War Thunder players can try a revised Southeastern City map in Nuclear Escalation until October 9 at 11:00 GMT. Gaijin Games has placed the limited test in the Events and Tournaments tab while it evaluates whether the smaller battlefield suits the mode.
The event uses the same Battle Rating range as the regular Nuclear Escalation queue, from 8.7 to 14.7. Its matchmaking rules and Battle Rating brackets also remain unchanged, including the brackets that determine which ground units are controlled by the game.
The landscape has been rebuilt
Southeastern City now uses height-map technology like the system recently applied to War Thunder’s Afghanistan map. Gaijin says the change supports more detailed terrain rather than simply replacing surface textures.
The revised version adds sandy and rocky shorelines, gives the mountains more definition, and places forests and villages in a northern area that had been open fields. The vegetation set has also been replaced. Ground cover is denser, while trees now extend onto mountain slopes. Changes to the water color and weather settings complete the visual pass.
The test may lead to a Battle Rating limit
Gaijin has not committed to adding the map permanently. The studio wants to measure how Nuclear Escalation plays on Southeastern City’s smaller footprint before deciding what happens next.
One concern is the concentration of action at the top of the current Battle Rating range. If the test becomes too crowded at higher tiers, Gaijin says it may cap the maximum Battle Rating available for missions on this map. That is a possibility under review, not an announced rule change.
What players should check
The useful comparison during this short test is not only visual. Players can assess travel time from spawn areas, the density of air and ground encounters, and whether the new northern terrain changes movement through the map. Feedback from the October 7–9 window will inform Gaijin’s next decision.
The official announcement does not specify when results will be published or whether Southeastern City will return after the test closes.
Sources
- Reporting source: GamerHeadlines
- Primary source: Gaijin Games’ War Thunder event announcement
