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Massively's guide to Gamescom 2011
If you've never been to Gamescom before, let's simply put it this way: It's big. Really, really big. Forget most any convention you've attended; this is likely to be even bigger. Billing itself as the world's largest games event, Gamescom sees well over a quarter-million fans, journalists and exhibitors crowd into the Koelnmesse in Cologne, Germany to check out hundreds of games and companies. Due to its size and worldwide prominence, Gamescom is a significant event for anyone following the MMO genre (and video games in general). There are plenty of MMO studios gearing up to share first looks, exclusive reveals, detailed Q&A sessions, and exciting hands-on demos for attendees. Naturally, Massively will be paying close attention to all of the news coming out of Gamescom this week. For those attending the convention or merely looking to keep abreast of all of the games, studios, and information forthcoming, we've compiled a guide to the hottest tickets at Gamescom as well as a comprehensive exhibitor list of MMO studios after the break.
Wargaming.net announces World of Battleships
First it was by land. Then it was by air. And now the third assault comes by sea. Today Wargaming.net announced that it will be rounding out its "World of" trilogy by adding a third MMO to its roster: World of Battleships. This free-to-play title will focus on the iconic battleships of the last century as players duke it out on the high seas. Like World of Tanks and World of Warplanes, World of Battleships will incorporate player-friendly controls and a clean interface to allow the maximum amount of carnage with the minimum amount of confusion. There will be a wide array of battleships available to play on maps with changing weather conditions and challenging obstacles. Wargaming.net CEO Victor Kislyi sees this as the final step for world domination: "Humans always needed to conquer the elements -- earth, water and air. With World of Tanks, World of Warplanes and World of Battleships we will offer players to conquer all, simultaneously." The company plans to allow players to "distribute resources" between all three titles once they're all up and running. You can get a first look at World of Battleships in the gallery below! %Gallery-130714%
World of Tanks crowned Best European Online Game
Wargaming.net is now the proud owner of yet another award for its action-based MMO World of Tanks. This time around, the award in question is the title of Best European Online Game from the European Games Awards. Other nominees for the award included EVE Online: Incursion, Mount & Blade: With Fire & Sword, and Runes of Magic's Lands of Despair. The European Games Awards is a nascent organization, having only awarded its first honors last year. Nonetheless, it is considered "the top award for European video and computer game developers." Wargaming.net CEO Victor Kislyi said of the accomplishment, "It has been hard and rewarding to develop and publish World of Tanks and it adds merit to our work by winning this award. We want to thank the players for enjoying our game and the game industry for the recognition in our hard work."
Revell and World of Tanks form model tank alliance
Raise your hand if you're male, you're over 30, and you have fond memories of building plastic model kits as a kid. Now that we've probably eliminated half the population of this website, those of you remaining (or those of you looking for a gift for a nerdy loved one) may get a kick out of Wargaming.net's latest press release. The strategy gamemaker has partnered up with Revell, one of the oldest model manufacturers in existence, to cross-promote some of the heavy armor featured in World of Tanks. Many of the game's tanks are already featured in Revell's replica product line, and the company has been offering true-to-life scale model kits of tanks, aircraft, automobiles, ships, and many other kinds of vehicles since the early 1940s. Revell recently dipped a toe into radio-controlled modeling as well, and the company will be demoing an RC tank at the World of Tanks Gamescom booth later this month. In return, Wargaming.net will appear at Revell's booth during the Hobby Spiel exhibition in Leipzig this coming October.
World of Tanks surpasses five million registered players in time for first birthday
World of Tanks' first birthday is right around the corner, and what better way to celebrate than via a milestone announcement. Wargaming.net's latest press releases touts the fact that the free-to-play World War II action MMO has surpassed 5,000,000 registered players. That's a lot of tank commanders, and apparently more than the company anticipated. "We didn't expect World of Tanks would become this popular. The game's success has given us [the] confidence we needed to continue our expansion into the world of online wargames," said CEO Victor Kislyi. World of Tanks also set numerous peak concurrent user records during its first year, and owns the Guiness World Record for simultaneous player connections at 91,311.
World of Tanks update brings free two-player platoons, new map, and more
Wargaming.net is gobbling up headlines like a tank drinks diesel fuel, and whether it's a World of Warplanes announcement or preparations for Gamescom, the company is making the most of its increased visibility. The latest press salvo concerns World of Tanks' newest update, and version 6.6 brings a new map, new tanks, and a few minor playability fixes to the table. The new map is called Siegfried Line, and the new armor takes the form of several German tank models including two premium Skodas (the T-15 and T-25). Wargaming.net has also added the option for free-to-play gamers to form 2-player platoons at no cost. Head to the official World of Tanks website for the full update notes.
World of Tanks becomes an e-sport
The phrase "serious business" is often used to poke fun at gamers who take their MMORPGs, well... too seriously. World of Tanks players are having the last laugh, though, as their game is now officially an e-sport with the potential to repay their time investment with a bit of real-world cash. Wargaming.net's latest press release has the details, which include the fact that WoT is now a part of the Electronic Sports League Major Series -- also known as the largest gaming league in Europe. ESL boasts over 3 million registered members and upwards of 740,000 registered teams, making it a good fit for the hardcore World of Tanks community which holds the single-server player concurrency world record. Head on over to the ESL World of Tanks portal to sign up for the first official event.
Wargaming.net to sponsor European Games Awards
Cologne, Germany is figuring heavily in Wargaming.net's plans this summer. The studio is unveiling its new World of Warplanes MMORPG at the city's Gamescom event on August 17th, and has also signed on to be the primary sponsor of the 2011 European Games Awards (EGA) that will be given out aboard the "event ship" Pure Liner 1 which cruises the Rhine river. The EGA ceremony goes down on August 13th, and is notable for the fact that players nominate games and companies as well as choose the award winners. Wargaming.net released its free-to-play World of Tanks MMO earlier this year, and has been developing strategy warfare titles since 1998.
Wargaming.net opens European office
Wargaming.net is expanding, and the company behind World of Tanks and the upcoming World of Warplanes has issued a press release detailing its growth and plans for the future. In short, a new European branch is opening, and the facility will boast "more than 40 professionals" who will handle Wargaming.net's PR, marketing, community, and support logistics. The company, which originally formed in Belarus, has tapped Frederic Menou to oversee its new European office which is located in Paris, France. Menou was formerly the managing director at Blizzard Entertainment Europe. "We are not a small company, we are becoming a global player," Menou says. "There's nothing that can hinder us from becoming the best company in the industry."
Wargaming.net's World of Warplanes to share currency with World of Tanks
Whether you feel more comfortable on the ground or in the skies, Wargaming.net has you covered. The studio announced today some new details on the economic system for its upcoming title World of Warplanes. According to the press release, it will follow the model of its predecessor World of Tanks with gold, credits, and experience as the primary forms of currency. With the addition of World of Warplanes to its stable, however, Wargaming.net plans to allow "global interaction" between the two titles. This means, in case you couldn't guess, that all of those different forms of currency will be shared between the two games. This, in turn, means that any player that has racked up an obscene amount of gold/credits/experience in World of Tanks can put their excess currencies toward their advancement in World of Warplanes. If you want to get a jump on the competition before World of Warplanes' launch, you can sign up for World of Tanks at the official site.
Wargaming.net forms partnership to expand into mobile gaming
World of Tanks on an iPhone? Perhaps, perhaps not, but something similar might be a possibility as Wargaming.net announced that it's teamed up with mobile game developer DAVA Consulting. The two companies have formed a "strategic partnership" for a long-term plan to take the highly successful World of Tanks team into the realm of mobile gaming. The partnership will allow Wargaming.net to start exploring gaming possibilities on mobile platforms, including iOS devices. DAVA is located in Eastern Europe and provides a wide variety of services from bottom-up application development, consulting, handling ports, and game testing. Wargaming.net CEO Victor Kislyi apparently wants to make as big of a splash on the iPhone as the company did with the PC: "Having known the DAVA team for some time, we are thrilled to have them spearhead our efforts in the mobile games and applications development. We are looking forward to establishing a strong presence on the mobile market and DAVA is the best partner to assist us."
World of Tanks 6.5 patch debuts June 30th
A new retail box isn't the only thing in store for fans of World of Tanks in the near future. Wargaming.net has just issued a press blurb confirming the action MMO's latest patch release for June 30th. Update 6.5 brings two new maps to the battlefront. Redshire takes it inspiration from traditional British settlements, while Arctic Region is the game's first pure winter locale. In addition to the maps, 6.5 also features a new lineup of American destroyer tanks including the famous T95 "super-heavy monster." The patch also introduces two premium light tanks (the American M22 Locust and the Russian T-127) as well as the M46 Patton, which is slated to replace the M26 Pershing. Wargaming.net CEO Victor Kislyi says this tweak is the first step toward a global tech tree revision. "We constantly keep polishing the game balance, and updating World of Tanks to 6.5 is yet another important step in this direction."
World of Tanks rolling toward retail
The retail box hasn't quite succumbed to the digital download onslaught, at least if World of Tanks and Wargaming.net have anything to say in the matter. Yes, fans of clutter and old-school box collecting rejoice, as WoT is on its way to a game store near you thanks to a new partnership with Interactive Gaming Software. The World War II-based tank MMO will be available at retail for $19.99, and Wargaming.net CEO Victor Kislyi hopes that the new deal will result in increased exposure around the globe. "We're extremely proud to say that our headliner will finally appear in stores," Kislyi said via press release. "[We] hope that [IGS'] tremendous expertise in distributing retail production will help in bringing the popularity of World of Tanks to a completely new level." World of Tanks is a free-to-play action MMO that launched last April. The game features squad-based tank combat, traditional MMO progression, and a strategic territorial meta-game based on a large-scale map of World War II-era Europe.
World of Tanks invades LA in new videos
Get out of the way! Tanks are invading Los Angeles? Wait, what? That was at E3? Oh, OK. Well then, I suppose you're safe... for now! That's right, those wacky cads over at Wargaming.net took the opportunity during E3 to invade LA with some very large, very real tanks. In case you weren't at E3 to see the madness first-hand (the team even brought a tank into the convention center to guard its booth), the team was kind enough to post a few videos outlining the (completely and utterly insane) task of invading Los Angeles with three different kinds of tanks. Having chronicled World of Tanks' ongoing plans for world domination at E3, we can think of no better way to celebrate but to bring out some real heavy artillery. So strap on your helmets and Kevlar and army-crawl past the cut for some tanks-on-the-road madness.
E3 2011: Conquering the world with World of Tanks
The free-to-play MMO is making great strides across the world. And if you were to ask the CEO of WarGaming.net, Viktor Kislyi, he'd tell you his F2P game World of Tanks is bigger in some countries than World of Warcraft, particularly his home nation of Russia. As he told us when we talked to him at E3, "[It] beat the crap out of WoW in Russia." He backed that statement up by saying there are over 155,000 concurrent players in Russia daily for his MMO. With the introduction of Clan Wars earlier this year, World of Tanks appears to be quite literally conquering the world. Kislyi boasts that the Russian server has over 6,000 active clans, and over three million players are actively playing world-wide, which he claims is better than the stats of most of our favorite MMOs. He says if you combine the peak hours of all the servers across the globe, World of Tanks hosts 300,000 concurrent players. That's a staggering number. Pop past the break as we dig deeper into the discussion with Kislyi and find out why this game is storming the world.
E3 2011: World of Tanks teases clan wars trailer, new screens
World of Tanks may not be the biggest name in the E3 house this week, but the free-to-play action MMO's clan wars trailer nonetheless brought some big guns to bear on the annual gaming convention. The 40-second spot features a handful of tanks careening across what appears to be a scorched landscape highlighted by fiery fault lines. As the camera pulls back, we get a good look at a stylized campaign map of the European theater over which World of Tanks' clan wars metagame is fought. Wargaming.net has also released a bunch of nifty new screens to celebrate convention week, and you can get an up close and personal look at World of Tanks' highly detailed hardware in our gallery below. After you're done, head past the cut for the teaser. %Gallery-125725%
Wargaming.net announces new World of Warplanes MMO
Since 1998, Belarus-based Wargaming.net has developed and shipped 13 games including the Massive Assault series, Order of War, and most recently, World of Tanks. According to a new press release, the dev team is aiming to replicate WoT's success with a new free-to-play title called World of Warplanes. Aviation is the big draw, of course, and Wargaming.net indicates that the title will feature aircraft and scenarios dating from the 1930s through the 1950s (a watershed period in aviation history that saw rapid technological advances spurred on by World War II and the Korean conflict). Details on the game are a bit light at this point, but we're expecting (and hoping for) something similar to World of Tanks in terms of a balance between simulation and traditional MMO gameplay. We'll be bringing you more on World of Warplanes throughout its development process.
World of Tanks coming to real-world Tankfest event
It's not often that an MMO intersects with history, and it's even rarer when it does so with enough authenticity to merit inclusion in real-world historical celebrations. World of Tanks has done just that, and thanks to a new press release from Wargaming.net, we've got word that the dev team will be participating in Tankfest 2011, an annual military history event. Tankfest takes place at the Bovington Tank Museum in Britain on June 25th and 26th, and Wargaming.net will be on hand to demonstrate "one of the largest virtual examples of WWII-era steel armor." World of Tanks officially launched on April 12th after an extensive beta period, and the game recently released new maps and the meta Ultimate Conquest mode.
World of Tanks enlists millions worldwide
Like its iconic vehicles, World of Tanks is proving to be an unstoppable beast rolling over everything in its path. And if numbers are any indication, there's no sign of this newly released game slowing down. Today, Wargaming.net announced that World of Tanks has crossed the line of two million registrations for its Russian server. The European and North American servers add another million to the roster as well. The game is proving to be a smash hit in Russia, which recently awarded it Best Game of GDC Russia 2011. CEO Victor Kislyi says that this well exceeds any predictions the company had for the game's growth: "At the very beginning of development for World of Tanks, we were assuming that the maximum number would be around 600,000 players worldwide. Now, we have two million registrations in Russia alone, not to mention the Western audience and its immense growth. With the tremendous number we've reached in Russia as well as the dynamics of community growth in Europe and North America, we are looking forward to the many more milestones to come."
MV Guide: May 23 - 29, 2011
MV Guide is a weekly rundown of the MMO gaming events planned on Massively's Livestream channel. Every week, the Massively staff logs in to play various MMOs live and in person, and we'd love for you to drop by the channel and visit. We have a combination of regular weekly games and new surprises, so you'll find a variety of games to take a look at. During Livestream events, you can participate in the live chat to learn about the game, ask questions, and spend some time with Massively staff and readers. (Of course, Livestream events are subject to the whims of outside forces like server-side gremlins once in a while.) Follow along after the jump to see what's scheduled for this week!
