I’ve been avoiding the game since April, even before the latest update. The hype around the “new update” wasn’t enough to bring me back, except for the AMX A1-A, the first vehicle representing my nation. I played for weeks, and initially, I was excited. But after a while, I stopped because nothing else in the game was fun anymore.
Then the F-14 event caught my attention, so I decided to give it another shot. But as I wasn’t familiar with the recent Battle Rating (BR) changes, I noticed something really frustrating. Correct me if I’m wrong, but it seems there aren’t many fighter planes available between the 9.7 to 10.3 BR range across all nations. Only a few planes fit this category, like the F8U-2 (for the U.S. and France), Mirage 3C/5F, Japanese F-104J, F-1, J35D, Shahak, and Nesher—all of which lack flares.
At BR 10.7, some planes like the F8E, Mirage 3E/5BA, and MiG-21MF/SMT have flares, but the F-4C at the same BR is still without them. Many 10.7-rated attackers are equipped with AIM-9Ls, giving them a significant advantage.
At BR 11.0, the German F-104G has flares, but the Chinese F-104G at 10.7 does not, even though they are similar planes. The Italian F-104G has only two missiles, but at least it has flares. The F-104A is rated 9.3, while the F-104S.ASA is rated much higher at 12.0.
As for Italian planes, it’s puzzling that the AMX A-1A, which uses Adens instead of a Vulcan and a shorter-range Piranha missile, is rated at 11.3, putting it up against F-14s. In Ground battles, it’s only 0.7 BR away from the PANTSIR, and for just 0.3 BR higher, you might as well use a Tornado instead.
So yeah, sorry for the ramble, but after playing this game for 11 years, I’m back to where I was in April 2023. I quit for games that are actually fun. I even tried Enlisted and focused more on single-player games. I only returned after they started showing roadmaps and making promises—like the long-promised buff for new nations. But then they release something worse than the original “first victory” battles, which were 2x and 5x. Some players don’t even know those existed.
Not to mention, the tank grind is horrible. A T-34 player can kill 16 enemies and capture a base in Ground RB, and without premium or talisman, they only get 4-5k RP. Keep in mind that a tanker has to stay alert at all times, checking every corner, listening for tank engines, aiming precisely at weak spots, watching out for flankers, and capturing zones.
And SPAA Rewards? None.
Meanwhile, in Air battles, you fly for 2-5 minutes depending on the BR, kill someone distracted in a furball, and rarely have a duel without being interrupted. And when someone is in danger, they just fly away. The ticket system is also frustrating, often causing a team that deserves to win to lose because of AI or a single A-10 hiding in the corner.
We need new game modes, new objectives, and rewards for completing them. We can’t keep having a deathmatch with AI targets scattered around and all aircraft types thrown into the same mix.
It’s all sad, and don’t get me started on the Battle Pass—it’s a joke.
Mirror matches are another issue. Air and Naval have them, which helps keep some vehicles balanced, but in tank battles, this doesn’t happen frequently, only in “events” when a massive number of players spam a nation for a certain reason.
Now, think about a player using a minor nation, like Italy, trying to compete with an overtiered Ariete MBT. They get matched with M1 Aims, clickbait vehicles, and KVTs, while the enemy team is full of T-72 Turms, T-90Ms, Ka-52s, Leo2a7s, and Strv 122s. How is that fair? I know this might upset some people, but it has happened to me so many times that I can’t help but mention it.
And I won’t even start on the coastal fleet grind—most people don’t even realize how slow it is. Or how helicopters are forced into poorly designed PvE maps, where spending 1 or 2 hours gives less reward than 5 Ground RB matches if you rush to the air spawn.
Simulator Ground matches being locked to rotations isn’t cool either. I get that it’s meant to encourage people to “play what’s available,” but it just makes people avoid simulator tanks altogether. In the top-tier rotation, people wait for heli grind instead. Some players don’t have time to play every day or can only play a few games a day. They don’t want to look at the simulator and hope their favorite vehicle is available. The concept of a video game is supposed to be fun. You want to play something, but it’s not available, so it demotivates you.
A couple of weeks ago, I was checking WT.live for single-player missions and found one that could be played with friends in a custom match. I asked my friends if they wanted to take a break from grinding, and they agreed. We played on this big Tunisian desert map filled with AIs and objectives. One of us was in a stock Abrams, so he lacked a laser rangefinder, and I was ranging targets for him. It was a lot of fun. At one point, one of us hopped into an A-10 and bombed a fortified enemy position. Watching that from 10-15 km away in our tanks was awesome. Basically, we had fun in a fan-made PvE mission for 2 hours—something we hadn’t had in a long time.
But why am I even trying? People will just cope, say it’s a skill issue, and they won’t care. They won’t want to read this.
That’s it, I guess I’m out—maybe this time for good. Who knows?
