World of Tanks: Heat Brings Tank Battles to Steam Deck Glory

Wargaming's latest project, World of Tanks: Heat, caught my eye at Gamescom 2025 with its sleek, proprietary engine. Built from scratch, this tech powers dynamic battlefields where tanks rumble through destructible environments and weather shifts in real time. What stands out is its portability, delivering a steady 60 fps on the Steam Deck at medium settings while aiming to match the visual punch of high-end PCs and consoles like the PS5 and Xbox Series X and S. The engine's efficiency, with a sub-8 GB RAM footprint, makes it a standout for handheld gaming.

Beyond pretty visuals, the engine supports NVIDIA's DLSS 4 for sharper graphics and a low-latency pipeline that keeps inputs tight, hitting 10 ms on PS5 and 13 ms on PC test rigs. Wargaming's focus on a modular tank pipeline lets players swap armor and trigger ability effects without stuttering, a feat that feels seamless whether you're on a console or a portable device.

Crossplay is the heart of World of Tanks: Heat, letting PC, console, and Steam Deck players clash in 10-versus-10 matches. Wargaming's server tech, now running at a 60 Hz tick rate compared to the original game's 30 Hz, ensures smooth action across platforms. Early tests show promise, but a closed alpha revealed a catch: console players abandoned 7% more matches when forced into crossplay lobbies, prompting an opt-out toggle to keep things fair.

The game's cross-progression means your tank upgrades carry over, whether you're playing at home or on the go with a Steam Deck. This flexibility opens up new ways to enjoy the game, from quick matches during a commute to late-night sessions on a big screen. It's a bold step toward uniting players, but Wargaming's challenge lies in keeping the experience consistent across diverse hardware.

Mixing controller and mouse-and-keyboard players in a competitive shooter is tricky, and World of Tanks: Heat tackles it head-on. A University of Copenhagen study found controller aim-assist boosts hit rates by 23% at close range in armored shooters, so Wargaming tuned input parity to level the playing field. Early demos suggest success, but some PC players from the original World of Tanks worry that 'hero' abilities, like special attacks, might tip the balance in favor of console players with aim-assist.

Wargaming's solution draws from Call of Duty's playbook, offering input-based matchmaking to group players by control type. This approach, paired with customizable input presets, aims to make the game accessible without sacrificing fairness. Whether it holds up in the chaos of launch remains to be seen, but the effort to bridge control schemes is a smart move.

World of Tanks: Heat blends the fast-paced vibe of hero shooters like Apex Legends with the heavy armor of tank combat. Matches average six minutes, appealing to players who want quick, intense battles. The 'hero-enhanced' mechanics add special abilities to tanks, bringing a layer of strategy that feels fresh yet familiar. Some longtime fans of the original game question if these abilities stray too far from classic tank warfare, but the shorter match times and dynamic gameplay could draw in a broader crowd.

Apex Legends thrives on character diversity. Heat, by contrast, keeps tanks grounded in a post-WWII alt-history setting. This choice avoids the historical controversies of earlier titles while still delivering the thrill of commanding a war machine. The cosmetic-only monetization, pitched as 'free-to-win,' sets it apart from pay-to-progress rivals, though regulators in the UK and Netherlands are watching its battle-pass system closely for loot-box-like mechanics.

Comparing World of Tanks: Heat to other crossplay titles offers valuable lessons. Call of Duty's input-based lobbies show how separating controller and keyboard players can maintain competitive balance, while Heat adopted an opt-out toggle to address its 7% console abandonment issue. Meanwhile, Apex Legends demonstrates the pull of fast-paced, ability-driven gameplay, which Heat mirrors with its six-minute matches and hero abilities. Both cases highlight the importance of player choice, like opt-out crossplay, to keep diverse audiences engaged.

Challenges remain, such as ensuring anti-cheat systems work across platforms and preventing GPU driver issues at launch. The handheld PC market, including the Steam Deck, has passed 6 million units sold, signaling a growing market, and Heat's 60 fps performance on medium settings proves Wargaming's engine is ready for portable play. These hurdles, if cleared, could make Heat a blueprint for future cross-platform shooters.