April Fool's, as it turns out, is a time for gaming companies to loosen their ties and unbutton the top button. It's a time for throwing out actually cool ideas that probably can't get past corporate because all those dudes are sitting around a table enjoying some Death By Meeting.
This weekend, War Thunder brings out the big guns—of the 17th and 18th century, that is: the Golden Age of Sail. They're just testing the waters (get it?). (Sigh.) During that era, the largest war machines on the planet were ships. Well, they still are, too. But War Thunder crafted some watery maps, some windy conditions, and are letting us blow each other away with some good ol' broadside cannon fire. You know, like civilized people. I'm not so much into pirates as I am into the architecture of ships like The Golden Hind, the HMS Revenge, and the HMS Victory. All of which are present in the initial British seven-ship lineup.
Not that both cannot exist in the same place, but I've leaned more toward World of Tanks than War Thunder when it comes to scratching my tank itch. But now? Now it's time for me to smash some of Her Majesty's Ships. This limited trial period goes through Sunday, April 3. It already promises that ships from other nations will roll out soon.
War Thunder is a free-to-play online multiplayer tank- and plane-'em-up on PC and PlayStation 4. Gaijin Entertainment is working on PlayStation VR, Oculus Rift, and HTC Vive versions as we speak.
(MOSCOW, RUSSIAN FEDERATION) - March 31, 2016 - Gaijin Entertainment today announced that its award-winning MMO WWII online game, War Thunder, will be introducing legendary sailing ships in its latest update for War Thunder's ten million players to enjoy.
Available for all players, these historic battleships will take the fight to distant lands and contested waters. The first test-session starts today and will last until the end of the weekend.
Long before the history books documented the modern toil of land and air warfare in tanks and planes, the oceans were ruled by huge battleships decked with cannon and shot.
War Thunder's latest update will introduce British fighting ships from the beginning of the Eighteenth Century with other nations to be added later.
"It's been a very interesting and challenging task to recreate historic battles of the most powerful sailing nations. We started working on it last year, adding interactive water, and then a few days ago we added interactive weather conditions, which are very important for realistic sailing conditions." Said Gaijin Entertainment CEO Anton Yudintsev." The weather can change from complete calm to raging storm." he added.
Like their tank and plane counterparts, War Thunder's sailing ships will also have their own interactive damage model (no health points). Gaijin Entertainment has taken care in crafting these sailing behemoths to be armored the way they were during their dominance of the oceans of long ago.
Naval battles will be available in the War Thunder Events menu in the game and will be available in Arcade mode. Players will be able to take the rank 1 British ship, the legendary "Golden Hind" galleon and join a battle on the shores of the lost islands. More ships of the Royal Navy and other nations will become available soon.
