Tank games generally bring to mind long-range firefights, careful positioning and powerful artillery, but SLAM TANK is taking its tanks into much more personal territory. Next Stage Inc. has unveiled a new trailer for the upcoming PC game, and the footage makes it clear that this is less a traditional tank combat game and more a beat ’em up where the player happens to be driving a tank.
Set in a world where an AI has taken control of the machines, SLAM TANK has players choosing between three tanks with different combat styles before sending them into battle against hordes of hostile machines. Rather than sitting back and picking enemies off from a distance, players can charge directly into groups, swing their cannon barrels, ram enemies and chain attacks and special abilities together.
That distinction is particularly apparent in the newly released 35-second trailer. The footage focuses on the game’s close-range combat and destructive action, showing the tank tearing through machines while using its cannon almost like a giant melee weapon. It gives SLAM TANK a much closer connection to the rhythm of a beat ’em up than the more methodical combat normally associated with tank games.
The tank itself is essentially the player’s brawler. Its turret can spin, its cannon can be swung into enemies and its body can be used to ram straight through opposing forces. Larger industrial machines can also be confronted at close range, with players expected to dodge their attacks, close the distance and combine barrel strikes with powerful abilities.
Movement adds another arcade-style element to the formula. Players can drift around the battlefield, hit boost pads to gain speed and launch from ramps to perform mid-air tricks. Rather than separating driving from combat, SLAM TANK appears to use its vehicle mechanics as another part of the action, letting players move quickly through encounters while setting up their next attack.
Destruction is also tied directly to the game’s scoring system. The more damage players inflict on the AI’s machines, the higher the cost of that destruction and the higher their score. The game even lets players smash the CPUs and GPUs inside the machines, encouraging them to turn every encounter into an opportunity to cause as much damage as possible and beat their previous records.
There is some room for customization as well, with players able to place decals and cosmetic parts on their chosen tank before taking it back into battle. SLAM TANK is currently planned as a single-player experience for PC, although a release date has yet to be announced.
While the premise of fighting an army of AI-controlled machines is certainly unusual, it is the beat ’em up approach to combat that makes SLAM TANK stand out.