At Gamescom 2025, Wargaming transformed an entire hall into its own booth, hosting a grand festival for its fans. In one corner, the company held short demo sessions for its newly unveiled title, 'World of Tanks: HEAT.' The unique attempt to layer the DNA of a hero shooter onto tank combat was quite impressive, and attendees lined up to get a taste of Wargaming's latest project.

The current CBT, running from April 16 to 20, features more game modes and tanks than last year's demo. This opportunity allowed for a deeper look into aspects that couldn't be verified during the initial reveal.

When Tank Warfare Meets Heroes and Ultimates

'World of Tanks: HEAT' is a free-to-play game built on a new engine developed in-house by Wargaming. The core concept is to combine the weight of tank combat, established by the original 'World of Tanks,' with the structure of a hero shooter familiar to FPS gamers. Simply put, heroes with unique ultimate abilities appear, and each fights while piloting a distinct tank.

The 'Agents'—the game's equivalent of heroes—each possess unique abilities and tanks, and are divided into three classes: Attacker, Defender, and Sniper. Set in an alternate reality following World War II, the game features a diverse array of tanks and map designs that aren't bound by historical accuracy. Some maps feature orbital space stations, while official screenshots show combat taking place on massive aircraft carriers. That said, the tank realism isn't thrown out the window; values like armor thickness and angles for specific parts remain intact.

There are eight Agents available in the CBT, divided into the three aforementioned roles. Each Agent could operate up to two tanks suited to them, with the combinations being fixed. However, as of the CBT, the second tank for some Agents had not yet been unlocked.

Even within the same class, the fact that each Agent has different tank characteristics and skills is what makes repeated play fun. Among the Attackers, some are specialized for mid-range combat, while others are designed to get as close to enemy tanks as possible.

I was particularly impressed by an Agent named Raketa. The tank operated by this Agent has skills that can leave a trail of fire or use a harpoon to instantly close the distance to an enemy. Furthermore, the ultimate ability increases firing speed while granting a temporary 'invincibility' effect, making it perfect for diving into the heart of enemy lines to cause chaos.

Defenders are, as the name suggests, specialized in protecting the team's front line. True to their role, their tanks are heavily armored and can protect allies using active defense systems that neutralize enemy fire. Moreover, they aren't just defensive; they can be played aggressively, such as by using their ultimate to rain down indiscriminate bombardment on a specific area.

Snipers have high damage output but operate tanks that are essentially walking weak points. Optimized for attacking from long distances, they can also perform strategic roles like launching drones to share enemy locations with the team. However, in modes like objective-based capture games, their characteristic fragility can be a limitation.

I was also able to see some of the systems for leveling up Agents and tanks. Agents can equip passive traits to slightly boost their abilities as they level up, while tanks can be upgraded by purchasing parts to enhance specific performance metrics. Based on my experience, I saw parts that could increase the damage of certain skills by about 4%.

Familiar Rules, the Taste of High-Speed Tank Warfare

In Quick Play, I was able to experience four modes: Capture, Domination, Assassination, and Conquest. Think of them as common game modes found in typical multiplayer FPS titles—fighting over specific points or collecting tokens after destroying enemies (Assassination). The unique twist of 'HEAT' is that all these modes are played with tanks.

Except for Conquest, all modes are 5v5, while Conquest supports 10v10 combat. This mode, where you must capture multiple bases to reach 2,000 points first, boasts larger maps than the others. The scale of the battles over objectives is correspondingly larger, and the tension is high because you never know from which flank the enemy might approach. Of course, I also really liked the fact that I was accompanied by nine other reliable tanks.

The combat in 'World of Tanks: HEAT' feels like it takes the DNA of the original and adds a more casual atmosphere. The fact that weak points vary by tank based on armor thickness and angle, and that ricochets result in almost no damage, remains the same. While retaining the thrill of hiding your own weak points and targeting the enemy's, the addition of Agent and tank skills makes for a much more dynamic combat experience.

With the addition of tank-specific special skills and Agent ultimates, scenes that would be unimaginable in standard tank warfare unfold. The aforementioned harpoon is a great example. There are all sorts of skills, such as laying mines in capture zones, firing EMP bombs, or even firing multiple shells in rapid succession.

As a result, it feels like the agency of a single player has increased significantly. In standard tank warfare, you wouldn't last a few seconds against multiple enemy tanks alone, but in 'HEAT,' a Defender tank can hold off an enemy offensive for quite a while as long as you don't expose your side or rear weak points. It's impressive how there are more 'clutch' moments to turn the tide of a difficult situation—like holding the line alone until reinforcements arrive or getting a multi-kill with a carpet bombing run—thanks to the various tank skills and Agent ultimates. When those moments play out as planned, it's a rush of pure dopamine.

Of course, the inconvenience of the original's tank controls might be polarizing. You still have to move the turret and the hull separately, so if you aren't used to driving a tank, you might struggle at first. Furthermore, the learning curve of managing hull angles to avoid exposing weak points to enemies is an initial hurdle. However, it's worth noting that once you get used to these controls, you can employ the original's signature tactics, such as rotating the turret and angling the hull to induce ricochets. If you have an interest in the sensation of driving a tank, you'll find the combat quite fun and casual.

Spending about four hours with the CBT allowed me to confirm the impressions I had from the Gamescom demo in more detail. The direction of adding the dynamism of a hero shooter to the weight of tank combat that 'World of Tanks' has built is clear, and that combination is creating fun in actual repeated play. While I can't say there is zero barrier to entry for tank controls, Agent skills and ultimates act as a catalyst to help players overcome that hurdle.

Of course, there are areas that need improvement as it is a CBT, such as the countdown in the lobby menu saying 'Launch Start' (likely a mistranslation of 'Launch') or some characters' passive skills not yet being displayed in Korean. However, the balance between the heaviness of the tank controls and the lightness of the hero shooter in 'World of Tanks: HEAT' is so well-integrated that I found myself thinking about it as soon as I closed the game.

For players who are interested in tanks but found the barrier to entry for the original 'World of Tanks' too high, this 'casual' tank warfare developed by Wargaming itself could be a solid choice for getting started.

The Closed Beta Test for World of Tanks: HEAT is available on PC (Steam, Wargaming Game Center), PS, and Xbox, and runs until the 20th. The CBT is only available to players who registered and were selected, or those invited by existing testers.