Making the move to mobile
With some 50 million plus registered users, Wargaming has seen more than some success with its free-to-play World of Tanks. Since the announcement at the Game Developers Conference last week, there have been a few tidbits released about Tanks‘ mobile port, World of Tanks: Blitz.
First, it should be noted that the version we were shown was in an infancy state; somewhere between prototype and on its way to pre-alpha. Since tablets are obviously not as powerful as a PC, some concessions have to be made to keep the core intact. Blitz will launch with three nations — the US, USSR, and Germany — instead of the PCs six, with the total number of tanks resting between 80 and 90. This number is expected to grow overtime as more units and nations are already planned for post-launch support.
Without the options of keyboards available, controls are similarly streamlined. Tank movements are managed with a virtual joystick on the left side of the tablet, while the camera is controlled by swiping anywhere on the screen. The best way to think about it is to imaging holding the tablet straight up, with your left thumb on the stick, and your right swiping anywhere to move the camera. Like an impromptu dual analog.
For combat, you have a fire and zoom button to enter into a first-person perspective. This binocular view also comes with a bit of target assistance in the form of an outline that marks where your shot will land. Pretty handy for longer-range engagements. The release date is still TBA, as not even a year has been locked in yet, so we’ll see how this one pans out in a later state.
There was also the announcement of a console game being worked on, though no details on that project have been shared other than that it exists. Any of you guys Tanks fans? I’ve never gotten into the series, but does a mobile or console port tickle your fancy?
