly or drop off when a tank is destroyed. The game will also take advantage of multi-core processors for the first time.
Some buildings, or parts of them, will remain indestructible because they're necessary to the level design, Wargaming.net says, but in the future they might like to change that.
I don't think anyone would complain about more realistic physics and better destruction. The developers have committed quite a bit of time to very specific aspects of physics changes, so if you're a fan you'll appreciate the new details when they arrive. If you aren't, now is a good time to look into the game, because lots of great free upgrades should continue to come.
It's unclear exactly when these updates will make it into the game other than that they are "upcoming", but I expect we'll hear more about it when they're ready to be released. The next developer diary will talk about graphics improvements.