Ballistic Tanks (PC) Review
|
System PC
Developer Kirklight Games Publisher Kirklight Games Genre Arcade # of Players 1-4 Release Date September 20th, 2016 |
Pros
Great gameplay Lots of unlockables Cons No online multiplayer Difficultly in arcade ramps up fast |
Review
by Thonos
3/9/2019
A few months ago I wrote a review for a game called Tank Destroyer. In that review I talked about an old top down flash game that I used to play while in high school to waste time. After playing Ballistic Tanks, this game is almost the same game I played back then. While the game does have some faults, this game is still a lot of fun to play.
During the main arcade mode you play as a tank that destroys other tanks and helicopters. Clearing all the tanks let’s you progress to the next stage where you destroy more tanks and helicopters. Occasionally you will fight a boss tank. To help with this you can pick up random weapon upgrades that let you shoot faster, shoot bouncy balls, a laser and a shotgun effect. You also collect coins from destroying tanks which you can use to continue if you lose all of your lives or you save them to give yourself modifier boosts like faster rate of fire for your next playthrough.
Besides the arcade mode, which can be done solo or co-op, there are a few other modes. The versus mode has standard deathmatch, a juggernaut mode where you become a super tank if you control the center and a power shift mode which starts you with a weapon power up each time. Each of these modes can be customized before the start of the match. There is a plane mode lets you fight it out with planes instead of tanks which was fun.
All of these modes outside arcade mode support up to four AI bots which is nice if you prefer to play solo. Besides the four tanks you can pick from, there are others you can unlock by hitting milestones in the game such as arcade progression and high score. As far as I could tell, none of the unlocked tanks give you an advantage, just a different look and color.
The game’s graphics are simple but well done. The sprites used for everything from the player tank to the stage designs are simple, but use color in a way that lets them stand out. This is particularly true when it comes to explosions. The audio is good, but nothing memorable.
My only real issue with this game is that I wish it had an online multiplayer mode instead of a local only mode. While this is not a big deal, it would have been nice to have been part of the game for longer replay value. While the game is fun, it does get repetitive fast as far as solo content goes. Also, the difficulty ramps up pretty quickly as you go through arcade mode which can be frustrating.
I really enjoyed my time with Ballistic Tanks. This is a game that I will definitely be going back to try and unlock everything. While the lack online multiplayer does hurt the game overall, you still have local play and bots. The presentation and controls, in my opinion, are top notch. As far as simple tanks games go, this is the best one I have played.
by Thonos
3/9/2019
A few months ago I wrote a review for a game called Tank Destroyer. In that review I talked about an old top down flash game that I used to play while in high school to waste time. After playing Ballistic Tanks, this game is almost the same game I played back then. While the game does have some faults, this game is still a lot of fun to play.
During the main arcade mode you play as a tank that destroys other tanks and helicopters. Clearing all the tanks let’s you progress to the next stage where you destroy more tanks and helicopters. Occasionally you will fight a boss tank. To help with this you can pick up random weapon upgrades that let you shoot faster, shoot bouncy balls, a laser and a shotgun effect. You also collect coins from destroying tanks which you can use to continue if you lose all of your lives or you save them to give yourself modifier boosts like faster rate of fire for your next playthrough.
Besides the arcade mode, which can be done solo or co-op, there are a few other modes. The versus mode has standard deathmatch, a juggernaut mode where you become a super tank if you control the center and a power shift mode which starts you with a weapon power up each time. Each of these modes can be customized before the start of the match. There is a plane mode lets you fight it out with planes instead of tanks which was fun.
All of these modes outside arcade mode support up to four AI bots which is nice if you prefer to play solo. Besides the four tanks you can pick from, there are others you can unlock by hitting milestones in the game such as arcade progression and high score. As far as I could tell, none of the unlocked tanks give you an advantage, just a different look and color.
The game’s graphics are simple but well done. The sprites used for everything from the player tank to the stage designs are simple, but use color in a way that lets them stand out. This is particularly true when it comes to explosions. The audio is good, but nothing memorable.
My only real issue with this game is that I wish it had an online multiplayer mode instead of a local only mode. While this is not a big deal, it would have been nice to have been part of the game for longer replay value. While the game is fun, it does get repetitive fast as far as solo content goes. Also, the difficulty ramps up pretty quickly as you go through arcade mode which can be frustrating.
I really enjoyed my time with Ballistic Tanks. This is a game that I will definitely be going back to try and unlock everything. While the lack online multiplayer does hurt the game overall, you still have local play and bots. The presentation and controls, in my opinion, are top notch. As far as simple tanks games go, this is the best one I have played.