There’s an ungodly number of new games released every week these days, and it’s a lot to just keep up with what’s coming out, let alone play them all. On top of the sheer volume of general chaff and nonsense we get served, there are also games that are very similar to something else, but with a couple of tweaks – just look at the bullet heaven genre that Vampire Survivors spawned. So, in amongst all of that, TankHead stands out as being quite refreshing. It’s not perfect, but it is novel, and that counts for a lot.
TankHead is set in a world where mechs are actually humans that have infused their spirits into floating robots that then build tanks on their heads… I think. Alright, so basically people can project themselves into a little drone, and then use that drone to explore areas they wouldn’t normally be able to. Some people that do this get lost in the sauce a little bit though, and they become TankHeads, horrifying masses of technology and human spirit. The first one of these you meet is an enormous tanker with too many weapons, too many limbs, and a big old life bar. It’s seriously weird in a wonderful way.
You play as someone called Whitaker, who’s looking for a way to get into the Event Containment Area, the main area that people can’t go into. To that end, you hook your little drone up to a vehicle and just drive in there. Thankfully, considering what you’ll find in the ECA, that vehicle is actually a tank.
The majority of the game has you driving between objectives, getting into a few fights with some incredibly strange enemies, and then doing a little bit of scavenging to get more ammo, fuel, and new parts – you’ll need to hurry to grab them before they blow up, but can apply new parts in the field for an instant boost. It’s a nice mix-and-match of things to do, and while it can get old if you play for too long, each individual mission doesn’t ask too much of your time.
If you don’t succeed in doing all of your main objectives in any given mission, then you’ll be booted back to before you started, stripped of any new parts you found on your attempt and given the opportunity to rejig your tank before you try again, so long as you have enough funds. It’s a little bit extraction shooter, a little bit roguelike in that sense. You can also get permanent upgrades using chips you can find, which is a nice bit of progression.
The combat feels good for the most part, and while it quickly becomes clear that your only real strategy is strafing with your strongest armour toward the enemy and shooting back at them. The variety of enemies is good, whether it’s smaller spider-bots and drones or rival tanks of various designs, where you need to chip away at their armour to reveal weak spots. The AI can be a little simplistic, but it all comes together to be fairly satisfying and fun.
It all builds up to the huge spectacles of the boss battles, which really lean in on the bizarre kitbash vibe of the enemies and take them to new heights. You’ve seen the multi-legged walking building and flying stingray in the launch trailer, but there’s plenty more beyond these. The only downside is that, because the fundamental formula strafing to avoid damage while picking off armour to reveal weakspots doesn’t change, these can feel like a slog and bullet-spongey.
