Update 2018-06-30: *Puts on sunglasses*

• Changed lighting in all scenes: now features linear color space and realtime global illumination for a better overall tone and reduced glare in bright areas
• Improved background color of thermal sights in both white-hot and black-hot modes
• Added "show hits only" mode to AAR

Update 2018-06-28 #2: Armor model overhaul and the discovery of fire

• Added proper armor colliders to the T-90 (replacing hastily done approximation)
• Fixed armor model of T-55 to work on spall from inside the tank
• Added light sources to all fire effects
• Fixed glitch where a dead driver could propel the tank forward or backward forever
• Added player waypoints to wasteland OPFOR missions
• Rebalanced BMD-3 missions

Update 2018-06-28: Better AI, better ricochets, better pizza

• Added new dug-in AI behavior; tanks whose crew have this ability will pull forward from defilade to fire, then reverse into cover again to reload
• Enforced hard limit on HEAT warhead fuzing angle: too shallow and it's crushed
• Reduced performance of AP rounds after a ricochet
• Changed BMD-3 AP ammo to 3UBR6 type
• Limited the lifetime of bouncing spall fragments
• Fixed glitch that prevented auxiliary sights from appearing with the correct location and zoom
• Adjusted difficulty of T-55 wasteland mission

Update 2018-06-27: Spall overhaul and new long-range practice map

• Added BMD-3 test range with long-distance targets
• Changed spall system to behave more realistically and reliably
• Eliminated most cases of harmless center mass shots and increased likelihood of doing damage with a penetrating hit
• Increased size of explosive impacts and ERA detonations
• Added lighting to explosions
• Implemented fuse arming distance for Konkurs-M missile
• Fixed lighting in Wasteland M1A2 SEP mission

Update 2018-06-26: Mouse options and pen mechanic updates

• Added mouse options: sensitivity and Y-invert
• Added normalization mechanic to kinetic penetrators
• Added ricochet mechanic for all ammo types, with varying angle tolerances
• Improved spall spray patterns
• Changed spall fragment sizes to better reflect reality
• Changed ERA detonation behavior - now disappears on impact
• Improved armor model of T-90 (still WIP)
• Buffed T-90 turret cheeks
• Nerfed M829A3
• Reduced height of turret throws

Previous change logs

20180505

Added realistic armor model to T-55
Switched default AAR mode to “player only, damaging shots”
Fixed AAR view not attaching to correct vehicle
Fixed death cam not being placed in the correct spot
Fixed collider issue in T-55 that prevented spall from crossing between turret and hull inside crew compartment

20180504

Massively improved realism of thermal optics
Added gunnery practice mission
Added muzzle flashes to all guns
Added heat signatures at engine areas of most vehicles
Added thermal bloom for missiles in flight
Added commander camera view for third person mode
Added precision mode to third person aiming
Added color changes to some gun sight reticles
Fixed turret moving while using escape menu
Fixed aim sensitivity issues in third person
Fixed thermal signatures of parked vehicles

20180502

Added thermal optics to all tanks with digital fire control; optics can be cycled through white- and black-hot with the T key
Added basic temperature zones to all vehicles; this is a very early version of what will be a far more realistic system later on
Updated particle systems so thermals can see through smoke
Fixed esc menu - now it will never appear unless the player commands, and it will block firing while open

20180411

Fixed internal module layout in BMD-3 and Sprut - it should no longer be difficult to get damaging hits on either of them
Fixed stretched muzzle smoke effects on most vehicles
Fixed incorrect names of some items
Reduced smoke buildup from burning tanks
Increased reverse speed of M1A2 SEP
Improved missile launch effects

20180313v2

Fixed tracking mode being usable from 3rd person view
Fixed HUD labeling during tracking mode

20180313

Fixed flaws in target tracking system - now there should be minimal effect on the reticle motion and position while tracking and re-lasing
Fixed digital sights so they don’t show a level image when the tank is on sloped ground

20180312

New target tracking system: right-click and hold to engage lead and guide turret (note that this system is still very work-in-progress and may behave erratically at times)
Enabled AAR at all times, not just at mission end
Joystick behavior now uses point of click as center
Fixed most immobilization issues
Fixed camera jitter when turning tank
Fixed visible frame rate desync when tracking a moving target

20171103

Upgraded project to Unity 2017
Improved ammo cookoff fire effects
Changed digital gun sights to use a standard default range setting
Removed ability to continuously accept commander aim
Removed range and lead adjustment when accepting commander aim

20170922

Added README in ZIP file

20170921v2

Fixed bug where AAR was inaccessible despite mission failure due to player’s vehicle becoming combat ineffective

20170921

Fixed camera shake while moving over uneven terrain
Fixed slat armor behavior to be more realistic: now shaped charge warheads that are not tandem or advanced have a high chance of total defeat rather than detonating properly
Fixed visual issue with TOW-2B missile smoke trails

20170819

Fixed bug where T-90 autoloader could stop successful penetrations from doing spall/frag damage 
Fixed color of M1A2 SEP rangefinder readout
Added M1A2 SEP round ready indicator

20170726

Fixed bug where player’s vehicle could be rendered combat ineffective without the game menu and AAR prompt appearing
Removed ability to control acceleration midair
Removed all PID control when vehicle is not grounded and upright

20170725

Fixed bug where damaged missile launcher would play sound and consume ammo without firing anything
Fixed smoke effects for HMMWV variants
Fixed “damaging shots” filtering in AAR
Vehicles that can no longer move or fire are now counted as eliminated
Exposed crew members are now hidden after being hit

20170724v2

Added new AAR shot filter: only damaging hits
AAR camera no longer resumes orbit on every new shot viewed
Reduced thickness and duration of smoke from destroyed Hilux and HMMWV

20170724

Added Hilux technical with .50 cal HMG
Added HMMWV with remote .50 cal HMG
Added HMMWV with remote TOW-2A
Added new level for each new vehicle
Added drivetrain hit detection (new vehicles only for now)
Added fuel tank hit detection (new vehicles only for now)
Improved behavior of spall/frags from high explosives
Increased lethality of missiles
Fixed numerous bugs in shots and shot review
Fixed issue with autocannon spread
Fixed issue with mouse acceleration

20170521v3

Fixed armor models of most tanks to prevent glitch where projectiles almost always managed to exit the other side of the target
Changed spall ballistics - now any spall exiting a vehicle will fall to earth quickly

20170521v2

Fixed crash in AAR
Improved vehicle position capture in AAR
Improved tracing of missed shots in AAR
Improved fidelity of shot traces in AAR - shot traces now accurately show projectile arcs and guided missile paths
Added turret ring hit zones to BMD-3 and 2S25 Sprut-SD

20170521

Added component hit visualization to AAR
Fixed bug where missed shots could have incorrect vehicle positions in AAR

20170520

Added shot distance data to AAR
Added camera orbit control to AAR
Added filter options to AAR
Fixed bugs in AAR shot tracing
Changed free aim sensitivity to respond to user’s input speed
Changed auxiliary gun sight reticle color for visibility
Ammo types now have their own fragmentation tuning
AAR now shows entire path of shot where possible
Third-person view now has free aim

20170519v2

Fixed issue with building collider names in grassland levels
Fixed issue where HEAT warheads could be affected by slat armor after detonation

20170519

Added After-Action Review (AAR), showing each kill shot with all vehicles arranged as they were at shot time, as well as relevant info displayed on-screen
Fixed issue where tracking beacons on missiles were visible from the front
Fixed issue where AI gunners would fire missiles before aiming turret properly
Fixed issue where AI gunners would fire missiles at non-critical components when a kill shot was available
Fixed issue where spall fragments were not distributed uniformly around shot axis
Fixed issue where turret lifted from hull could not drift in some directions
Fixed armor issue that left ammo carousel exposed in T-90A
Increased T-55 hull turn rate

20170515v3

Added missing hit zones to BMD-3
Altered BMD-3 survival challenge level
Vehicle gunners can now fire missiles if they are available
Vehicle gunners can now judge when to use a missile
Fixed missile sound bugs

20170515v2

Added BMD-3 survival challenge level
Improved missile visuals
Fixed bug with damage reports
Fixed bug where missiles could be deleted in flight
Fixed bug in platoon driving

20170515

Added guided missiles to BMD-3
Replaced M1A2 SEP ammo type HEAT-MP-T (“MPAT”) with standard HEAT-T (“HEAT”)

20170514v2

Added troop compartment (with spalling) to BMD-3 and 2S25 Sprut-SD
Added explosion effect to HE shells that impact terrain
Added permanent lingering smoke to destroyed tanks to distinguish them from live ones
Improved damage reports - duplicate entries are removed and there is more screen space
Reduced armor thickness on T-55
Vehicles now turn slowly at first and more quickly as the turn key is held
Changed slat armor effect - instead of completely stopping a HEAT round, the slat armor reduces its effectiveness by 80%, giving more modern warheads a chance of defeating the vehicle despite the slat armor

20170514

Added new vehicle: BMD-3 infantry fighting vehicle
Added enemy BMD-3 in M1A2 grassland level
Added new instant action level featuring BMD-3
Game audio now adjusts by 10% intervals and can be muted entirely
Game audio is now muted while the game is paused
Removed turret-locking damage effect - turret ring hits now slow traverse down

20170513

Added new vehicle: 2S25 Sprut-SD light tank / SP gun
Changed player vehicle in “unfair” grassland solo scene to 2S25 Sprut-SD
Added pause key
Added master volume key
Added ammo count to next ammo selection on HUD
Fixed issue with T-90A smoke effects
Fixed issue with laser rangefinder
Fixed issue with gun elevation limits
Fixed issue with AI gunner firing logic

20170511

Fixed issue with platoon driving AI
Fixed issue with fire in M1A2 SEP
Improved smoke

20170510

Added ammo counts to all tanks - no more unlimited shooting
Added hull ammunition storage to M1A2 SEP
Incapacitating all crew members in a tank now counts as a kill of that tank
Ammo racks are now unable to ignite when empty
Parked tanks are no longer crewed
Improved shot damage reports - they now list what stopped the round too
Made smoke effects more realistic

20170507

Added T-90A gunner’s primary sight reticle
Added wasteland T-90A OPFOR level
Adjusted difficulty of wasteland_hard level
Fixed bug where turret would reset its aim after player’s gunner was injured

20170506v3

Added wind effects to smoke, fire, and dust

20170506v2

Added terrain impact effect
Fixed smoke/fire layering
Updated names of some components for damage reports

20170506

Added main menu / title screen
Added ESC menu in-game (no more force quit!)
Added wasteland OPFOR level in which player controls a T-55
Added smoke columns
Added time-based fire extinguishing on all fires
Added fire suppression to M1A2 SEP

20170411v2

Added wasteland_hard level, featuring T-72s for an extra challenge
Fixed issue where loader/autoloader hits didn’t affect the current round being loaded

20170411

Added shot effect logging for future AAR or replay system
Added shot effect feedback text on-screen after successful penetrating hit (Note that this is in no way a representation of the final HUD and serves only as a stand-in)

20170409

Added crew hit zones inside all tanks - taking out a crewman disables or severely penalizes the systems they are responsible for
Added compartment spalling - upon breaching the interior of a tank, penetrators can throw off fragments that damage components or crew not directly in the path of the penetrator
Added configurable spall mitigation - modern tanks have less spalling potential and the spall has less spread
Added intelligent obstruction checking for AI gunners - if the preferred target is blocked by terrain or objects, they will engage the best unobstructed target, if any
Overhauled T-55 armor model
Changed M1A2 SEP auxiliary sight FoV

20170408

Changed M1A2 SEP sight FoVs to better match real-world performance
Changed M1A2 SEP reticle sizes to better match real-world mil measurements
Increased physics lifetime on popped turrets
Fixed issue where mouse cursor could leave game window and cause focus loss

20170405

Added reticle scaling based on sight zoom level (rough version, needs sharper images in the future)
Removed M1A2 SEP high zoom levels from optical GPS (will be re-added with thermal sight aka TIS, same as in the real tank)

20170331

Added mission status messages for all clear and last man standing
Overhauled M1A2 SEP armor models and values

20170329

Added “unfair” scene with drivable T-90 vs 2+ platoons of modern tanks
Added armor angle effects to penetration model: sloped armor is more effective
Removed “test_t55” scene
Fixed issue with ERA detonation visual effects

20170327

Added T-90 tank to library
Added enemy T-90 tanks to grassland scene
Fixed bug in turret locking behavior
Fixed bugs in ammo penetration model

20170321

Added FPS-style aiming, enabled by default
Added scroll wheel zoom
Added option to lock turret rotation
Added option to switch to “joystick mode”
Added M1A2 SEP GPS zoom enhancements
Overhauled turret and gun rotation code to eliminate jitter
Improved responsiveness of moving target tracking (note that it takes a steady hand or joystick mode to make good leading shots)
Improved grassland scene

20170315v2

Fixed sound bug in T-55

20170315

Added leading target function to player’s digital sight
Added leading target ability to gunner AI
Added tooltips
Added distance-based sound delay

20170313

Added crew spotting and target spotted alert
Added auto-aim: press (or hold) space to look at crew’s preferred target
Lowered volume of some interior sounds

20170312v2

Removed spare idling tanks from wasteland test scene

20170312

Fixed tank track sounds from other tanks being audible from interior views

20170311

Added basic sound effects to all tanks, including different audio and audible systems in interior vs. exterior views
Fixed bug in T-55 third person reticle

20170309

Added basic implementation of player waypoints
Added simple grassland test scene with fog and passive T-55 guards
Fixed hull rotation glitch that caused tanks to spin wildly when crossing 360/0 degrees
Fixed player system status text not having enough vertical space on screen

20170307

First build on change log
Includes wasteland test (solo and platoon) with advancing enemy T-55 platoons
Includes T-55 test scene with old barebones AI imitation

Just do it

Well, there's a blog now.  That means I can post change logs, and anyone who signs up for email alerts will get notified.  As always, the project's test build directory will contain the latest release as well as the change log and other information.  This site is simply a way to track progress. 

I'd like to thank everyone in advance for their feedback.  Hearing about user experience is the first step to making things better, and I'd be running blind without your comments. 

Thanks for following the project.