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Below are sections of the official update announcement published on December 14, 2020 that I want to look at. I figured it would be nice to see how the month-old announcement holds up to reality. Let's begin, shall we? BTW, WG reps I hope you're reading this.
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NEWS / ANNOUNCEMENTS
World of Tanks Console Upcoming Update!
December 14, 2020
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It’s one of our biggest updates ever. See what changes are coming to World of Tanks Console!
Are you ready for a sleeker, neater tanking experience? Our latest update is on its way, and it’s bringing massive changes to the look and feel of the game as well as some of the key game systems.
OK, there is some truth in that. This is the biggest change ever, but it most definitely is not an update. Even a month later the game is ridden with bugs that break immersion, economy and overall enjoyment. Where is the sleeker, neater tanking experience? Your "streamlining" only complicated things and took out game features that not only we were all used to, but were essential to playing and enjoying it in full. The massive changes you are mentioning are definitely there, problem is they are not changes for the better. Nothing in this generic part of the announcement matches what we initially received and what we have now.
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Commander System
In place of Crews, the World of Tanks Console Upcoming Update will implement the new Commander system.
Existing Crews will be promoted to Commanders. The result: a system that’s simpler for new players to understand and easier to manage with only Skills to keep track of.
Commanders were an unwanted change, but the concept is not bad at all. Problem is, the Commander system implementation was awful and dishonest to the Community. There was no warning we will lose all our super crews and instead we will get a bunch of fully researched 9 skill Commanders. Aside from that, the Commander system is hard to navigate, not intuitive at all and quite frankly, it's more complicated to understand and manage than the previous crew system. Because Commanders can now be freely moved between tanks and nations and there is no way of telling to which tech tree tank the Commander originally belonged to when moved to a Premium vehicle, managing Commanders is an absolute nightmare. To make things even harder, you took out the ability of renaming them and changing their portraits, so we have absolutely no way of customizing the Commanders and making them stand out at all. Perhaps had we known in advance this will be the case, we would've taken steps to sort the crews out BEFORE THEY WERE TAKEN AWAY FROM US.
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Consumables
Get ready for new, more powerful Consumables that can be used by tanks of ANY nation! We’re streamlining the list of Consumable items and converting all your existing Consumables into their upgraded versions so that you can get the benefit of these updated items right away.
While this may be true, you failed to mention you will charge us even if we don't use them in battle and for every time we do! It's a blatant cash grab and it's simply disgusting. We were all excited for this change as we imagined it will work like it does on PC, now most people hate it and resort to not using consumables at all! Another awful idea and implementation that is borderline pay to win.
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Equipment
We’re also updating the types of Equipment available and the ways they function.
Our new Equipment list includes familiar items that have been updated and renamed along with all-new items.
Additionally, with this update, all tanks (new and existing) will have the new Enhanced Target Info automatically installed. This Equipment can be removed at no cost or credit to you.
This change is simply baffling. Yes, there are new equipment pieces (some of which have such vague descriptions in game no new player will know what they actually do), but the 4th equipment slot and the ability to remove one of the core game mechanics is beyond me. This is an arty/stationary TD buff, simple as that. It's silly, not needed and brings more imbalance to the already struggling game.
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Tank Skins
All you tankers who enjoy customizing your vehicles with Emblems, Inscriptions, and Flags will love this part of the update. Get ready for a new way to change the look of an entire tank: Skins!
The new tech we’ve implemented as part this update has made Skins a reality. How will you look when you roll out into battle?
Skins are cool and are a good addition to the game. Selling visuals is an honest way to make money and does not have an adverse effect on game play. What you have failed to mention is that some of the inscriptions and emblems will be removed, giving us less customization options than before.
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World of Tanks Console and the Next Generation!
Don’t forget World of Tanks Console will run at 4k/60fps on Xbox Series X|S and PS5. Get ready to tank away and enjoy faster load times on these consoles.
Ah yes, WOTC and the Next Generation. To boldly go where no one has gone before. Well, you have done that without a doubt. I don't think anyone has ever dug a hole that deep before. Joking aside, 60fps support for new consoles was only logical. Nothing to write home about and nothing we didn't expect. Gosh, old WOT would look and play gorgeous in 60fps.
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HUD and PBRS
Not only will the Heads Up Display (HUD) have a refreshed look; it will also contain new information to help you in battle.
The Post-Battle Results Screen (PBRS) offers new tabs and even a salute to the top three players in a match.
Now that is a straight up lie even a month later. New information to help us in battle? How about no information or much less than we had previously! What is the new information you speak of? Where is it? HUD has been changed completely and most of the critical battle information was removed or relocated to a spot that is outside of normal viewing angles. The PBRS has more tabs, it also has LESS information than before. Not only that, this part of the game is also riddled with bugs and feels unfinished, rushed... Leader board does not seem to follow any logical sense, MVP tanks are missing MOEs and player names, etc. Awful, just awful. Pretty colors though...
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Customization System
When you select one of your tanks in the “Vehicles” tab (formerly known as the Garage), you’ll be able to open the Customization menu, a series of tabs that contain all the info you need to know about that vehicle and all the screens where you can customize it.
All the info we need to know? Really WG? So, we don't need to know the terrain resistances, gun elevation and depression figures, shell velocity, etc... Oh, bite me WG!
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Linear Vehicle Progression
To make the upgrade process clearer and easier to understand, we’re implementing Linear Vehicle Progression, a single path to reach Elite Tank status, with checkpoints along the way where you can fit your tank with different modules.
There was absolutely nothing wrong with the old progression system and IMO it was easier than the new one. Besides, now we are restricted to what tanks we can research first if there are more than one in the tech tree. Calling something that's restrictive "easier," is a fallacy. New system is horrible and is yet another aspect that takes away from enjoyment of playing this game. In cases of some grinds, the progression makes no sense and forces the player to drive their tank with stock gun or engine until the very end. It's simply stupid. Yet another example of breaking something that didn't need fixing!
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Profile Tab
The new Profile Tab contains a ton of info about your gameplay experience: your stats in all your vehicles, medals you’ve earned, account activity (Store purchases, Commander recruitment, etc.), and more.
Define a "ton" cause even a month later we still have LESS information than prior to the downgrade. Damage standing is gone, hit ratio, etc... Filter on the stats tab STILL DOES NOT WORK and displays multiple tiers when only selecting one. It's a mess.
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Portal Store Discontinued
As of December 8th, the link to the in-game Store will no longer be available on the website portal.
Don’t worry; the Store will still be available! It will continue to be accessible in-game, where you can get your game content the moment you need it.
Log in on your console for limited-time tank bundles, exclusive deals, gift-giving, and more!
Now this... this is simply mind blowing. I am no marketing expert, but giving players LESS options to BUY things from you sounds like a brilliant move. Did your analysis really show that the web store brings less money than it takes to upkeep? I am baffled and I can't imagine anyone is happy about this change. Sometimes when I was away from console I would use the on-line store to buy tanks and gifts. Now, I simply cannot do that. Hey, it's your profits so do whatever.
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The World of Tanks Console Upcoming Update is a huge undertaking. We can’t wait to see what you do with new systems, new tools, and an overall refined experience.
I guess this sums it up perfectly... "an overall refined experienced." Yes, so refined the game was pretty much unplayable on day one and is barely playable a month later. Refined economy, refined HUD, refined UI, refined Garage, refined web store... I think you should substitute refined with "ruined." Yes, you are making changes that will improve the game slowly but given how much "refinement" there was, it will still take you months to get it to a truly playable state.
Long story short, this announcement was mostly a lie and written by someone who doesn't understand the game nor its players. Shame, as we were really looking forward to it. Sadly even a month later not much has changed to fix this mess. It's all form over substance and it does not work in a highly technical game.
RIP WOTC and shame on you WG! 
