Review: Pocket Tanks

One of the things I am passionate about is finding games that appeal to a large number of people. I am not necessarily referring to casual games such as Wii Sports or Boom Blox (although I am not excluding them, either); I am talking about games like Rock Band or Afrika (of which I intend to post a review within the next couple of weeks). These games are very accessible to new players but also have a depth to them not found in more casual games, which appeals to the more serious or "hardcore" player. Games like these a great amount of appeal to me because I enjoy playing games with other people. Don't misunderstand me, games such as Fallout 3 and Metal Gear Solid 4 are fantastic gaming experiences, but I believe games that provide solitary, isolated experiences like those two will only find a limited audience. However, a Rock Band or Wii Sports title can be picked up at any time, by nearly anybody. Games that are both deep and accessible are increasingly hard to come by. Pocket Tanks, however, is one of those games.

One of my favorite games from my high school years, Pocket Tanks is as simple a concept as they come: you have a tank, your opponent has a tank, and you take turns trying to blow each other up in order to score points. I remember wasting hours on this game back in school (yes, including college) whenever friends and I were tired of homework or just didn't want to pay attention in class.

Tanks is one of those games that anyone can play, and that's a major part of appeal. I taught my girlfriend how to play it one night last week and now every time we get together we always have at least a best-of-three match. In a small way, one could compare it to Texas Hold'Em: five minutes to learn, but months to master (no, I was not going to say a "lifetime").

The game starts by entering names and choosing difficulty of the computer, if you're playing by yourself. You then move to the "Weapon Shop:"
From here, you and your opponent each choose ten weapons based on the random selection the computer provides you. All of these weapons are very unique, and all have their various strengths and weaknesses. They range anywhere from a single shot (which does a moderate 40 points of damage with a direct hit) to a sniper rifle shot, which is worth 100 points on a direct hit, although it has no splash damage and can be be notoriously difficult to aim. Other weapons include a Scatter Shot, which sends up five different shots from the spot where it lands; a weapon called the Pineapple, which looks like a giant cannonball on approach, but detonates into approximately 15-20 different shots when it nears you;a Dirtball, which, instead of putting damage on your opponent, erupts into a giant mound of earth that envelops its target;
and my personal favorite, the Hail Storm, which gushes into tons of tiny water balls that, given proper placement, can put upwards of 125-150 points of damage.

When the game starts, it provides you with a random layout of land. It can be a relatively flat plain, two hills with a valley between the two tanks, or a cliff-like format with one tank on a significantly higher plane than the other. Although it may not seem it at first, the layout actually can play a large role. If the wind is turned on (under the "Options" menu at the main screen), it will drastically affect aiming and power. In fact, under the options menu, you can change the size of the explosion, the randomness of the wind, the wind speed, even select a partiuclar land layout you favor (or randomize that as well).

This is where the game deepens. Developer Blitwise provides so many ways to customize the game that you can literally play it for hours and never play the same game twice. This is especially true if you purchase the Deluxe or Collector's Edition of the game, which come packed with 60 weapons or 190 weapons, respectively. All these armaments provide for endless combinations and perferences. Want to play defense? Grab a few Dirt Slingers or Dirtballs to force your opponent to blow themselves out of the earth and forfeit points. Feeling daring? Draft a few hail storms, napalms, or fission bombs, get your opponent in a hole, then fling those bad boys at 'em. It takes a few turn to set it up, but when you hit, it usually nets you 100+ points. High wind in the game? Pick imprecise weapons (like the Spider, Zapper, or Cruiser) that hit a large area of land to insure points when they will be hard to come by.

Pocket Tanks is an incredibly easy game to learn, but that does not mean it is not fun. I constantly find myself opening it up and then realizing I've been playing it for two hours. It never gets old.

And isn't that what we want from games anyway?

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Grade: 9/10
Pocket Tanks is rated "E," and is for the PC & Mac. It can be downloaded at the following links:
Shareware version
Deluxe Edition
Collector's Edition