Giving away some pretty substantial, story driven mini-campaigns completely free of charge may seem like a bit of an odd business model - but then, Wargaming have never been one to do things by the book. Adding a wide range of single player/co-op stories to play through, World of Tanks console's War Stories mode gives players a chance to test their skills against the AI in a series of three interlinked missions, rather than facing off against the very best online. And this latest one tells quite the story indeed.
Intended as a kind of alternate history take on famous events, like the previous Operation Sealion story, which told the tale of the Nazi invasion of England, Runaway Tiger instead sees you venturing into North Africa, as you attempt to slip into a Tiger production facility, and steal the prototype Panzer VI, later to become the Tiger. With the plot relayed through cool, Commando comic style cutscenes, with a sandstorm covering your trail, it's up to you to pinch the Tiger, destroy the other prototypes, and get out of there alive.
Playing as Marianne Durieux, a (fictional) member of the French Resistance, whether you'll have to ask a somewhat nervous cafe owner for his help remains to be seen - but you'd better pay attention to mission briefings, as the chances are she shall say zem only once. As with the other War Stories modes, you can play this in both co-op, or single player - and once you've played through the campaign the first time, you can replay it with your own tanks, earning XP and silver that you can spend on upgrades.
Runaway Tiger, and four other War Stories campaigns are out now, and are available to download free of charge in the similarly free to play World of Tanks console on PS4, Xbox One, and Xbox 360.