I hate to say it, but I'm not impressed at all by the tanks. First of all, there's no communication to the players as to whats going on behind the scenes with tanks. What happens when x gets damaged for example. There's also no indication that T-34s need to try and move as much as possible. Therefore, players who don't know better sit and go head to head against the PZ IVs, which is suicide. Then they complain that the Russian tank sucks. There needs to be SOMETHING in game that tells you to try to flank the Germans. Rather than it be an annoyed person who knows better, which half the people won't even read his messages in chat anyway.
The damage system doesn't seem to be working right. It feels like Ostfront on day 1 when the code somehow got broken - that is, it plays like CoD: UO tanks with HP system instead of a damage model. Why can't a T-34 destroy a Panzer in one hit to the side? Especially when aiming at the part in between the track rollers that you are supposed to hit to destroy the ammo cache. I can understand needing multiple shots to the front to destroy a tank, as its not as easy to hit the right spot. But when I shoot the engine of a PZ IV in the side ten times, hear penetration sounds every time and it doesn't get blown up, something is wrong. I've even been in a point blank cluster**** against a PZ IV, and I was the one that survived even though we got about an even amount of shots on each other. How does that work? And why does the commander in the T-34 get killed so often? I know those early T-34 models had a shot trap between the hull and the turret, so why would it kill the commander 10x as often as jamming the turret or blowing the turret off completely?
Balance is a dirty word around these parts. But there's easily balanceable problem right now, and that is the number of AP shells each tank gets. Panzers get 34, T-34s get 19. Why? The T-34s get about 50 HE shells. What's the reason for having so few AP rounds? Its obviously not due to a small ammunition cache if you can fit FIFTY HE shells along with the 19 AP ones. The T-34s have to fire more shots per kill than the Germans, and yet they get less ammunition. I thought it was because teh T-34s couldn't hold a lot of ammo, but when I saw all the HE rounds in there, it made me wonder what was going on. The game doesn't account for poor quality Soviet armor, or ammunition shortages, so why would it account for AP round shortages?
Here's another problem that is kind of a balance issue: The T-34 has zero commander vision slits. That's how it was, and thats how it is in the game. That's good. Whats not good is the amount of bobbling there is when you're using binoculars while unhatched. I suppose this problem is in both tanks. Its almost impossible to get a reading on that long range target to see if its a tank or not when its bobbling so much. There is also, as far as I know, no way to move the turret while unhatched. I don't get this either. I'm not saying i know how to figure out what buttons you need to key to rotate it, I'm just saying I think there needs to be a way to rotate while unhatched, especially in the T-34. Another problem I have with the turret is that its really sensitive. Its hard to get your gun on target on a stupid enemy tank that decides to rush you and your two teammates. I don't see why we are basically rewarding stupid tactics. Yes its hard for the enemy tank to aim as well, but because its mapped to the mouse now so that you can move while gunning, it makes it really hard to aim the gun and swing it around at a target at anything but long range.
Basically I'm not happy with the way the tanks work right now, but naturally this game has immense potential to be really fun based on TWI's track record. :IS2: Anyone else unhappy? Wehrmacht fanbois who only play with the PZ IVs need not apply here please, thank you
The damage system doesn't seem to be working right. It feels like Ostfront on day 1 when the code somehow got broken - that is, it plays like CoD: UO tanks with HP system instead of a damage model. Why can't a T-34 destroy a Panzer in one hit to the side? Especially when aiming at the part in between the track rollers that you are supposed to hit to destroy the ammo cache. I can understand needing multiple shots to the front to destroy a tank, as its not as easy to hit the right spot. But when I shoot the engine of a PZ IV in the side ten times, hear penetration sounds every time and it doesn't get blown up, something is wrong. I've even been in a point blank cluster**** against a PZ IV, and I was the one that survived even though we got about an even amount of shots on each other. How does that work? And why does the commander in the T-34 get killed so often? I know those early T-34 models had a shot trap between the hull and the turret, so why would it kill the commander 10x as often as jamming the turret or blowing the turret off completely?
Balance is a dirty word around these parts. But there's easily balanceable problem right now, and that is the number of AP shells each tank gets. Panzers get 34, T-34s get 19. Why? The T-34s get about 50 HE shells. What's the reason for having so few AP rounds? Its obviously not due to a small ammunition cache if you can fit FIFTY HE shells along with the 19 AP ones. The T-34s have to fire more shots per kill than the Germans, and yet they get less ammunition. I thought it was because teh T-34s couldn't hold a lot of ammo, but when I saw all the HE rounds in there, it made me wonder what was going on. The game doesn't account for poor quality Soviet armor, or ammunition shortages, so why would it account for AP round shortages?
Here's another problem that is kind of a balance issue: The T-34 has zero commander vision slits. That's how it was, and thats how it is in the game. That's good. Whats not good is the amount of bobbling there is when you're using binoculars while unhatched. I suppose this problem is in both tanks. Its almost impossible to get a reading on that long range target to see if its a tank or not when its bobbling so much. There is also, as far as I know, no way to move the turret while unhatched. I don't get this either. I'm not saying i know how to figure out what buttons you need to key to rotate it, I'm just saying I think there needs to be a way to rotate while unhatched, especially in the T-34. Another problem I have with the turret is that its really sensitive. Its hard to get your gun on target on a stupid enemy tank that decides to rush you and your two teammates. I don't see why we are basically rewarding stupid tactics. Yes its hard for the enemy tank to aim as well, but because its mapped to the mouse now so that you can move while gunning, it makes it really hard to aim the gun and swing it around at a target at anything but long range.
Basically I'm not happy with the way the tanks work right now, but naturally this game has immense potential to be really fun based on TWI's track record. :IS2: Anyone else unhappy? Wehrmacht fanbois who only play with the PZ IVs need not apply here please, thank you