world-of-warships
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Sneak a peek at various vessels in World of Warships
From tanks to planes and now ships, Wargaming is definitely known for the exquisite detail of its WWII-period vehicles. And today the company released new screenshots and renderings showing off that detail in the battleships of the upcoming naval MMO World of Warships. While the screenshots show a variety of vessels, the renderings draw attention to the USS New Mexico, a battleship that served the US Navy for decades and was a force to be reckoned with during World War II. Get a glimpse of some of the giant warships setting sail in WoWS in the gallery below. [Source: Wargaming.net press release]%Gallery-172269%
Wargaming.net video summarizes 2012
2012 is almost be over, and it has been a good year according to Wargaming.net, the studio behind the WWII-inspired MMO World of Tanks. WoT has grown to over 45 million players worldwide and garnered several awards, including best MMO of the year from Golden Joystick. But that isn't all; development continues to roll forward on the two company's two upcoming titles, World of Warplanes and World of Warships. Wishing everyone a happy holidays, the studio released a video montage highlighting the year's accomplishments as well as the developers behind the games. Interspersed throughout are clips of in-game footage from all three titles. Want to see just what kind of shenanigans go on at the Wargaming offices? Check out the video after the break.
World of Warships classes, game modes hinted at in new dev blog
World of Warships information has been in short supply in the months since the title's official announcement. Fortunately there's Overlord's blog, which serves as a platform for various Wargaming.net personalities to share their insights regarding the firm's World War II action titles. Today's entry is a WoWS FAQ of sorts, and it contains a bevy of basic info on everything from ship classes (Battleships, Aircraft Carriers, Cruisers, and Destroyers) to maneuvering to game modes. As for initial alpha testing, Wargaming says to "expect Spring or even Summer 2013."
World of Warships debut screens aim for photorealism
Fans of naval combat who have been following Wargaming.net's development of World of Warships are in for a treat: The studio has just released the first in-game screenshots of the free-to-play action MMO. And those screenshots depict impressive detail and a level of photo-realism rarely seen in games, from the landscapes to the water to the ships themselves. Rechristened last August from World of Battleships, World of Warships puts players on the bridge of massive 20th century ships to battle one another on the high seas. Check out the breathtaking scenery and a variety of vessels available in the gallery below. [Source: Wargaming press release]%Gallery-172269%
World of Tanks was rejected by publishers as 'cheap Asian stuff'
Since its release at the end of 2010, Russian tank MMO World of Tanks has grown to become a global sensation with over 35 million users worldwide. The incredible success of this free-to-play giant has gone on to spawn upcoming offshoots World of Warplanes and World of Warships, but you might be surprised to hear that western publishers initially rejected the game. At GDC Europe today, Wargaming.net CEO Victor Kislyi revealed that Western publishers originally didn't accept the game because of its free-to-play business model. "They were very arrogant," Victor explained, adding that the game "was described as cheap, Asian stuff." The rampant success of World of Tanks and the free-to-play business model has since grown Wargaming.net from a studio with 120 employees into a global business with over 1,000.
John De Margheriti leaves BigWorld
BigWorld, the Australian middleware platform developer that was recently acquired by Wargaming.net, will have a new man at the helm as CEO and co-founder John De Margheriti steps down. Taking over the job as director will be the company's other co-founder, Steve Wang. Passing along BigWorld's leadership reins will not, however, end De Margheriti's involvement in the gaming industry. He plans to remain active by providing consulting services to Wargaming.net and the non-profit Academy of Interactive Entertainment (AIE), an Australian 3-D animation, game design, and visual FX educator. Of the recent purchase of BigWorld, De Margheriti said, "I believe that BigWorld is a great fit for Wargaming, and the acquisition is a very smart move by this growing global giant. They now have secured the best online games platform on the market." [Source: BigWorld press release]
Wargaming acquires BigWorld for $45 million
In what Chief Executive Victor Kislyi explained as a means to remain in control of the studio's own destiny, Wargaming.net has acquired BigWorld, an Australian online-game software maker, for $45 million. The move was to bring one of the publisher's critical tools in-house; previously, BigWorld supplied Wargaming with with its technology platform. Kislyi states, "This [is] very crucial for us, as we want to control the technology provider we are using. Now we can integrate them to make internal development more efficient." Wargaming, which publishes the popular free-to-play World of Tanks along with the upcoming World of Warplanes and World of Warships (previously known as World of Battleships), has been using BigWorld nearly five years. The move will lower the production costs of the two new titles and adds new employees to the company. Kislyi assures that Wargaming will continue to support Bigworld's current customers and indicates that in the future, the studio may be in the position to offer technology of the combined companies to others wanting to develop an MMO.
World of Battleships rechristened World of Warships
In a move to make the title more congruent with the entire Wargaming universe, the game formerly known as World of Battleships has been redubbed World of Warships. The studio, however, emphasizes that the change is in moniker only; nothing has changed gameplay-wise for the upcoming free-to-play naval game in which players get to participate in sea-faring combat using historically accurate vessels. Additionally, World of Warships will be included in the Wargaming.net common economic system, which will allow players to distribute resources between all three titles. The game is scheduled to launch next year. [Source: Wargaming press release]
