First Impressions - World of Warships

This old American rust-bucket is one of the two ships you start off with

I must sound like a broken record when it comes to MMOs but as you know, I tend to avoid them - especially free-to-play ones as usually they tread a precarious line between having a fair business model or one that is play-to-win. So I was hesitant on even giving World of Warships a try given it is a free-to-play MMO. Two things swayed my decision though: (1) Many of my friends have got into the game and (2) it's a game all about WWII naval battles which is just too tempting to resist. I've now played 9 battles in the game (which is probably at least two hours) so how is it?

What I like

• Unleashes my inner naval captain: "Full steam ahead! Enemy destroyer spotted on the port bow! Incoming torpedoes! Brace for impact!" these are all things I can't help but vocalise on TeamSpeak despite it potentially annoying my friends to no end. However, there aren't many games where you get the opportunity to do so - I mean how many internet multiplayer WWII naval combat games are there?
• Simple to pick up: Although there is some strategy involved if you want to play the game well, it's relatively easy to pick up since it's mainly an action game. The WASD keys are used to steer the ship and the mouse is used to aim and fire - and that's it.
• Quick games: When you have little time remaining in your life to play games any more (such as myself) you want games that don't take too long yet you still feel like you've achieved something. World of Warships fits perfectly in this regard as each game only takes 10-15 minutes to complete.
• Faithfully restored ships: Okay I'm no expert on WWII ships but they all seem to be rather detailed and look like the real deal. Always helps to have a bit of authenticity when doing historical war games!

What I don't like

• Music: It's a minor quibble but while the music in the game might work well in an 80s action flick thanks to the wailing guitars and synths, it sometimes feels out of place in a WWII naval game.
• A bit grindy: I've played 9 battles so far and haven't unlocked any new ships. I'm assuming it can only get worse from here (since usually the required XP to unlock things in MMOs increases exponentially). To be fair, I have unlocked some extra kit for my current ship so it's not entirely a boring grindfest - not yet
• Lack of aesthetic ship customisation options: It would be nice if there were more customisation options for your ships in terms of aesthetics - you know like maybe different decals or even the ability to name your ship.
• Needs more foghorn: Yep.

Verdict

I'm keen to continue trying this game out. I'd at the very least like to see how the other ship types work (i.e. the destroyer, battleship and aircraft carrier). The only thing that could possibly be a downside is if the grind gets way too much for me.

[ LINK: World of Warships Official Website ]