Game Info
GAME NAME: Toon Tanks
DEVELOPER(S): Vilmos Gyokeres
PUBLISHER(S): Petite Games
PLATFORM(S): Nintendo Wii U
GENRE(S): Arcade
RELEASE DATE(S): December 25th, 2014
Wii U eShop titles come in all shapes and sizes. Some have a 3D appeal while others go the more simplistic route and use the 2D style of yesteryear. Toon Tanks from developer Vilmos Gyokeres and Petite Games goes for the latter where their title looks like a homage to the old school Atari game Combat, but with a fresh coat of paint.
There is no story or even narrative to go along with Toon Tanks, it’s just your classic arcade action affair. The goal in each of the 80 levels is to destroy all of the enemy tanks before they do the same to you. At first this starts off pretty easy, but as the levels progress the enemy tanks get equipped with multi-directional and ricochet shots. The levels will also start getting an over abundance of obstacles to make things more difficult. Some of the earlier levels feature tanks with landmines but your tank moves pretty slow so there really isn’t any worry about blowing yourself up on these.
The controls feel right at home with the scheme that has been implemented. The ZR will move you forward while the ZL will move you in reverse. The left analog stick changes the dirction that you will face while the A button fires your cannon. You can fire a total of 3 shots at a time which helps make Toon Tanks a little more difficult.
All that changes in Toon Tanks is the skin of the background. The whole game is just one level after another in a complete single player after. I would have loved to see a multiplayer mode that was similar to Bomberman. 4-player tank madness would have been insane. I could see the power-ups for faster tanks, or what the enemy tanks use such as mutishot and ricochet shot. This was a big missed opportunity and really makes the game feel like it is missing depth. There is off-screen play, but this seems like common place with every eShop game.
The graphics of Toon Tanks does a good job with it’s comic book flare. The backgrounds are the only thing going that help to differentiate between the stages. The music has a very military feel with a marching snare drum taking the lead. While not the most catchy tune, it serves it’s purpose and matches the genre.
The Recommendation
While the game features good controls that feel comfortable to maneuver a tank, the lack of any single-player depth or multiplayer modes makes this title a hard sell. It does play well but I feel like there isn’t enough content to mix it up or even bring you back to it after you have completed the included missions. There has been some great groundwork set here and I’d love to see Petite Games revisit the series with some story and multiplayer to improve upon the experience.
