War Thunder was one of the first games I ever played on a PS4 and had been around a long time before then on the PC too. As with anything competitive there are the usual collection of balancing alterations, nerfing and buffing going on. Gaijin really are tireless and they haven’t let off the pace even long after the release of War Thunder.

But more impressive than Gaijin’s commitment to updates is the constant additions of planes and tanks to the roster. I really don’t know where they keep finding new vehicles to add that don’t feel reused or boring. War Thunder’s roster was already impressive even when it was first launched as a beta but now it is hugely expansive.

But it’s plain to see that the current focus of War Thunder is targeting Ground Forces. That’s not to say that planes are being neglected but there is a definite push towards battling on the ground. I still find myself thinking of War Thunder as a flight game and even avoided Ground Forces for a long time, but if ever there was a time to start, it’s now.

I think for me the biggest reason for my avoidance of Ground Forces came from the huge amount of time and money (and I mean lots of real money) I’d already put into the standard game. It’s really quite off putting after spending 10’s of hours unlocking, grinding and spending Golden Eagles only to switch to a different unlock tree and find that you’ve made no progress at all. As a further gut punch those pesky but all important crew upgrades that stop your pilot passing out whenever he banks very slightly are completely wasted in Ground Forces as the tank crew have their own stats.

That aside the only place to start is to get in the drivers seat and go for it. It’s instantly obvious that War Thunder’s attention to detail is not lost on the Ground Forces. Each antenna moves faithfully as you operate the vehicle. The dirt and rust that covers each of the vehicles looks amazingly realistic. As we’ve come to expect from War Thunder things look accurate and realistic throughout.

That accuracy also goes for the sound effects. There’s nothing quite like the thud of a Hispano or the roar of a ShVAK cannon in the regular game and ground vehicles have certainly not been overlooked. Every time a shell is fired there’s the inevitable chunky explosion followed by some all important subtleties. The ting of a shell casing and the clunk as a new shell is loaded are just as important and War Thunder doesn’t disappoint. Based on sound alone firing pretty much anything from a Ground Forces vehicle is satisfying but add to it the feeling of power and some nifty particle effects and the vehicles really pack a punch.

And that applies especially to some of the latest vehicles added to War Thunder’s already expansive list. This is your best bet for a full list of changes but this is the list of new vehicles that come with patch 1.47 for you to earn:

New Ground vehicles:

• USA: М26Е1, M42
• Germany: Pz.Kpfw VI Tiger Ausf E, Pz.Kpfw Maus, Flakpanzer Gepard, Marder III H
• USSR: Т-126 (СП), Т-28E, Т-54-1949

New aircraft:

• USA: A-20G-25 (З replaced old A-20G-30 model), B57B, B-29
• Germany: Bf.109G-14, Fw-200C-1
• USSR: IL-2 1941, La-5FN (updated visual model, as well as German premium one. German premium camouflage has been changed to fit La-5FN type 39 from late production of the La-5FN series, and La-5FN type 41 – previous one was made on La-5FN type 39 of end of 1943 and beginning of 1944 production years (main production series)
• Japan: J2M4 Kai

There’s just so much new to unlock and fly/drive but even so it’s almost impossible not to be instantly drawn towards the German Maus. Oh yeah they went ahead and let you ‘drive’ the Maus. It’s such a ridiculous vehicle and the kind of thing that  never gets included in a game. Go Gaijin for letting us use this ridiculous beast.

But I do wish there was an incentive for pilots to switch from a hugely upgraded crew and set of planes to a brand new load out other than the promise of more/different gameplay. Having to level up crews again is a particular pain for me. Once you get playing it’s fun but it’s difficult to push yourself knowing how long those tier 4 and 5’s take to earn.

It’s great to see that even given the push towards Ground Forces War Thunder has far from forgotten it’s roots and still updates and adds to the core flight gameplay. Patch 1.47 is a great update to both the flight and ground forces and adds tons of new content.