Unlike last year's rendition, 2020's Black Market event was heavily criticized throughout, especially by the NA server. Last year was novel, exciting, and ran smoothly; this year was truly awful.
Or was it? The technical issues were very frustrating (as someone who woke up at 4am PST every day for this, I get it), and shame on WG for fucking up so badly and so frequently. However, let me emphasize this, this was HQ's fault. WGNA had no control whatsover of the situation. So many people are hung up on the lack of Christmas deals and are still on the WGNA hate train over that. Criticism is fine, just apply it where it's deserved.
Back on topic. Were the deals themselves worse this year? Well, let's compare them side-by-side, sorted to align the comparable deals with each other:
Tier 8s for Credits
| BM 2019 | 2019 Price | BM 2020 | 2020 Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5,000,000 credits | 8,500,000 credits | ||
| 9,000,000 credits | Auction, 3,000,000 credits | ||
| 8,500,000 credits | Auction, 3,000,000 credits | ||
| 8,500,000 credits (Yes, this was listed twice) |
It's a tossup which year was better, but I think they're about equal overall. The Caernarvon AX is an especially good heavy, but the T34 B is especially not so good, balancing it out. Both the Schwarzpanzer and Chrysler K were better values than their counterparts.
Tier 8s for Gold
| BM 2019 | 2019 Price | BM 2020 | 2020 Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8,000 gold | Auction, 5,000 gold | ||
| 10,000 gold | Auction, 10,000 gold | ||
| 25,000 gold | Auction, 20,000 gold |
2020 was significantly better. The Type 59 G was much more expensive in 2020, but given the population of players being targeted (whales), I don't think is a huge issue.
Tier 10s for Credits
| BM 2019 | 2019 Price | BM 2020 | 2020 Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 23,000,000 credits | 22,000,000 credits | ||
| 25,000,000 credits |
2019 wins here, but I'll note 2020's lone offering was a bit cheaper.
Mid Tier Offerings
| BM 2019 | 2019 Price | BM 2020 | 2020 Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6,500,000 credits | 7,000 gold |
These aren't that comparable, I just happened to group them together.
Fuck the Low Tiers
| BM 2019 | 2019 Price | BM 2020 | 2020 Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15,000 gold | 15,000 gold | ||
| 500,000 credits | 9,500 gold | ||
| 3,500,000 credits | Auction, 10,000,000 credits | ||
| 5,500 gold | 300 gold |
The superb seal-clubbers were the same price. The Sexton I isn't that oppressive, nor is the Pz 38H these days (a lot of tanks have enough AP pen to penetrate it). The BT-SV is not nearly as gamebreaking as the Pak 40, and the leFH18B2 was sold in extremely limited numbers. Both years were about equally toxic, but if I had to say which was more toxic, I'd say 2019.
Miscellaneous Offers
| BM 2019 | 2019 Price | BM 2020 | 2020 Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 Camos | 3,500 gold ea. | Object 261 style | Auction, 261 gold |
| First Campaign Order Forms x3 | 1,500 gold |
2020 wins, hands down.
Conclusion
Were the deals better this year? It's hard to say. Were they worse? Not in my opinion, no.
