The Pz.Kpfw. VIII Maus was introduced in Update 1.47 "Big Guns" as a main tree vehicle, however in Update 1.91 "Night Vision" it was shifted to a gift vehicle for players who previously owned it. It was later available for research for a limited time during War Thunder's 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th anniversary events. The Maus is the epitome of the word 'heavy tank' and as such sports one of the thickest raw armour values in the game, alongside a monstrous weight of 188 tons and the size to show for it. The vehicle has various tools to spearhead a charge and lead your team to victory, but if positioned incorrectly or if the tools it has are underutilized players will quickly find that the Maus isn't as easygoing as its armour may suggest.

The Maus is more than just a mobile pillbox - its size and armour commandeer the term 'mobile bunker' instead. The 12.8 cm cannon on the Maus has devastating effectiveness, with options between a higher-filler, lower penetrating round and the 12.8/8.8 APCBC round which has over 300 mm of flat penetration and flies a good 300 m/s faster than the prior round. The vehicle's mobility is limited by the transmission to 20.8 km/h both forwards and backwards, meaning careful planning of the vehicle's path is crucial to avoid downtime by trying to turn the hull. Armour is by far the most notable trait of the vehicle, but with a catch - the Maus straddles the line between Cold War and World War 2 vehicles, and as such the armour can swing wildly between not stopping any rounds or bouncing every enemy shell off the front. Careful positioning and planning is required to excel in the Maus, but if one takes the time to master it it can be nigh impossible to take down outside of a concerted team effort to take it down.