Review [Special] The Game Balance Update

[GoldRock 6,165]

 

 

Welcome, tankers! In this special review, I'll weigh up the potential effects of the upcoming global update of game balance, focusing on the impact upon players and gameplay. Hopefully, this article sheds some light on the major changes to Tanki's gameplay. Read on to find out more!

 

Recently announced in Episode 108 of the V-LOG, this update will involve numerous changes to statistics for hulls, turrets and supplies, as well as changes to unlock ranks at M3 level. A good summary of the changes can be found here on the TO Wiki, and I've chosen to structure this article around the bullet points listed there. So, without further ado...

 

Almost all characteristics of all hulls and turrets, including XT versions, changed

 

► General changes to turrets 
 

*If a characteristic is not mentioned, assume that it remains the same.*

 

Firebird: It will take twice as long to fully burn opponents using the heating effect, but base damage remains similar, max. damage can be dealt at slightly further range and reload time is more than halved. The maximum range and temperature is reduced a little for M3 Firebird. Turning the turret may feel 'heavier' than previously - the turret can now rotate faster, but will take much longer to increase in speed as it rotates. 

 

One-sentence summary: Firebird is likely to become less of a 'hit-and-run' weapon and more of an all-out assault tool, with an ability to attack more frequently balanced out by the need to douse opponents in flames for a bit longer.

 

 

Freeze: Damage remains similar to before, but max. damage can be dealt at slightly further range and reloading times are decreased significantly. The rotation acceleration falls drastically, slowing down Freeze's famously light and nimble turret-turning. The effective ammunition falls, meaning the reload bar will empty 20% faster. Opponents can now be frozen almost instantly as opposed to taking half a second to freeze, and the freeze effect becomes three times more powerful.

 

One-sentence summary: Overall, Freeze is likely to become more of a 'hit-and-run' weapon, with its ability to attack opponents more frequently and freeze more quickly/effectively balanced out by less ammo and slower turret-turning requiring more skill to use.

 

Isida: The healing rate is significantly decreased, the damage rate and range is slightly decreased and the self-healing feature is 'nerfed' down from 30-40% to a constant 10%. As with Firebird, turret-turning may feel heavier due to higher max. rotation speed but lower turning acceleration. However, the reloading speed is slightly increased and the ammunition increases by 25%.  

 

One-sentence summary: Thanks to a large reduction in Isida's self-healing ability, its effectiveness as an offensive weapon is significantly reduced; although more, faster-replenishing ammunition means the weapon's ability as a defensive/midfield support weapon is somewhat improved despite the nerf.

 

Hammer: The damage rate is very slightly decreased along with a moderate fall in both impact force and recoil. The reload time between shots has been increased a little, but this is more than compensated for by a fall of between 0.4s (M3) and 1.5s (M0) in the clip reload time. Changes to turret rotation speed/acceleration are small, though turning may be slower. The max. damage range has fallen significantly, but 'weak damage' of 10% will allow a small amount of damage to be dealt beyond the normal damage range.

 

One-sentence summary: With these changes, Hammer is a more balanced weapon than previously, continuing to be effective at short-to-mid ranges with less impact force in return for better reload times. 

 

Twins: The damage per shot is increased by a small amount, and the recoil is much more bearable. However, the impact force is a little lower, reloading between shots is now slower for lower modifications and the rotation acceleration is greatly reduced, slowing down turning speed. The max. damage range has seen an increase in upgrades beyond M0, and weak damage (small damage dealt just out of range) has been standardised at 10%, an increase for M0/M1 but a reduction for further modifications. 

 

One-sentence summary: At lower modifications, the firing rate of Twins is reduced - but this reduction becomes less significant as Twins is upgraded and is compensated by improved damage stats, meaning the weapon remains an effective mid-range choice.

 

 

Ricochet: Notably, minimum damage is decreased while maximum damage is increased, meaning the damage rate is likely to be similar but damage-per-shot may vary more than previously. The reloading rate is somewhat worse, the projectile speed is made slower and the max. damage range is cut by around 40%. Both impact force and recoil also see a reduction. On the other hand, Ricochet gains more ammunition, weak damage of 25% (meaning it can deal a small amount of damage at a longer range) and is the only turret which will turn quicker at all modifications after these changes.

 

One-sentence summary: Ricochet is now arguably a more short-ranged weapon with these changes than before, and perhaps gains in effectiveness when attacking at closer ranges while losing out when it comes to midfield, mid-ranged play.

 

Smoky: Minimum damage is decreased very slightly while maximum damage is increased by a little more, meaning that the average shot will deal a little more damage overall. The impact force and recoil are reduced, but the reloading speed is a little better for M0-M2 and a little worse for M3 and beyond. Turret-turning may be more sluggish and the overall min. damage range is reduced, though the closer-combat max. damage range is increased. The chance of critical hits is significantly increased, but the damage per critical hit is significantly reduced.

 

One-sentence summary: At closer ranges, Smoky will be more effective than before, with a bit more damage per shot and less powerful but more frequent critical hits leading to a better distribution of damage - though the weapon is no longer able to fire as far as previously.

 

Vulcan: The damage rate is very slightly higher and the time needed to start (and stop) firing is cut to the prior M4 level of 1 second for all modifications. Conversely, the impact force is greatly reduced and the overall min. damage range is decreased, while the max. damage range is increased and weak damage at the furthest ranges is doubled. Importantly, the self-heating rate is increased to M4 level for all modifications, and the turret turning slowdown when firing is now a constant 50% for all, the prior M2 level. The base turret turning speed and acceleration are also lower on the whole.

 

One-sentence summary: Vulcan users can now react and fire more quickly than before, but are prone to the turret self-heating and slowing down more as well as reduced impact force, counter-acting the powerhouse of the pre-update Vulcan.

 

Thunder: Damage per shot is significantly decreased across M0-M2, only remaining similar at M3. However, the rate of reloading is reasonably faster, the recoil is lower and the impact force is higher. Continuing the trend across turrets, Thunder is likely to rotate a little slower when compared with pre-update statistics. Apart from this, Thunder's other statistics largely remain constant.

 

One-sentence summary: This weapon now has a faster firing rate and better impact force, balanced out by lower damage-per-shot at M0-M2 - which is likely to change the playing style towards a more dynamic and fast-paced approach.

 

Railgun: The damage dealt by each shot sees a significant fall of 30-40% across modifications, alongside a small reduction in impact force and recoil. In contrast, the reload time is decreased by roughly 30% at the same time and the penetrating power is boosted, especially for lower modifications. Other statistics, including the firing delay and the turret rotation speed, are not significantly changed in comparison with before. 

 

One-sentence summary: The gameplay with Railgun is quite altered under the new statistics, with more frequent and lower-damage shots alongside better penetration power probably making XP/BP battles even more intense while making the turret more offensive in nature overall.

 

 

Shaft: Overall, the damage dealt in sniper mode is notably decreased - while the damage dealt in arcade mode is now constant (and approximately equivalent to the pre-update average damage) and the reload between arcade shots is decreased. The energy per shot in both modes is lower, which after 'research' (thanks Issho and TKP, Shaft stats are complex!) I determined means that in theory, shots can be fired more frequently since each shot takes up less of the yellow 'energy' (ammo) bar. Both the horizontal and vertical aiming speeds when sniping are hugely improved, often by 1.5 to 3 times the previous speeds, as well as a 10% increase in rotation acceleration in this mode. The recoil is effectively halved, while the 'consumption' rate is set at a constant 333 (prior M4 level) regardless of upgrade level, which effectively means the charging-up rate in sniping mode is now as fast as prior M4 for all Ms.

 

One-sentence summary: With a more effective arcade mode, lower reload times for both modes but with a lower level of damage per sniping shot, my colleague and Shaft-expert Thekillerpenguin summarised that "Shaft will become more of a designated marksman rifle than a sniper".

 

 

► General changes to hulls

 

The changes here are less specific to each piece of equipment than those with turrets, and so can be summarised in a number of general points. Firstly, with the exception of Hornet which sees some HP decreases, the three lightest hulls gain in health while the medium and heavy hulls lose health. Apart from at the M3 level (which I'll address later), these changes are relatively proportional between the hulls. In other words, the 'order' of hulls by health remains the same at each modification, with the exceptions of M2 Wasp having more health than M2 Hornet and M1/M2 Titan edging over M1/M2 Mammoth in health points. Both of these cases seem to be at least partly due to earlier unlock ranks for Hornet and Mammoth than Wasp and Titan, and the slight advantages of the former hulls in terms of other statistics. Overall, the aim of this change just seems to be to narrow the gap between the health points of different hulls.

 

In terms of speed, Wasp and Hunter both become slower while Hornet, Viking, Dictator, Titan and Mammoth have increased top speeds. Hornet is an exception to the trend, and actually becomes more like Wasp while the other hulls become more 'moderate' in both speed and health. With the exceptions of Wasp/Hornet (which remain the same) and Dictator/Mammoth (which both increase), the changes to acceleration statistics tend to be the opposite of the changes to top speeds. For example, Viking's top speed increases while its rate of acceleration decreases across all modifications; the same is largely true for Hunter but in reverse (lower top speeds and higher acceleration rates). Essentially, apart from Hornet as previously explained, the faster hulls become slower and the slower hulls become faster - especially more unwieldy hulls like Dictator and Mammoth - in an attempt to further balance out the hull statistics. 

 

There are some notable tweaks to the other statistics too, including a fall in turning acceleration for Wasp and an increase in turning speed for Hunter, Viking, Titan and Mammoth. Furthermore, apart from Hunter and higher modifications of DIctator, hulls have lost quite a bit of weight on average (they must have gone on a diet). All hulls can now accelerate much faster when making turns, meaning more similarity to the style in which Wasp turns when pressing the left/right arrow keys. Finally, a big one - Hornet's 'drifting' ability is slightly reduced. I've highlighted these changes in another colour just because they're so sneaky and easy to miss under the tables of data, but it's true - Hornet and many other hulls will drift a bit less than before, affecting the feel of these hulls when they're used. It also now has the same turning speed and acceleration as Wasp... and weight... oh weight (ba dum tss)...

 

BREAKING NEWS: Ignoring the unimportant 'reverse acceleration' statistic and the drifting ability, the stats for Wasp and Hornet under this update will become identical. The only exceptions are acceleration rates (which Hornet has a slight edge in at M1, M3 and M3+), top speeds (which Wasp always wins) and health points (where Hornet only really wins at M0).  From M1, Wasp always has better top speeds and health points than Hornet, and only slightly lower acceleration rates. In fact, at M2, Hornet has lower acceleration, top speed and health than Wasp while the other stats are identical!

 

In other words... Hornet has been decidedly nerfed. Yes, even more than Isida. (And by the way, Hornet/Isida happens to be the 'dream tank' M4/M4 combination I chose after winning the Supplies Tutorial Contest, which may make this is a particularly entertaining turn of events <_<). Not sure how else to put it, heh, and I'm intrigued as to the thinking behind this unique approach to Hornet's statistics. Perhaps it's time for the most popular hull in the game to fall from its status of disproportionate battlefield glory? 

 

 

► For M3 turrets and hulls:

 

Rank aligned to Marshal

 

All M3 turrets and hulls are now unlocked at the rank Marshal, with equipment that unlocks earlier pre-update receiving improvements to their stats and later-unlocking equipment made less powerful. This is an attempt to ensure that at the M3 level, all equipment remains effective and competitive on the battlefield. While this will widen the gap between obtaining M2 and M3 equipment, it is largely likely to have a positive effect on M3 gameplay from the rank of Marshal and beyond, and will probably result in a wider variety of equipment being used at the latest ranks.

 

Prices of items, prices of MU steps, prices of MU speed-ups and delay time changed

 

A picture taken from V-LOG 108, in which this update was announced:
 

 

It would seem that mostly, price changes are largely in-line with the rank-changes upwards and downwards to Marshal. However, Twins and Hammer have inexplicably become quite cheap - and Smoky has fallen in price even though its unlock rank was exactly Marshal before, too. The large price increased for both Freeze and Isida should also be noted. Hulls have actually become cheaper on the whole, with Wasp seeing a price fall even though its unlock rank is less than Marshal. However, the major exception to that rule is Hornet, the price of which has been drastically increased, meaning it's now the second most expensive hull after Mammoth.

 

It's up to you to compare these changed prices with the analysis of their changed statistics that I've offered above, but it would seem to me that hulls/turrets such as Firebird and Wasp will enjoy some quite advantageous positions in the game after this update. On the flipside, Hornet's definitely in even more trouble considering its staggering nearly-70,000 crystal increase in price on top of its dubious statistical changes, and Freeze and Isida don't come out of this one looking too happy, either!

 

Notably, the cost of fully MUing each turret is now a constant 911,750 crystals (the same as Smoky and Twins used to be, though more than the prior total MU costs of most of the other weapons). Equally, the cost of fully MUing each hull is now 776,500 crystals across the board, which is actually a better 'average price' than before considering that 4 hulls have pre-update MU costs that are higher than this amount. This standardisation of MU prices may be seen as a good thing since it removes 'discriminatory pricing' between the turrets once M3 level has been bought, allowing the turrets to be MUed at the same cost. At the same time, in practice, it's likely that some M3+ turrets will be better than others on the battlefield... so choose your MUs wisely!

 

As for the changes to MU speed-up prices and delay times, this data has yet to be released, and so unfortunately we can't provide an analysis for you just yet. We might take a more detailed look at MUs once the update is actually released to make up for this; but in the meantime, we can only hope along with our readers that these changes are positive, whatever they are!

 

M3 and M3+ hulls within the same category (light, mid, heavy) have the same protection

 

 

This might be the most radical and controversial change of the game balance update, along with shifting all the M3 equipment unlock ranks to Marshal. Essentially, Wasp and Hornet (light hulls) will both now have a protection figure actually a tiny bit higher than Hornet's pre-update health - Hunter, Viking and Dictator (medium hulls) will have protection similar to Viking's pre-update health - and Titan and Mammoth (heavy hulls) will have a health amount that's a fair amount lower than Titan's former health. The same 'standard health' applies for M3+ level, for which maximum protection figures are 2000, 3000 and 4000 health points respectively (factoring in the 10x increase in all health and damage stats). This not only removes HP differences within the hull classes, but also has the effect of greatly reducing the variation in health points between the classes.

 

As for what effect this will have on the battlefield, this is a change so drastic that I think we'll need to experience it to fully find out. However, there's already been criticism of what this might mean for some hulls, such as Hunter and Dictator, which may be out-competed by the stronger hull in their class (in this case, Viking). In fact, the general consensus seems to be that Wasp, VIking and Titan will pretty much be the strongest hulls now, considering that hulls within the three classes have the same health and those hulls will also enjoy the highest top speeds out of their hull classes.

 

However, the development contends that the changes to other statistics are important and will provide sufficient reason to choose the other hulls in each class. I've covered these statistics above so (once again) it's up to you to decide - but to me, it seems Wasp also beats Hornet hands down in other areas and that the other hulls don't really have too much that sets them apart. Although to be fair, considering the sheer number of unknowns in this equation of change and how it could turn out to be different in practice, I'd surmise that it's probably best to keep an open mind on this matter. After all, apart from statistics, one has to consider the variations in unlock ranks for the modifications below M3, as well as the pricing variations from M0-M3. These may very well make hulls such as, say, Hunter or Mammoth more attractive options than the stats on paper give them credit.

 

 

► Values of damage (for turrets) and protection (for hulls) are multiplied by 10

 

As mentioned about 6 minutes into V-LOG 102, the reason for this change is because visible damage counters may be added to the game, and multiplying damage values (and so necessarily multiplying health point values) by 10 would avoid any confusion when these counters are displayed. The use of visible damage counters would perhaps make the game interface 'cooler' in terms of looking more high-spec and allowing greater precision when dealing damage. However, the general consensus among Reporters is that this would unnecessarily clutter a game interface that's already more complex thanks to the protection modules display shown by pressing the R/V keys, as well as removing an element of strategy from the game.

 

As a result, while the multiplying of values by 10 doesn't really have any positive or negative consequences, we're personally not so keen on the subsequent proposed update it could lead to!

 

 

Characteristics of supplies are also changed

 

 

 

► Effects of DA, DD and SB now last for 40 seconds

► Speed Boost now increases the tank’s speed by 40%

 

The decrease from 45 seconds down to 40 seconds of active time for the three supplies doesn't have a huge impact, except to bring the duration of effect of the supplies in-line with the more significantly reduced cooldown times.

 

As for Speed Boost, this will make the use of the supply increase speed by a third more than previously. Although, it should be kept in mind that the highest top speeds in the game (those of Wasp) have been reduced - but even then, this would still allow for the fastest speeds the game has ever seen. So it's a reasonable boost to the effectiveness of the Speed Boost supply, and will definitely help to make gameplay with the use of this supply more fast-paced than ever before!

 

► Supplies now reload faster, except for Mine

 

In short, all cooldown times have been reduced by 5 seconds, except the cooldown time between Double Damage and Double Armor which has seen a fall of 10 seconds and the removal of the cooldown time between Mines and Repair Kit (more on that below). This basically means that there'll be less of a wait between the use of all supplies, and will likely allow players to have more supplies activated at once for a slightly longer period of time (despite the drop of active time to 40s), as well as to make use of more rapid supply-activating tactics.

 

However, the increase of cooldown between planting successive Mines from 20s to 40s has brought the cooldown time in line with that of using successive Repair Kits. This will help to prevent the 'spamming' of Mines on the battlefield, making the use of mines more difficult and require more skill.

 

► Mine and Repair Kit now don’t lock each other’s activation

 

The final change to smart supplies is the removal of the 10-second cooldown time between the use of Mines and Repair Kits. Considering the relatedness of the two in defensive play within smart supply batt;es, this reduces the complexity of having to juggle these two supplies along with activating any of the other three. Basically, this makes it easier to make full use of the entire range of supplies during gameplay. Since the cooldown time between the two has hindered my own use of smart supplies in the past, this is arguably a welcome change for many supply users.

 

 

Overall conclusion

 

From an objective point of view, this game balance update actually isn't all that bad. The predicted effects I have described above seem to be largely positive for turrets and hulls from M0-M2 and at M3+, and the M3 unlock rank change to Marshal for all equipment also seems to be a good idea. The more dubious aspects in terms of potential consequences are some specific statistics (such as the changes to Hornet and the nerfing of Isida's self-heaing ability), and the 'standard health' idea for the three classes of hulls - although equally, we'll have to wait and see whether the theoretical consequences unfold as I've discussed. The changes to the overall cost of MUs at the M3+ level seems to be an example of standardisation that makes sense, and the characteristics of supplies are decidedly improved.

 

This isn't based on my emotions, but rather is an opinion based on the factual ins-and-outs of the update that I've explored and analysed above. To me, this seems to indicate that in many areas, the development has the right idea with the game balance update. There's no denying that there are some parts which definitely have the potential for bad effects, and I'll be as interested as anyone to see how these bits unfold and whether there are further tweaks to try and make improvements on this. However, on the whole, I would have to say that an assessment of the facts and information we've been presented with produces a positive assessment of the game balance update.

 

 

How do you think this balance update will affect the game? What's your assessment of the facts and the data that have been released? Feel free to leave your own analyses of the update below, as well as any reactions you might have to what I've uncovered here.

 

Until then, take care and see you on the battlefield!

Edited June 20, 2017 by Hexed

[Thekillerpenguin 1,731]

kGold.

[swede1 1,726]

Wow Man, for no other reason than your journalistic and editorial prowess I must give you a huge LIKE

You have a great future as a writer, blogger, journalist or  in any literary field. 

As far as the contents, I feel a certain deja vu when reading this article.

Its just another nerf and buff all in the name of game balance when in reality its just a revenue restructure.

[lukey0 27,543]

Can't wait to read this! Looks good. :)

[Jwimmer 2,835]

I can not thank you enough for this. I have been confused since the announcement of the update.

 

Based on this, here is my thoughts on the update.

 

It seems an overall faster game-play is being sought. More hulls were made faster than slower, and a lot of reload times (notably railgun and thunder) have been decreased. I am also very pleased to see hornet will no longer drift.

 

I like most of the turret balances. I have said for over a year now that isida has needed a major nerf, and luckily for me, that will happen. It will no longer dominate completely on maps like island and ping pong (@RIDDLER_8 may not be happy about this though...). Happy to see thunder's reload speed decreased and damage staying around the same, and also glad that twins is relatively unchanged. The major decrease in reload time and decrease in damage for railgun, will have, in my mind, the largest effect on the game. Railgun is the most used turret, and also the most changed- I am excited to play xp/bp with the changes. Last of all, smoky. I initially thought it was a massive nerf (because critical damage was cut in half and reload time increased), but after looking at it, it is not all that bad.

 

Oh yeah, almost forgot about supplies. I am actually very displeased with this. People will now be able to equip and double armor and armor quicker, and they will last longer together. This can only mean one thing- heavy druggers have been buffed. Something that definitely did NOT need to happen whatsoever.

Edited October 3, 2016 by Jwimmer

[Kurt_KurtDGreat 2,259]

Wow :o that was fast :o haha good article :)

[Magenta 5,165]

Nice.

Takes away some notions about the update.....and very nice writing too.

BTW whats drift?

Edited October 3, 2016 by Magenta

[Thekillerpenguin 1,731]

BTW whats drift?

The tendency of a hull to slide when making sharp turns. Right now, it's most noticeable with Hornet and Hunter.

[Magenta 5,165]

The tendency of a hull to slide when making sharp turns. Right now, it's most noticeable with Hornet and Hunter.

ok.

in TX the hornet skids so much its almost unplayable (maybe lag, idk) for me

[Zenyth 6,494]

excellent information transfer

would definitely recommend people to read this, especially if you're not good at grasping what the statistics say

[Tofu 6,773]

Nice article

Edited October 3, 2016 by Tofu

[Viking4s 10,791]

What about product kit?

I was looking to buy Raiden product kit (Viking M3 / Thunder M3) at rank . Would it still be possible?

 

Values of damage (for turrets) and protection (for hulls) are multiplied by 10

You could drop the value after the unit. e.g. 1000.36 => 1000 HP

That would help reading.

Edited October 3, 2016 by Viking4s

[Viking4s 10,791]

ok.

in TX the hornet skids so much its almost unplayable (maybe lag, idk) for me

only skilled pilot can do it.

[marto85 631]

"In terms of speed, Wasp and Hunter both become slower while Hornet, Viking, Dictator, Titan and Mammoth have increased top speeds."

 

Oh well..

[eXTreMeLeGenD 0]

its not good this  Update :(  :(  :(

[I3.R.0 1,700]

This can be considered as a very good update if you compare this with the previous one's. You know what I mean

[X_Death.By.Me_X 1,503]

Wow, wasp has more health and speed than hornet. Thanks for making BP better than XP. Why would anyone even play hornet now. Hornet has been nerfed a bit too much.

[beaku 2,656]

Have fun with Hornet Isida :)

[khalid1982 202]

R-I-P RICO 

bad update

[Cyborg 3,189]

Awesome! This update is going to bring a whole new perspective to the game.

[FracTureD 58]

So all the crystals we spent on making our turrents stronger and hulls faster will be impacted by this update... Basically we wasted our crystals with micro upgrades... Sad... Don't know why micro-upgrades get introduced and then a few months down the line they're nullified by another update... Waste of crystals!

[r_Valk8 2,086]

What about kits? if all turrets and hulls m3 can be bought at marshal rank then what will happen to the kits??

[sre123 595]

Awesome article bro! :) Keep it up. :D 

[AshsPikachuDwij 1,035]

hmm Mine will take 40 secs to use again. This will aftect stg -_- 

[XxPAXIxX 14]

I think you need to increase hornets health somewhere about 40 more than wasp so there be some difference. And isida`s healing is ruined for no reason. I think DMG should be little increased but the self-healing stay 10% as mentioned. Because with lowering DMG and self-healing, isida`s special ability to heal it self loses point because DMG is less and to less DMG you heal less with even lower self-healing effect. I think thats one of big mistakes. I know that you are trying to balance game but that is not balancing, that is  ruining  some of weapons... By the way i think that you should balance gold box dropping because gold drops so much on big ranks but on small nobody never has chance to enjoy it. I think you should add like scale for each battle that is made with changed gold box dropping rate. At low level ranks the chance should be somewhere about 1 in 5000 and every rank up little less. That will balance it a little. Thats all from me :)