Version 1.2.5 provides players the beginnings of a career advancement path for their characters. All players will begin with the rank of Private with the ability to be promoted through 13 levels of rank up to General. Chris Sherland, WWII Online Producer, outlines this new feature and others as building blocks for future updates.
"Ranks are RPG 'levels' that will be the basis for players getting their hands on more game functionality. Right now (v1.2.5) it relates to posting custom missions. As players gain rank they will have more points available to post missions. The rank system in 1.2.5 starts players on a character development path which will increase over time in depth, complexity and additional features."
1.2.5 offers new vehicles and weapons to players including the German Panzer II tank, anti-aircraft installations and patrol boats for river combat and English Channel crossings. The Panzer II is a lightly-armored but powerfully armed Axis tank featuring a rapid-fire cannon, 30 caliber machine gun and a top speed of 40 kph. This tank will be a formidable addition for the Axis players. The British Riverine Patrol boat, the "Fairmile Model B" is now available as a multicrew-capable naval vessel with anti-tank, anti-aircraft and anti-personnel weapons and will be used primarily to patrol western European rivers. The boats will also be capable of transporting troops to different locations. Axis players will use "captured" British boats and fly the Axis flag until the introduction of additional naval vessels in future versions.
"The addition of these patrol boats opens up all-new areas of gameplay and is just a taste of the combat to be featured in the evolution of the naval segment of WWII Online as part of a subscription to 'Blitzkreig'.
Also featured in 1.2.5 are additional terrain elements including dozens of new towns and villages such as Dover and Calais, river docks and AI controlled anti-aircraft installations surrounding defended positions. Another updated feature in this release is the increased number of enterable buildings in large towns and cities.
Finally, the release of 1.2.5 provides the CRS development team the ability to finalize the persistent world host providing game play to thousands of players in a single world. This update is not part of the 1.2.5 client upgrade but rather is a host-side update, which has been under testing for several weeks, and will become the primary gameplay environment. In addition to the persistent world host, an overflow world used for training, special events and for those times when the persistent world host is at player capacity will be offered.
Following the successful release of 1.2.5 Playnet.com will begin the 30 day free trial, which has been suspended since the launch of the game in June. Expectations are that the 30 day free trial will begin the week of September 9th with paid subscriptions going into effect the week of October 7th.
"We wish to thank the thousands of players who have supported our small team since June and we welcome new and current players to experience the added features of this major update to the World War II Online virtual experience."
Agree or disagree? Have something you'd like to add? We'd love to hear your thoughts. Simply Login or Register to add a comment and have your say. Registration is free, and only takes a few moments.
