Armored Warfare [Modern WoT]

AW (Armored Warfare - Official Website) has now entered open beta and have stated no more resets. I will reference World of Tanks a bunch, but I will explain as best I can if you want to get into vehicle warfare. I put a lot of time (and money) into WoT over the years, but as any player will know there are severe issues with the game that really center around the complacency of the developers, Wargaming. AW is developed by Obsidian Entertainment (yes, the RPG guys).

The core of the game, much like WoT centers on armored combat in 15v15 pvp team battles, frequently involving objectives though total elimination of the enemy team is more common. Both are F2P with options for premium time/tanks.

So what's different? All tanks have sixth sense. Oh and also:

• Setting:
  WoT is the early 20th century through mid century. AW is mid century through current generation vehicles. The good news is that Obsidian doesn't screw with vehicle dynamics just to make upgrades more weighty to force people to buy in.
  That is, while the Leopard 1 is a neutered Main Battle Tank in WoT to fit hamfisted into a specific place in the German tech tree, in AW it has it's historically beefy gun mantlet even at Tier 3 along with *gasp* the correct ammunition (armor piercing discarding sabot rounds). Going from WoT Tier 10 (highest level tanks) to AW Tier 1 is very natural feeling. This is great as it feels like going from WoT Tier 8 to Tier 18 in AW and the combat is simultaneously faster and more tactical.
• Story:
  It appears to be defined enough to create a setting but not very deep. Essentially, you are part of a PMC in the near future. There are missions (coop) and the maps tend to center around real things, so a lot are in the middle east (port cities, oil wells, etc.) You fight things like the 'PLM' (Palestinian Liberation Movement I guess) taking over a port city. You fight other 'PMCs' in PvP.
• Engine:
  CryEngine. Graphics are good, the maps have a TON of detail. I didn't even install the HD package because I almost worry about the clutter and performance.
• Combat:
  Faster, but more of the same. There is something IMMENSELY satisfying about the guns in this game - when you put an APDS round into a T54 turret instead of 'autobounce' in WoT if not directly perpendicular, it just sails right in as it should with that much KE. The projectile dynamics are really top-notch. Accuracy is also more realistic - you aren't going to miss by 30 feet in a modern tank unless you are operating outside of reasonable parameters.
• Upgrades:
  AW has a huge number of upgrades for each tank and it is slightly complicated compared to WoT. In WoT, the tech trees are by country. In AW they are by design philosophy. Right now there are two 'dealers' (tech trees): dynamic, adaptable vehicles OR big gun/big armor vehicles. Both have MBTs, Wheeled Destroyers, Fire Support/Infantry Fighting Vehicles (Scouts) and Indirect Fire (arty). You unlock each tree not by 'raw' experience alone but by performing well in the type of combat each vehicle subtree excels at - to give an example one dealer named 'Wolfi' has two MBT trees- Leopard (Central Euro) and US. The Euro tree unlocks by doing damage above 50% health - the tanks are fire support, snipers. The US tree unlocks by doing damage within 150 yards - the Abrams is a brawling killing machine with excellent fire on the move capability. So if you are good and sneaky, you could unlock both simultaneously, keeping in mind you still have to use the tanks in order to earn SOME tank-specific XP.
• Progression:
  In addition to normal unlocks, you can equip special retrofit equipment (heavier armor, chrome barrel linings, ERA, heavier torsion bars, etc.). In order to use them, you must unlock - there appears to be one 'unlock' in most tank trees. That means in order to get the world's best Abrams M1A2 for instance, you would have to play a lot of other tanks to unlock the level 3 of the specific equipment you want on your tank. Additionally like WoT, cremembers have upgrades and a lot of them are extremely similar in nature. One big difference, though, is that commanders contain the BIG upgrades. One commander I have, for instance, has 'pack tactics' to start which gives you a 20% additional module damage as long as you are with another friendly tank. These commanders can be qualified in many tanks and are more like traditional RPG characters.
• Tech/Vehicles:
  As you might imagine, this game has missiles (TOW, ATGM, etc.) and huge smoothbore cannons and the like. It also has active armor (ERA, flechette anti-missile systems apparently and the like). This is part of the reason the game play is a bit faster. If you are a better player (hull down, angle armor) you can just straight up murder your opponent who is dumb and caught out in the middle of a field because let's be honest, not much is stopping an L7A1 much less a M256A1. This means combat is less about 'dancing around and brawling' or 'peek-a-boom' and more about tactics. Do not cross a field in an MBT unless you are clear to do so, you will get murdered. Dealing with things like target locks on missiles is interesting, both missiles and artillery give the tanker a warning, though depending on the tank and location it may not change their fate. Plus, at times you are thinking perhaps an M2 has locked with a TOW so you back up only a few feet, only to find a top-down ATGM missile slams down on your head because it was really a Swingfire (fire support vehicle).
• Arty/Scouting:
  Arty has been fixed in this game, something Wargaming has steadfastly refused to do. First off, it IS powerful and much like WoT the trade-off for that power is paper tanks. However, there are several differences: 1) many direct fire arty/missile/rocket vehicles fire salvos - combined with the warning you can often dart behind cover if it's available unless the tank is right near you, though if that's the case it should be an easy kill. 2) Arty harasses, damages modules and causes people to drive erratically but it doesn't seem to just decapitate tanks like it does in WoT. It can kill you quickly if you stay still, though. Arty appears to be nicer to play as well - faster reloads with lower damage. 3) counter-battery fire is obscenely important - arty tanks DO NOT get warnings unlike MBTs for incoming indirect fire. 4) Scouting is integral. MBTs are effectively blind compared to their engagement range. Without IFVs poroperly moving up to scout, your team will get cut to ribbons. 5) Smoke launchers! which actually work BECAUSE: 6) Arty do not get top-down views, they get '3rd person ballistic arc views'.
• Modding:
  None yet. They have said they want to allow them soon, however they do not want the WoT style 'performance enhancing mods'.
• Interface:
  Very modern, up to WIN 8 standards (so pretty much looks like CoD big square flat buttons). Works much more intuitively in some ways than WoT, however certain things are not explained well even if they are intuitive to use or accessible (such as the 'Proven' reputation stats and EXP bar and things like that).
• Matchmaking:
  SUPPOSEDLY, improved. I haven't been in many straight up blow-outs so maybe it is. Obsidian supposedly looks at vehicle layout and kit as well as stats to determine an overall 'weight' for each vehicle instead of just randomly cobbling together roughly equal number of each type of tank.

Keep in mind below are thelowdef graphics.