Gratuitous Tank Battles

About

Gratuitous Tank Battles is a single player strategy game with a science fiction theme. It was developed by Positech Games and was released on May 17, 2012. It received neutral reviews from players.

"Gratuitous Tank Battles" is a 2D artillery strategy game where you design and command your own custom tank battalions. Engage in tactical combat with a wide range of units, from traditional tanks to experimental steampunk-inspired vehicles. Use strategic planning and real-time control to outmaneuver and overwhelm your opponents in single-player or multiplayer modes.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

53%

Audience ScoreBased on 83 reviews

graphics3 positive mentions

grinding3 negative mentions

The game offers extensive customization options for units, allowing players to design and personalize their tanks and mechs.
It features a unique twist on tower defense gameplay by allowing players to take on the role of both attacker and defender, providing varied strategies.
The graphics and sound effects are well done, creating an engaging atmosphere that enhances the gameplay experience.

The gameplay can feel repetitive and lacks depth, often reducing strategy to simply spamming units rather than employing tactical decisions.
The user interface is cumbersome and the game can be overly complex, making it difficult for players to understand mechanics and effectively manage their units.
Many players feel the game is a disappointing follow-up to Gratuitous Space Battles, lacking the charm and engaging gameplay of its predecessor.

gameplay
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
50%
25%
The gameplay of this tower defense game has been criticized for its lack of depth and balance, with many players finding it boring and frustrating due to micromanagement issues and unrefined mechanics. While some appreciate the customization options and unique features like enemy retaliation, these elements fail to elevate the overall experience, which is marred by standard gameplay and complicated mechanics. Overall, the game struggles to deliver an engaging and enjoyable gameplay experience, leaving players disappointed.
- “An interesting tower defense game with customizable unit setup and pretty fun gameplay.”
- “There is a set amount of great game mechanics, and a pretty extensive customization range.”
- “As for gameplay, I can describe this one as a combination of the Close Combat series (the top-down camera style reminded me of those games) and the Anomaly Warzone series.”
- “A standard tower defense game has so much more variety in its gameplay than this game.”
- “It tries to do something different, but its core combat is shallow by tower defense standards and thus gameplay feels boring.”
- “Neither the option to play as the attacker, nor the ability to minimally fiddle with unit loadouts, nor the ability to create one’s own maps does anything to elevate this game beyond its frustrating and boring core gameplay.”
story
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
50%
25%
The game's campaign consists of 12 missions with an additional 12 based on attack or defense modes, but it lacks a cohesive story, leaving players focused primarily on gameplay mechanics rather than narrative. While the extensive customization options and mission variety provide engaging gameplay, many reviewers noted the absence of a compelling storyline or character development to enhance the experience. Overall, the campaign feels more like a series of battles than a narrative-driven adventure.
- “It comes with a 12 mission campaign right off the bat and coupled with the ability to attack or defend (two modes of play which feel like entirely different experiences in themselves), you’ve got essentially 24 missions before you go anywhere near the game's extensive customization options.”
- “As the defender, different story; after a solid 40 minutes of deciding what to put in my turrets and so forth, I used them in battle, but it seems as though my theory of 'the spammier the better' really came to fruition as my enemy was constantly fielding units that eventually meant I couldn't keep up with stopping the flow with the supplies I needed.”
- “There really isn't a 'story' or really anything to latch onto outside the actual battles.”
- “It really isn't a 'story' or anything to latch onto outside the actual battles.”
- “I'm sitting there for 15, 20 minutes or more, either fending off waves of enemies or throwing my troops into the grinder, and there's still half the mission to go.”
- “It comes with a 12 mission campaign right off the bat, but it feels like there is no real narrative to engage with.”
graphics
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
40%
The graphics of the game are generally praised for their impressive detail and art style, particularly in the 2D visuals and unit designs, which maintain clarity even at full zoom. However, some users note that the terrain graphics are lacking, appearing flat and bland, which detracts from the overall visual experience. While the graphics are not universally acclaimed, they are often described as solid and fitting for the game's RPG board game aesthetic.
- “The game also offers great visuals, especially for a 2D game, and there is a lot of strategy involved when planning your attack.”
- “Graphics are very well done with an RPG board game feel to them, similar to Steve Jackson's Car Wars, with an impressive level of zooming in where units do not lose their level of visual detail.”
- “The customization aspect of both games is great, the mechanics from both games are solid, and while the graphics aren't the best, I like the art style.”
- “The terrain graphics are subpar, both flat and bland, but the units are 3D and the full zoom helps compensate somewhat.”
- “Graphics are decent but gameplay mechanics are awful.”
grinding
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and slow, with battles contributing to a sense of monotony. However, some users note that the game manages to maintain engagement for a while before it becomes truly boring.
- “Super tedious and micro-heavy.”
- “Battles are slow and tedious.”
- “While the game can be a bit slow at times, it takes a while to get tedious or boring.”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
67%
The game offers significant replayability for its low price, featuring numerous unlockable content and engaging maps. Players appreciate the humor and the variety provided by asynchronous multiplayer skirmishes, enhancing the overall replay value.
- “For $3, this game offers a lot of replayability with new things to unlock and create.”
- “It's still very replayable and entertaining.”
- “There's a significant amount of replay value in the maps and the asynchronous multiplayer skirmishes.”
- “For 3 dollars, this has a lot of replayability and new things to unlock and create.”
- “There's a lot of replay value to be found in the maps and the asynchronous multiplayer skirmishes.”
humor
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game relies heavily on outdated jargon, which some players feel is insufficient for genuine comedy. While the previous installment featured amusing short descriptions for each module, this game maintains a level of replayability and humor, albeit in a less effective manner.
- “The humor in this game is reminiscent of old-fashioned jargon, and it feels like the developer believes that simply using it will make the game funny.”
- “In the previous game, each module had a funny short description that added to the overall charm.”
- “This game is still very replayable and genuinely funny.”
atmosphere
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere is criticized for its reliance on propaganda posters, which do not effectively contribute to an immersive or engaging environment.
- “The propaganda posters fail to create a proper atmosphere.”
- “The overall ambiance feels flat and uninspired, lacking any real depth.”
- “The game’s environment feels lifeless, making it hard to immerse myself in the experience.”
music
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The music in the game is well-crafted and effectively enhances the overall gameplay experience.
- “The music is quite well done and complements the gameplay beautifully.”
- “The soundtrack perfectly enhances the atmosphere of the game.”
- “Each track is thoughtfully composed, adding depth to the overall experience.”
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is reported to be quite buggy, leading to stability issues, though some users express understanding towards the developers for potentially abandoning it due to a lack of support.
- “Rather buggy, but you can hardly blame the dev for giving up on the game considering how little attention it got.”
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players express frustration with the monetization model, noting that advertised maps are not available in single-player mode, leading to disappointment regarding the value of their purchase.