Version 9.16: New Features

You may have heard about some of the details of Update 9.16. Today, we will be taking a closer look at the improvements to the game interface and will be revealing the planned changes to the Battle Chat.

Interface Changes

Game client modifications are a wide-spread tool that allows players to adjust the standard game interface the way they prefer. The development team monitors the modifications that are popular among players and adds the best of them to the game. We consider several criteria when selecting which of the modifications should be added, such as the popularity of the particular modification as well as its gameplay utility. The introduction of popular external modifications allows us to improve the game interface while making it more convenient for players.

In Update 9.16, several popular modifications will be added to the standard interface: Battle indicators, dual-row vehicle selection, and extended fire-direction indicators.

Battle Indicators

In-battle information has a crucial effect upon the battle's outcome. The more information that a player can consider while in battle, the higher their chances of victory. This allows players to select the most appropriate course of action to stay one step ahead of the enemy team. Players receive most of their information from the images on the screen: the distribution of vehicles on the map, any nearby combat, the minimap, etc. In Update 9.16, we will add one more source of useful information: we will be improving the battle interface to make it more informative.

Changes Implemented in Update 9.16

In the latest update, we will be improving the battle interface, adding information about events that take place in-battle, and will be upgrading the fire-direction indicators. The following changes will be added to the game:

• Reworked the fire-direction indicators with information about the amount of damage received, whether it was critical, and the vehicle that fired the shot.
• Added a damage panel showing the following info:
• Total damage caused by the player to spotted vehicles, including damage caused by shots, ramming, or setting enemies on fire.
• Damage blocked by armour—calculations consider the average damage of the shot that hit the vehicle. Damage, blocked with external modules (tracks, observation device, etc.) is not considered.
• Assistance damage—upon spotting or destroying a track.
• Added a list of in-game events in battle: base capture, base defence, enemy detection, etc.

Interface Settings

The display of this additional information can be configured in the game settings. Just open the new Feedback tab and set your preferences. You will be able to select standard or extended fire-direction indicators, configure the information that is displayed in the damage panel, and enable the displaying of in-battle events.

The Feedback tab will be available together with the release of the feature as part of Update 9.16.

Extended Vehicle Selector

The extended vehicle selector is another modification popular among players and will be implemented into the client in Update 9.16. This will allow for better navigation in the Garage and will make selecting the right vehicle quicker and easier than ever before. Players will be able to configure the vehicle display in the most appropriate way using the extended vehicle selector, and even players who have many vehicles will be able to select them easily.

Configuring the Vehicle Selector

Players will be able to select their preferred vehicle-display mode (standard or dual-row) in the Garage, with the dual-row vehicle selector being enabled by default – to select the required display mode, use the General tab in the game settings.

A special, simplified dual-row vehicle selector has been implemented for screens with a lower aspect ratio. If the screen resolution is lower than 900 pixels vertically, the vehicle selector switches to the simplified form.

Changes to Battle Chat

Changes Implemented in Update 9.16

The main purpose of the Battle Chat is for coordinating the actions of you and your allies. Thus, the interaction between players is crucial to the battle's outcome. If a team coordinates during battle, they are likely to win. However, at the same time, cross-team communication can be used as a way to abuse or insult players.

Thus, several measures have been taken in Update 9.16 to solve the problem of inappropriate behaviour in the Battle Chat. Firstly, cross-team Battle Chat has been disabled for all battle types except Team Training. Secondly, players will be able to block messages from a particular ally. You can disable messages from abusive players until the end of the battle. To do so, hover over an ally's nickname in the Battle Chat and block the player. In addition, it is possible to add a player to your Blacklist or make a complaint about them.

Thirdly, the complaint system has been improved. Complaints of the same type are combined into one complaint in Update 9.16, thus making it easier to process them. The following complaints will remain:

• Inappropriate behaviour in Battle Chat: this complaint includes the Insult and provocation, Spam, Out of Game Threat, and Gold selling / Fraud complaints
• Unsportsmanlike conduct
• Offensive nickname or clan name
• Inaction / Bot

In addition, we will be decreasing the number of complaints. In the latest version, it will be possible to make a complaint about a player only once per battle. This improvement will decrease the number of complaints that need to be processed, speeding up the time it takes to resolve any issues.