PS: He says the old launcher uses more resources than WGC, but in fact it does not, because it closes when you play, instead of WG Center which stays running in the background like a parasite until you manually close it.
I see you are discussing the recent news about Wargaming.net Game Center, and I see a lot of questions. I also see some opinions about this software that might have been relevant before we did our homework, but not that relevant now. I have a short FAQ for you. I also suggest you read a newly-published article on our portal.
Being a gamer myself, and dealing with 5-7 different launchers/platforms on my PC, I fully understand your concerns about the “forced” switch. So here, I’m only asking for a bit of attention, as I believe this information may give you better perspective on what is going to happen. If you have any questions, I will try to answer them here. If not…well, at least I tried and gave all info. Let’s go!
Why do you make everyone use Wargaming.net Game Center instead of keeping the old launcher for those who enjoyed it?
The issue here is that Wargaming.net Game Center and Legacy launcher, while serving the same purpose, are different independent pieces of software. Each of them requires independent support and maintenance, and, while we maintained the Legacy launcher before, it’s a constant additional workload that could be focused elsewhere to improve the game or services. Wargaming.net Game Center provides better features and control for the players, and also can be used as a hub for all Wargaming titles. We and other teams are allocating our efforts to it, so Wargaming.net Game Center only will get better.
I don’t want to re-download the game or spend my time on migrating. Can I avoid it?
Yes. In fact, you don’t need to download the game again – you just download and install Wargaming.net Game Center, log in and import the already installed WoWS client. Additionally, as a token of our appreciation for your time you will receive a gift in-game for using Wargaming.net Game Center. For more information on this, please follow the news on our portal.
But I think / heard that Wargaming.net Game Center is bad piece of software! Why are you offering us a low quality product?
Wargaming.net Game Center went through many improvements since first public release. It had a few problems, that may have earned it such a reputation in the past, and that’s exactly the reason we did not start the migration process until now. In it’s latest version, it is a stable user-friendly solution, and the major issues players complained about were fixed. By the way, we would like to say a big “thank you” to those who contributed to Wargaming.net Game Center testing.
Okay, but the Legacy Launcher is still better! It saves resources, while Wargaming.net Game Center eats too much of the performance. Isn’t it a good reason to keep the old launcher?
Actually, no. The old launcher is not more efficient. But what’s more important, Wargaming.net Game Center has a very nice benefit – you can select an option to save resources while downloading and installing game updates. This way, Wargaming.net Game Center will perform updates slower, but free up your internet connection and system resources for your convenience, something that legacy launcher can’t technically do. The choice is yours here. Additionally, we conducted extensive testing of Wargaming.net Game Center performance against other solutions in the industry, and were happy to learn we achieved very competitive levels. Wargaming.net Game Center is a modern and evolved solution now.
Aren’t you just trying to push a solution which will allow you to shove a lot of advertising, other games and sales articles in my face?
No. Both Legacy launcher and Wargaming.net Game Center have news and premium shop promotions. Both are not forcing you to use this content. However, if you’re interested in the hot news about the game, or in new premium shop deals, Wargaming.net Game Center is much more convenient for receiving such content. Additionally, if you want to play other Wargaming titles or other instances of WoWS (e.g. Public Test), you can do it all in one Wargaming.net Game Center – without multiple launchers involved!
To sum up what are the obvious and immediate benefits of Wargaming.net Game Center for me?
One-time log in, control over your PC resources and internet connection usage, one software for all WG titles and their instances, better presentation of relevant content.
What about my personal data? Are you going to spy on me with Wargaming.net Game Center ?
No. Both legacy launcher and Wargaming.net Game Center can ONLY anonymously gather your basic system specs. These specs cannot be associated with you, and we don’t need it. What we need is the stats on our playerbase PC configs, so we can provide better QA, support and technical evolution of our games. That’s it.
But what about storing my password. Can’t you access my credentials that way?
No, and we don’t need it at all. Your password is not stored in a form that can be used – it’s technically is not stored as a password at all. You shouldn’t worry about your credentials security in Wargaming.net Game Center.
Okay, but what if I have multiple accounts? I will have to log in each time?
For now, yes, but we’re already working on multi-login support for Wargaming.net Game Center.
Do you have any plans to develop Wargaming.net Game Center further and make it more useful?
Absolutely! While we cannot provide an ETA yet, we’re working on adding three important components directly to Wargaming.net Game Center, without any 3rd party solutions needed: customer support, premium shop and social features. And we will be grateful for your feedback on what would you like to have in Wargaming.net Game Center in its future updates.
UPDATED AUG 2
Can you add an option to close the Game Center after the game launches, to free up the system resources?
Right now we’re starting a new research on system usage when Wargaming.net Game Center is minimized. If we see that if affects the performance to any meaningful degree, we will either conduct additional optimization, or add such an option. For now, you can just close it manually after starting the game.
Can you add an option to delete update files after the game is updated?
It’s already there. The Game Center deletes these files automatically, but not instantly. The files may be needed for sharing the update to other players, or if the update is not successfully finished. If you want to delete them earlier, you can just clear the game “Updates” folder.
What about Mac and Linux compatibility?
Mac is fully supported. If you access World of Warships website from Mac, the relevant Mac build of Wargaming Game Center will be downloaded. With Linux, there is no full support, but it should work with Wine, as the Legacy launcher did.
