By Gary Symons
TLL Editor in Chief
Game developer Wargaming is adding the historic battleship USS Wisconsin to World of Warships, and donating proceeds to a naval museum.
The USS Wisconsin is an Iowa-class battleship built for the US Navy in the 1940s, and became one of the most storied warships in history, having fought through three separate wars.
World of Warships is now adding the Wisconsin to the game as a playable vessel, and is celebrating the ship’s history by setting up a new game mode, essentially setting the scene for the construction of the historic American battleship Wisconsin in the Dockyard, a real naval ship museum.
For Wargaming aficionados, the Wisconsin comes equipped with nine precise 406mm main battery guns in three turrets. The real life Wisconsin was a fast battleship, adding huge firepower and high speed to the US fleet in World War II, and the ship will allow players to relive that experience in the highly realistic World of Warships game.
To unlock Wisconsin, players must complete 30 phases of the shipbuilding process, 28 of which can be completed via Dockyard combat missions. Along the way, players will also be rewarded with another American battleship, West Virginia 1944.
More importantly, Wargaming is putting out several in-game bundles that players can purchase, with 100% of the proceeds being donated to The Nauticus Foundation, which operates the Wisconsin in the Dockyard museum. Funds will be use to continue supporting the restoration of one of the USS Wisconsin’s gun turrets, and also to sponsor free entry tickets for all veterans and current service members visiting Nauticus during the month of April.
The Wisconsin is certainly a worthy cause for Wargaming, which has supported a number of naval and war museums around the world, as she served with distinction in World War II, the Korean War, and the first Gulf War.
Completed in 1944, the ship was assigned to the Pacific Theater during World War II, where she participated in the Philippines campaign and the Battles of Iwo Jima and Okinawa. The battleship shelled the Japanese home islands shortly before the end of the war in September 1945.
During the Korean War, Wisconsin shelled North Korean targets in support of United Nations and South Korean ground operations, after which she was decommissioned. However, the ship’s speed, accuracy, and ability to deliver a powerful punch was seen as an important asset as the United States moved to defend Kuwait in Operation Desert Storm in January/February 1991.
The ship was brought back to serve in that conflict as well, and was finally decommissioned for good in September that year. In its 14 years in active service the ship earned six battle stars for service in World War II and Korea, as well as a Navy Unit Commendation for service during the January/February 1991 Gulf War.
Wisconsin was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on March 17, 2006, and was later donated for permanent use as a museum ship at the Nauticus facility. As of 2024, Wisconsin is a museum ship operated by Nauticus in Norfolk, Virginia.
You can see more on Wargaming’s plans for the USS Wisconsin in the reveal video below: