The Public Test will be running from 21 February at 17:30 CET until 28 March at 14:00 CEST (UTC+2). Keep in mind that this is a testing environment, and unannounced maintenance and patch deployments can happen at any time during the Public Test phase.
What to expect in Public Test 0.6.2?
NOTE: Because the version update is still being tested, the information in this bulletin is tentative and reflects the state of development at the time of publication. Some changes and innovations may be absent or implemented in a different way by the time the final version of this update goes live.
Let’s start with the two new maps we added to the game. The first one is named “Ring”. It is available at battle tiers IV–VI. This map features a group of small tropical islands that visually resemble Hawaii, scattered somewhere in the Pacific. These islands are located at the frontier between Allied Forces and the Imperial Japanese Navy. The map’s key element is a ring-like group of islands in the centre. These islands can provide reliable cover… or become a deadly trap. Holding the “ring” is an important strategic task, because having control of this area will let your team have an advantage over the opposing team. If the opposing team manages to be the first to take control of this area, a concentrated attack will help you to quickly take control. However, note that losing control of the islands makes your team vulnerable to torpedo attacks from the centre of the map. Otherwise, this map has enough open space to allow for firing at long range.
The second new map in this update is “Haven”, available at battle tiers VII–X. Battles in this location will take place in an archipelago of small uninhabited islands somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean. These islands are located on the fringe of the British Empire. They were formed under the influence of constant ocean winds, which manifested in the natural landscape of this location, barren but beautiful in its own way. From a gameplay point of view, this map is all about co-ordinated teamwork. The key areas are hard to capture, but numerous areas of cover provide new opportunities for winning. With sudden engagements and frequent close range encounters, players will have to elaborate on their tactics. This map presents a special challenge to Battleship players, who will have to try and find advantageous positions for effective firing.
In version 0.6.2, we made various improvements to the game interface. The most noticeable enhancement – that will also be useful for your battle performance – is the option to display ship names on the Minimap. This option can be enabled in the Minimap settings. Note that it will be working only when the alternative battle interface mode is enabled. Moreover, those of you who like to listen to your favourite music during battles will definitely like another new feature: switching between user music tracks with the use of the following key combinations: (by default) [Ctrl] + [F] — next track; [Ctrl] + [D] — previous track.
Yet one more pleasant piece of news: we improved the game logic. Now, for the whole time the Damage Control Party consumable is active, it will assuredly prevent new fires and flooding, and save modules from being incapacitated. No more of that frustrating “damage at the last moment” which many of you have surely experienced before! This will give you more confidence in those tense gameplay situations where just a couple hundred HP and one extra second can determine the outcome of an encounter with the enemy.
Last but not least, in version 0.6.2 we are going to release the alternate branch of Soviet destroyers which we announced earlier. The ships have passed all the required tests and will most likely become available right after the update goes live on the game server. We are not planning to test them during the Public Test.
Key Attractions
- New maps (Ring and Haven)
- Try out Tier X ships without grinding
- Commander skills: on PTS you can freely experiment with the best setups for your commander training
- Earn neat rewards while helping to improve the game!
