Graphics are vital to making the in-game world and locales as realistic as possible and a perfect of mix of elements can make you feel like you’re almost there in the midst of battle.
Join us as we continue the walk through visual enhancements. Today, we explain how the new graphics engine will change flora and objects and trust us, you won’t want to miss out on these visuals captured in-game!
The flora of World of Tanks changes completely with Update 1.0. Trees become more detailed and look just like in the wild. There’s more than just a handful of tree types: over 100, to be more precise. Whether you’re exploring the tangled routes of sunny suburbia dotted with pine trees, making your way through snow-caped spruces or meticulously picking your next target whilst hiding among widespread oak canopies — different trees and plant types help diversify the locales and give each map a unique footprint.
Grass now loads in faster and shadows look more realistic giving maps like Karelia and Mines an extra dimension of realism. On top of that, all these trees and plants react to what’s happening in a battle, whether it be firing a shell or adjusting your hull. Worry not, this will not give away your position, these effects will only be seen by you. See for yourself in the video above.
The Future of Flora
This is an ongoing process so we are still working on certain elements. We will work on physics and animation: currently the trees do not fall as naturally as they would in real life. It is even possible that improvements will allow trees to influence gameplay, such as using a felled tree to hide your weakspot.
Objects – The Architecture of World of Tanks
Factories, small buildings, bridges, fences, stones and more—all of these objects create the atmosphere of World of Tanks and affect gameplay. Previously, we were limited in the number of textures to create these objects as it would negatively impact performance. But now…
The new graphics engine allowed us to increase the number of textures and increase their detail. Now artists have a greater opportunity to create new objects and improve their appearance. The best part: it doesn’t affect performance!
To avoid issues with performance, we used “streaming”. This technique is used to stream textures and geometry of various quality when required: The level of detail will depend on the distance between it and your tank. The further away you are, the easier it will be for your computer to process it.
The new graphics engine allows us to combine objects and terrain so that the stone lying on the ground looks as natural as possible meaning it blends in seamlessly with the ground.
For tanks, there will also be some additions. First of all, there are effects of water, dust and snow and as the tank moves around, dust, mud or water can appear on the tank itself.
