World of Tanks' Confrontation mode launches this week

Multiplayer mechanised battler World of Tanks is getting a new update this week. The memorably named 8.11 patch brings a new map, new crew management features, and, most notably, Confrontation mode. In this, tanks forego the usual inter-nation free-for-all, instead becoming divided along territorial lines, with countries fighting countries in a match-up that's directly inspired by actual wars, probably.

The update is slowly rolling out across the world this week. It should be available in Europe and Russia today, in Asia on the 12th, and in the US and Korea on the 13th.

Yesterday, a post on the World of Tanks site rounded up the key features of Confrontation mode:

  • "The probability of playing “Confrontation” is the same as for "Encounter" or "Assault"

  • "The game maps available in "Confrontation" are the same as in any standard battle

  • "The new battle type will be open for all vehicle tiers

  • "Teams in “Confrontation” are built by nations. Battles cannot be fought by two teams built from vehicles of the same nation. For example, a French vehicle team can battle against the British, Americans, Germans or Soviets, but not against another team of French vehicles

  • "The Chinese and Japanese nations are excluded from this battle type. The reason is that these nations do not have all vehicle types available

  • "The new battle type can be played in Platoons, provided that all Platoon members are driving vehicles of the same nation (excluding China and Japan)

  • "This battle type can be manually disabled in the game settings menu, just like the “Assault” and “Encounter” battle types"

The new map, Windstorm, takes place around a European city, and features narrow streets and indestructible buildings. That last point definitely isn't inspired by actual war.

Phil Savage
Editor-in-Chief

Phil has been writing for PC Gamer for nearly a decade, starting out as a freelance writer covering everything from free games to MMOs. He eventually joined full-time as a news writer, before moving to the magazine to review immersive sims, RPGs and Hitman games. Now he leads PC Gamer's UK team, but still sometimes finds the time to write about his ongoing obsessions with Destiny 2, GTA Online and Apex Legends. When he's not levelling up battle passes, he's checking out the latest tactics game or dipping back into Guild Wars 2. He's largely responsible for the whole Tub Geralt thing, but still isn't sorry.

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