A CONVERSATION VICTOR KISLYI
(WARGAMING CEO)

Welcome to Impulse Gamer... firstly, tell us how you got involved in gaming?

Ever since I can remember I was a gamer.

You know, back in 1987 we didn't have computers. What we had was some kind of a rip-off from ZX Spectrum PC. We had local guys making ZX Spectrum-like machines out of spear parts from vacuum cleaners, refrigerators, tape recorders. That how we played.

What was the first game that you played?

My first game was Lazer Squad for ZX Spectrum.

What about inspired you to create WARGAMING?

I had played video games for a number of years prior to establishing the company. Essentially, my friends (and co-founders) and I, we saw a tremendous opportunity to create a company that would create quality and original experiences that we ourselves would eagerly play.

Why do you think it has become so popular?

I’d say that World of Tanks presents a total of all lessons learned with our early titles, and provides the most cohesive and solid gaming experience of all Wargaming products.

We tried to do the best we could in selecting the ideas that we thought would translate well in the game. We’ve designed tour own original free-to-win business model that provides access to all in-game options to payers and non-payers. It balances out so that a student with little money but lots of time can see and try everything in the game, while a busy businessman can pay and not lag behind those with more time.

The offers players smooth learning curve allowing them to uncover an ever-growing variety of machines and tactics along the way. World of Tanks has cutting-edge graphics and well-tuned balance system. It’s easy to jump into, yet it’s not the one you become brilliant at overnight.

What about Australia? Why do you think Australian Gamers have embraced WARGAMING?

Australian gamers showed their interest in World of Tanks at the Open Beta stage, but we could get a massive following back then, mainly because of the online lag. Once the company’s strengthened its positions, we’ve come back to Australia with a totally new proposition. We are now working on bringing local servers to Australia to help improve the online experience for users. We already have a passionate World of Tanks gaming community in the country and believe that it will grow quickly once we solve the Internet connection quality issue.

Tell us about the future of WARGAMING?

We are going to produce a bewildering array of brilliant, brilliant games for manifold platforms.

What excites you most about WARGAMING?

It’s definitely the people that work in the company. The artists, the programmers—it’s always exciting. When it all started it was very different—we were a few trailblazers—but it’s very cool, because the company now unites many hundreds of talented artists with different approaches to making games, but all of them genuinely passionate about their work. There are lots of people with new ideas and it pushes you to continue on and make something new.

Another thing about the company is that Wargaming doesn’t do knock-offs. Everything we do is really original, and it’s all about innovating to create something that hasn’t been seen before.

In terms of creation, what was the most difficult aspect?

The biggest challenge was simply the phenomenal tech undertaking involved in building an MMO game. There are tons of MMOs, but really only a very few companies have even managed to get one out the door, and much less have been successful. The massively multiplayer space presents some of the most complicated game programming in the world, and every normal design problem becomes exponentially more difficult when faced with thousands of simultaneous players whose characters have permanency.

When working on World of Tanks, we weren’t prepped for the game’s fast-growing popularity and had to quickly increase the server capacity to provide comfortable gaming conditions for millions of players. PvP was complicated to balance as well, but we were fortunate enough to have months and hundreds of thousands of testers to work through the kinks.

What about most rewarding?

Wargaming has made a huge progress recently, and it’s hard to pick one event. Securing the World Guinness Record, for example, was a huge milestone. Receiving the Golden Joystick for the Best MMO game last year was another moment-to-remember. Important thing about the company is that it never slows down. We can time to celebrate our achievements, yet we are always on the way to new records.

I can tell you that for myself and the team, we are incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved. World of Tanks is one of the crowning achievements of free online gaming and it set standards that developers will be trying to reach for some time to come.

Do you believe the future of gaming is online?

I believe that the digital download will dominate the market in next few years. When the next generation of children who live now with downloading apps from iOS/Android grow up, they will not give the same value to retail that the current customers do.

PS4 or Xbox One? Which one is better and why?

It’s too soon to say just yet. I’m excited to try both.

Besides WARGAMING, what are you playing at the moment?

Civilization V.

Lastly, describe the future of gaming in 10 years?

As far as the industry trends go, we are going to see more quality MMO games. The genre is now mainstream. The industry has matured and the experiences we are creating for gamers have become more refined and will continue to evolve.

Another trend is in digital distribution and it’s only going to improve. At the same time, the market is going to be strongly growing in the free-to-play direction. Free-to-play requires huge community, so it means accessibility and a solid social component. Ultimately, the whole gaming industry is led by the consumer and that’s how it will be in future. Whatever decisions we’re making in the chain between the consumer and the game developer, they always trickle from what the gamer wants to see.