Balance 2.0 - When, if ever?

[This is just a script I used to help narrate my video.  It's just a reference so it may differ a little with what I actually said word for word.]

Some time ago, WarGaming released a video about vehicle balance 2.0, explaining their intentions to completely overhaul the game balance.  While I would normally receive this kind of news with enthusiasm, I've instead received it with doubt and skepticism.  A new approach to the game's balance is something that has been needed for a while now, and what Anton Pankov claims WarGaming is going to do in the time to come would seem like the appropriate response to that, but how long is it really going to take them to do all this?  The more observant viewer will note that no deadlines for any of the things mentioned in the video were given.  What this means is that the video comes off more as an update on ideas the developers are brainstorming, rather than an actual promise - an initial idea of how to deal with the current state of the game's balance rather than a real plan of action.

To explain why I feel this way, let's talk about the sound and physics update.  Those of you who know me or follow me on my stream may already know that I was critical of the recent sound and physics update.  I was firstly critical of the fact that the sound and physics update contained no other significant gameplay changes, but more importantly, while I did welcome the new physics and sounds, they were too little too late in my opinion.  The viewers among you who are newer to the game may be inclined to think that I'm acting a bit entitled here, but before you do I'd like to show you the following clips:

These clips were taken from a developer diaries video detailing the dev team's work on the new physics and vehicle handling characteristics, a video which WarGaming posted two years ago.  If what they said in the video is true, and the physics had then been in development for a year, that would mean it has taken WarGaming three years to finally deliver the new physics.  Of course, I use the word "new" ONLY as a relative term to the old physics, since the new and improved physics feel neither considerably new nor greatly improved, and instead feel more like the old physics with various governing restrictions (such as maximum rolling angle) removed.

It's frustrating seeing a video boasting about fancy dynamic physics and proper multicore support among other things, knowing that two years later only a small fraction of these features have actually been implemented.  I would love to go after WarGaming for failing to fulfill their promises, but technically speaking I can't.  Never over the course of the developer diaries video does anyone mention even an estimated deadline for any of the features they show off.  In a way, the video is WarGaming having their cake and eating it too.  They get to show off all the fancy new things they're working on to generate hype and enthusiasm among the World of Tanks community, but if anyone who would want to call them out in the coming years for never releasing any of this content wouldn't be able to since they never actually promised it.  WarGaming conveniently dance around the issue of implementation so they can make it look like they're ready to take the game in crazy new directions without actually committing to anything.

With all this in mind, the balance 2.0 video doesn't have me feeling hopeful.  Much like the physics video from two years ago, there's no solid deadlines or promises that anything major is going to happen to the game any time soon.  I can't say for certain that WarGaming won't do anything, however, given their track record, I'm going to remain skeptical until they finally, if ever, prove my suspicions wrong.