World of Tanks 1.0 makes the tank MMO from Wargaming more beautiful and impressive. But the head of Wargaming himself refused to play the new version. He told us this in an interview.
Viktor Kislyi is the head of Wargaming and a huge fan of tanks. In numerous interviews and press appearances, the jovial Belarusian does not tire of admiring the impressive presence, force, and “masculinity” of these steel combat colossi.
Furthermore, the boss plays diligently himself. Under his real name, he has an account on the Russian servers of World of Tanks and regularly goes tank hunting.
However, he has so far kept his hands off the brand new Version 1.0 of World of Tanks. What’s going on?
Experience World of Tanks as a “Virgin”
I met Viktor in Prague at a pre-launch event for World of Tanks 1.0 and wanted to know what he thinks of the new version. The surprising answer: “I haven’t played it!” I wanted to know more and Viktor immediately started chatting away.
For him, it is very important to celebrate new things the first time, to experience them as a “virgin.” That’s how it has always been for him, including when eating the first ice cream, riding a horse for the first time, or his first trip to Neuschwanstein.
What Neuschwanstein has to do with Tanks…
The visit to King Ludwig’s Bavarian fairy tale castle was something very special for him at the time. According to his own statements, after the visiting hours ended, he climbed over a barrier to admire the castle at sunset. He was moved to tears.
And exactly such a feeling Viktor wants to enjoy with his “baby.” World of Tanks is practically unrecognizable in version 1.0 and has been completely redesigned both graphically and acoustically. Everything is new, so after 8 years you can really enjoy it “like the first time” again, even if the gameplay does not change.
My Mouse, My Account, My Beer!
Therefore, on March 21, 2018, the release day of World of Tanks 1.0, Viktor has no time for interviews and media appearances. He wants to sit down at his own PC, take his own mouse in hand, and log in to his account as an ordinary player.
And then he wants to drink one (but really just one) good beer and play the new World of Tanks 1.0 for a few hours. Together with millions of other fans too! And as he says this, his eyes shine with anticipation.
He could hardly contain himself because everywhere at the event there were computers with the new World of Tanks and they tempted him to play like seductive sirens. But luckily, a few staff members interested in tanks from the event location intervened, and Viktor preferred to explain to them how to effectively blow up tanks in the game instead.
What is the Future of World of Tanks? Modern Tanks or VR?
After Viktor discussed all these anecdotes and personal plans, I finally got to ask my questions. Or at least one, because there wasn’t much time left.
So I wanted to know what happens next with World of Tanks. After all, 1.0 was a pure beauty update without any gameplay changes. So will there soon be modern tanks in World of Tanks? War Thunder is currently going this route with update 1.77.
Viktor did not want to say much about that. He did mention “Never say never,” but overall, World of Tanks is supposed to continue to feel like World of Tanks. Whether this works with modern tanks is rather questionable, a further Wargaming employee later commented in another conversation.
World of Tanks VR
What is already firmly planned, however, are VR applications for World of Tanks. For this purpose, the company Neurogaming from Cyprus has been brought on board. The goal is to create Cinema VR, a location-based VR technology based on PolygonVR.
The goal is to create a kind of “arcade” where one can use high-quality VR applications in a perfect environment. World of Tanks is supposed to be a part of this.
“Football and World of Tanks will last forever!”
But whether on PC, console, mobile, or in VR, World of Tanks will last forever, according to Viktor Kislyi. “It’s like football. It’ll always be there. We’ll still be playing football on Mars once we have colonies there.”
Considering the low gravity on the Red Planet, it is indeed conceivable that World of Tanks could replace football as a popular sport on Mars in the future.
You can find more information about World of Tanks 1.0 and the many innovations here.
