Action/Strategy

An experimental Soviet SPG, a high-tech US tank prototype and more prizes await the players. 

Gaijin Entertainment announces that the Future Technology event for the military online action War Thunder that gives the opportunity to get new rare vehicles will continue until the 12th of April. The prizes are: the Soviet SU-76D SPG, the Japanese JDS Yūgure destroyer, the US XM8 light tank and an early version of the German F-4F fighter jet.

Future Technology is a crafting event where players participate in regular War Thunder battles to gather resources, ammunition and blueprints that are required to build a futuristic Minotaur tank. These Minotaur tanks can be exchanged for the four new rare vehicles mentioned above.

The SU-76D was an experimental tank destroyer with a low silhouette, an inclined arrangement of armor plates and a diesel engine. It was developed by the Soviet engineers during World War II but was not used in serial production because of the difficulties with the locally produced and sufficiently powerful diesel engine.

Yūgure was originally a Fletcher class US destroyer that Japan received at the end of 1950’s and was modified and used as an anti-submarine and training vessel. Five dual 40mm Bofors cannons allow Yūgure to easily take care of any smaller vessels and aircraft.

The XM8 AGS was an experimental American light tank, developed in the early 1990’s in an effort to replace the Army’s outdated M551 Sheridan tanks but only prototypes of this machine were built. The 105 mm XM35 rifled cannon and a 550 horsepower diesel engine gives XM8 enough firepower and mobility. There is an option to install additional composite screens onto the vehicle, enhancing its protection.

The F-4F was the export version of the famous Phantom fighter jet made for the German Air Force. It’s almost as powerful as the original US variant. The pilot is free to choose from a variety of weapons: bombs up to 2,000 pounds, Mighty Mouse and Zuni rockets, 20mm Vulcan gunpods and three modifications of the deadly Sidewinder air-to-air missiles: AIM-9B FGW-2, AIM-9E and AIM-9J.

The full description of the Future Technology event is available at the official website as well in the tutorial video.

Starting today, tankers can celebrate the 60th anniversary of the first-ever manned spaceflight

This coming Monday will mark 60 years since man’s first foray into space as six decades ago Yuri Gagarin, and his capsule Vostok 1, journeyed into outer space and completed 1 full orbit around Earth. Such an occasion demands a great celebration and World of Tanks is bringing exactly that to its players.

To the Stars! is a two-pronged event which will see players acquire Star Points. By acquiring this special form of in-game currency through daily missions, they themselves will get great rewards, such as a unique 2D style based on Vostok 1 and the man himself, Yuri Gagarin, as well as some other valuable goodies. Gagarin will be an in-game commander, dressed in his iconic orange flightsuit. His voicelines have been specially recorded by a professional voice actor who has mimicked both the diction and intonation of this renowned space hero. This part of the event will run until April 19th.

Alongside the personal progress, players need to join forces to complete a set of common goals: completing stages daily from today to April 12th. Just like personal progress, it will require players to earn Star Points and these will be added to a shared “piggy bank” between all tankers, so everyone’s contribution is crucial. Once the required Star Points have been acquired, more of Gagarin’s story unfolds. Besides more details becoming available, players will also get increased XP multipliers in battles between April 12th and 19th.

During the event, tankers can visit a special event website dedicated to the first-manned spaceflight and this significant astronautical milestone. The World of Tanks team worked closely with Galina Gagarina, daughter of Yuri, during the creation of this event to make sure her father’s story was told as accurately as possible.

“Yuri Gagarin proved that humans can live and operate in space. His flight encouraged and gave hope to all those who dreamed of this! It kickstarted the deep understanding of humanity’s role in preserving and developing our cosmic home—Earth,” says the daughter of the legendary cosmonaut. “I’m happy to know that, through the millions-strong audience of World of Tanks, the memory of mankind’s first foray into space will be preserved for years to come!”

Max Chuvalov, Publishing Director for World of Tanks, adds: “We would like to thank Galina Gagarina for all the help and advice she gave throughout the project. We are happy to share her father’s story with all our players and hopefully by doing so, more people will become inspired!”

Players will be able to track both their own and the shared progress here. For more information about the To the Stars! event, visit worldoftanks.com.

Players will be getting more content, improved gameplay and a revamped progression system

Gaijin Entertainment announces that the military online shooter Enlisted (PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S) has almost finished its Closed Beta Testing phase. The game will be ready for the influx of armies of new players from April, 8th. The updated version of Enlisted will feature a completely new meta game system, as well as new missions, vehicles and weapons.

Enlisted players control infantry squads, tank crews or aircraft pilots that fight together in the epic battles that re-enact the most famous battles from World War II. Two huge campaigns (Battle for Moscow and Invasion of Normandy) were introduced during the Closed Beta Test, and they already included dozens of air and ground military vehicles. The update will bring more interesting historically accurate war machines, i.e. US P-38J fighter, Soviet RM-50 mortar, German Pz.Kpfw. IV Ausf. H. tank and others. Enlisted will be getting regular updates in the future, bringing new content and whole new campaigns.

Hundreds of changes were implemented in the game based on CBT player feedback and battle data. These include improving soldier AI, polishing weapons and vehicle balance, tweaking the maximum number of soldiers in various class squads. The progression system will be significantly reformed, the influence of random mechanics will be decreased and players will get more control over the leveling up process. Completing battle tasks to move forward through the Battle Pass levels will be rewarded with unique weapons and high level soldiers, as well as vehicle skins, experience boosters, in-game currency and more.

The PlayStation 5 version of Enlisted works at 4K@60FPS and is practically identical to PC and Xbox Series X|S variants.

You can follow the latest Enlisted Closed Beta Test and other news on the official website of the game: Enlisted.net.

Update 0.10.2 also brings a large-scale makeover to all in-game effects and part two of the Italian Battleships event with new combat mission rewards

Wargaming, developer and publisher of the widely popular, free to play naval combat game World of Warships (WoWS), has today revealed Update 0.10.2 for the game, launching today. The update introduces a new temporary battle type ‘Big Hunt’, updated visual effects and new rewards to be earned in part two of the Italian Battleships event.

The Big Hunt Begins!
The sea monsters are back with a vengeance in a revamped version of the Key Battle game mode which debuted last Halloween. The new battle type pits 16 players against each other and AI-controller monsters as they race to escape through the portal at the centre of the huge Polygon map. With a wide range of modules and consumables on the exclusive event ships, there are lots of build variations for players to experiment with to make an impact.

Players enter each battle solo but can build up a team of their own as the action unfolds, or if entering as part of a Division, they can find each other on the map and unite to coordinate their efforts.

By destroying monsters, other players and a new boss ship ‘Aurora’, players can earn a temporary resource—Battle Points that can be used to reinforce their ship directly in battle and exchange later for rewards in the armory.

Visual Enhancements
This new update ushers in a large-scale makeover across all in-game effects — from shell tracers and gun fire, to water splashes, fires on board ships, and all AA effects — they’ve all been enhanced and reworked to accommodate the new lighting system. This comes alongside a huge array of visual effects added for ricochets, citadel hits, incapacitated weapons and consumables. Imagery and assets related to these enhancements can be found here.

Part Two of the Italian Battleships Event
The Early Access rollout of Italian Battleships continues, as players continue to enjoy the tier IV to VI, as well as tier VIII and IX ships which hit the seas in Early Access with the release of Update 0.10.1.

Italian Battleship containers earned as combat missions rewards may now drop one of the following Premium ships: VI Leone, VII Duca degli Abruzzi, VIII Roma, or IX Marco Polo, as well as special signals, Free XP, Regia Marina expendable camouflages, days of Warships Premium Account, and Doubloons.

Visit the official World of Warships website now for more game info and to sign up to play World of Warships for free!

ENJOY THE OSTARA FESTIVAL UNTIL 8TH APRIL, GEAR CUSTOMISATION NOW AVAILABLE

Today, Ubisoft announced that Assassin’s Creed Valhalla’s first major expansion, Wrath of the Druids, will be available on 29th April. In addition, Season 2, Ostara Season, features exclusive narrative content and in-game events accessible to all players. Starting today, players can celebrate Spring as part of the time-limited Ostara Festival with new challenges and rewards.

Ostara Festival, the first update of Ostara Season, invites players to discover an in-game event active until 8th April in a dedicated area of Ravensthorpe. Various Easter-themed festivities will be available, including:

• Settlement decoration activity
• Drinking, Archery, and Fighting mini-games
• Three new character quests: Eivor can enjoy an Egg Hunt, the May-Queen celebration, and protect the settlement against night spirits
• Three new skills: Fearless Leaper lets Eivor land a mastered falling attack atop enemies, while the Raven’s Loot and Loot Food skills increase Eivor’s efficiency when at range or fighting close-up
• Exclusive rewards including settlement decorations and customisation items

To experience the Ostara Festival, players must reach England and complete one of the first narrative arcs – either Grantebridgescire or Ledecestrescire. The festival will then be triggered automatically when players visit the settlement. To access the May-Queen activity, players’ settlement must have reached Level 3.

Starting today, players will be able to change Eivor’s gear appearance with visual customisation, better known as transmogrification or “Change Appearance” in-game. The original gear and armour stats remain unchanged as Eivor is visually customised, allowing players to stick to their build and unleash their inner Viking in style. Once a piece of gear or a weapon is found, its visuals can be equipped in exchange of silver by visiting the Blacksmith in Ravensthorpe if the item is from the same category.

To celebrate the Assassin’s Creed Valhalla community, players will receive Altair’s Outfit, the Yule Gear Set and cosmetics, and 300 opals for free. To claim the rewards, they must access the Animus Store.

Two future updates will add more content for Ostara Season, including:

• Mastery Challenge: A second update will add a new game mode building on Assassin’s Creed Valhalla’s core combat mechanics, bringing a highly replayable combat experience. A Master arrives at the settlement, inspiring Eivor to train and perfect challenges to become a Master.
• Additional rewards

In Wrath of the Druids, available on 29th April, players will journey to Ireland and unravel the mysteries of an ancient and mysterious druidic cult, tracking and discovering their members. Diving into Gaelic myths and folklores, they’ll need to fight their way through haunted forests and dazzling landscapes while gaining influence among Gaelic kings. The Wrath of the Druids expansion can be purchased as a standalone. Players can also access the expansion through the Season Pass, available now or as part of the Assassin’s Creed Valhalla Gold, Ultimate, and Collector Editions.

With development led by Ubisoft Montreal*, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla offers players the captivating experience of playing as Eivor, a legendary Viking warrior, driven from Norway by endless wars and dwindling resources in ninth century AD. Players can relive the ruthless fighting style of Viking warriors with a revamped dual-wielding combat system and experience new gameplay features such as raids, assaults, and the settlement, as well as a revamped progression and gear upgrade system. Political alliances, combat decisions and dialogue choices can influence the world of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, so players must choose wisely to protect their clan’s home and their future.

Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is available on Xbox Series X | S, Xbox One consoles, PlayStation®5, PlayStation®4, the Epic Games Store and Ubisoft Store on Windows PC, as well as on Stadia, Amazon Luna and Ubisoft’s subscription service, Ubisoft+.

For more information about Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, please visit assassinscreed.com.

Dozens of new ships, tanks and jets are waiting for the players in the Ixwa Strike update.

Gaijin Entertainment announces the release of the “Ixwa Strike” major Content Update for the military online action War Thunder. Players now have a new RSA ground vehicles branch in the British tech tree, as well as dozens of other ground, air and naval military vehicles. Variable-sweep wing aircraft and aircraft HUD devices have been added to the game. Finally, the abandoned Soviet military town of Seversk-13 and its environment that will become a new battleground for the armoured vehicles and aircraft of War Thunder.

Exploring the RSA vehicles branch will give the players the unique opportunity to follow the history of original South African ground vehicle development, starting from World War II era armoured cars and going all the way to the more modern vehicles. A good example is the TTD (Tank Technology Demonstrator) project, the South African MBT designed locally and built from locally-produced components. Although TTD stayed on the prototype stage, its technological know-how have been used later for the modernization of Olifant tanks to Mk2 standard (those are also available in War Thunder).

The Su-17M2 fighter-bomber jet became the first variable-sweep wing aircraft in War Thunder .Despite its large mass, the variable sweep of the wing makes it sufficiently maneuverable at low speeds and fast enough for a top-tier attack aircraft – it can reach speeds of almost Mach 2. The payload of the Su-17M2 is 4,000 kg and it is possible to install cannon pods, bombs of 100 to 500 kg calibres, S-5, S-8, S-3 or S-24 rockets, as well as guided missiles: the R-60 air-to-air; as well as Kh-23M, Kh-25 and Kh-29L air to surface class missiles. The update also brings other legendary aircraft, like the powerful French Mirage III E and US carrier-based F8U-2 Crusader fighter with interesting variable-incidence wing mechanics, which simplifies takeoff and landing.

The Heads-Up Display (HUD) device is a must for all modern aircraft. It is located right in front of the pilot’s eyes, displaying the most important information about the current condition and attitude of the aircraft or helicopter and can even show the impact points for shells, rockets or bombs, calculated by the ballistic computer. War Thunder players have already seen modern helicopter HUDs, while the “Ixwa Strike” update brings similar devices for the aircraft, i.e. F-4 Phantom II and Harrier family war machines. This new feature is especially important for players that prefer realistic or simulation modes of War Thunder that do not use markers for target assisting, so that the fighting feels as close to the real thing as possible.

Finally, naval fans also got several cool vessels of various classes for different nations. A good example is the Japanese light cruiser Isuzu that took part in the invasion of Hong Kong and Guadalcanal battles. It’s volley of eight long range Type 93 Long Lance torpedoes could become a serious argument in fierce War Thunder blue-water navy battles.

For full information on the changes brought by the “Ixwa Strike” update is available at the official website.

Update 0.10.1 features the debut of the new Italian Battleships, an updated Taranto port, as well as new format of Ranked Battles, new Clan Battles and updated Brawls

Wargaming, developer and publisher of the widely popular, free to play naval combat game World of Warships (WoWS), has today revealed update 0.10.1 for the game that will launch on February 18th 2021.

The headline addition is the maiden voyage of the long awaited, Tier IV–IX Italian Battleships. Players can now set sail for battle with these all new vessels, available in Early Access on the Live Server.

The Italian Battleships
The new update adds six all-new Italian Battleships to the game listed below and imagery for these vessels can be found here:

• Dante Alighieri (Tier IV)
• Conte di Cavour Tier V)
• Andrea Doria (Tier VI)
• Francesco Caracciolo (Tier VII)
• Vittorio Veneto (Tier VIII)
• Lepanto (Tier IX)

The Italian Battleships come armed with a host of interesting features for players to try out. These include semi-armor-piercing shells to deal significant damage to weakly protected targets, and a large number of guns, balanced by their shorter range and lower accuracy. The new ships also feature higher maneuverability and armour protection for the ship itself. Tier VIII–X ships also can deploy the Exhaust Smoke Generator consumable, which allows them to hide from the enemy without having to reduce their speed.

Players in the early access can obtain the majority of these new ships by earning a new temporary resource, the Italian Tokens. These can be acquired by completing combat mission groups including a special chain of combat missions, as well as from random bundles purchased with dubloons, free random bundles, Recruitment Point bundles in the armory and by completing combat missions from the official WoWS streams.

The number of tokens that can be obtained by completing combat mission groups will be enough to obtain Tier IV-VI Battleships, with VII Francesco Caracciolo available as the final reward for completing the last combat mission group and IX Lepanto obtainable from random bundles purchased with Dubloons. Full details can be found here in the Italian BB overview article.

Visit the official World of Warships website now for more game info and to sign up to play World of Warships for free!

Today, Ubisoft announced that a new update for Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is now available, bringing additional free content to the game for all players: a new game mode, Jomsviking upgrades, new abilities and rewards, and two new unlockable buildings in the Settlement – the River Raid Dock and the Jomsviking Hall.

The River Raids is a permanent addition to the game and a new re-playable mode enriching the raiding experience in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. The mode contains:

• Higher-stakes raids, with unique maps and rewards, in which the player can raid without impacting their main game progression and alliances in England. Unlike the original raiding feature, the raiding crew can be temporarily lost if players don’t revive them during the raid.
• A Jomsviking Crew: Recruited Jomsvikings (created by other players online) are led by the player’s personal Jomsviking Lieutenant.
• A New Longship: An all-new fully customisable longship exclusive to the game mode – whose cargo hold can be upgraded to bring more resources back from River Raids.

The new Jomsviking Hall has three levels to upgrade in Season 1, with the higher the Hall’s level the higher the ranked Jomsvikings it will attract for the player to recruit. Jomsviking also now have ranks, with the higher ranked Jomsvikings having greater survivability in River Raids.

After players complete one of the first narrative arcs in England, either Grantebridgescire or Ledecestrescire, build their Barracks and recruit their Jomsviking Lieutenant, they will encounter a new NPC named Vagn and his crew of Jomsviking raiders, who will introduce them to the River Raids game mode. The mode introduces three new river maps set around the coastline of England full of locations to raid and treasure to loot.

Finally, the update brings additional abilities and rewards:

• The Saint George Armour set and Great Sword
• 3 new Abilities, hidden in monasteries
• 2 new Settlement Buildings
• A new set of longship and player cosmetics

The River Raids game mode update, a part of Season 1, is the latest addition as part of the Assassin’s Creed Valhalla post-launch experience, with a variety of new free content for all players focused on gameplay and world evolution coming throughout 2021.

Season 2, named Ostara, will start in March 2021 with a first update bringing a festival in the Settlement, a new game mode that builds on Valhalla’s core combat experiences, new gear and cosmetic items. More information about Wrath of the Druids, the first expansion of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla releasing in Spring 2021, will come at a later time.

With development led by Ubisoft Montreal, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla offers players the captivating experience of playing as Eivor, a legendary Viking warrior, driven from Norway by endless wars and dwindling resources in ninth century AD. Players can relive the ruthless fighting style of Viking warriors with a revamped dual-wielding combat system and experience new gameplay features such as raids, assaults, and the settlement, as well as a revamped progression and gear upgrade system. Political alliances, combat decisions and dialogue choices can influence the world of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, so players must choose wisely to protect their clan’s home and their future.

For more information about Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, please visit assassinscreed.com.

Tame the Oxen in two special time-limited events

With the Lunar New Year celebrations kicking off as we welcome the Year of the Ox today, World of Tanks is unleashing a unique themed event to mark the occasion.

World of Tanks is introducing the Lunar Challenge, which will run from February 12th through 22nd. This special event will see tankers test their skills with 10 stages which offer up great rewards. There will be two ways to complete each stage: missions for commitment (available for Tier VI-X vehicles) and the more challenging missions for mastery (exclusively for Tier IX-X).

For completing all 10 stages, players will get their hands on the tanking embodiment of the Ox, the brand-new 122 TM, as well as a unique Lunar New Year 2D style, which can adorn any vehicle. Additionally, tankers who have already got their hands on the 122 MT can take on daily missions; those who complete 8 of them will be rewarded with a stunning 3D style exclusively for the Chinese medium. For more information about the Lunar Challenge, please check the dedicated article HERE.

For more information on World of Tanks, visit the games official website.

The legendary free-to-play shooter is “coming soon” to the new platform

Today, Wargaming announced its plans to bring World of Tanks to Steam. Once live, both players of the regular PC version and Steam users will be able to fight side by side in the immersive PvP battles the legendary F2P strategic shooter is known for. The Steam version will be available to new accounts only but will feature everything its PC counterpart has to offer.

“We’ve always wanted to make sure World of Tanks was available to everyone, so it’s a natural step that we welcome the Steam community to our family,” states Max Chuvalov, Global Publishing Director, World of Tanks. “Soon, Steam users will be able to enjoy the hard-hitting battles only our game provides, and we really hope they enjoy them!”

For the first time, Steam players will be able to master more than 600+ vehicles, hone their tanking tactics and skills and experience World of Tanks’ unique combat. The Steam version will launch later this year. For more information, check out the Steam page.

About World of Tanks

World of Tanks is the first team-based, massively multiplayer online action game dedicated to armored warfare. Throw yourself into the epic tank battles of World War II with gamers all over the world. Your arsenal includes over 600 armored vehicles from 11 nations, carefully detailed with historical accuracy.

For more information on World of Tanks, visit the games official website.