Tank Arena
Drive, bounce a shell, hit the other tank. First to 5.
Tank Arena is a two-player tank battle in a maze where you drive with a stick and fire shells that bounce off walls. Hit the other tank to score, and the first to 5 hits wins.
Your thumb drives, your button fires, and shells bounce, so you can hit them around a corner. The maze changes every point, so there's no safe spot to learn.
Also known as Tank battle, 2 player tank game.
- How you hold it
- Face-off
- Match
- First to 5
- Length
- About 1 to 2 minutes
- Play
- Friend or bot
How to play Tank Arena: quick rules
About 1 to 2 minutes at first to 5. Full rules, options and bot levels are further down.
- 1Drive with the stick; your tank turns to where you push.
- 2Tap FIRE to shoot 3 shells, then wait for a short reload.
- 3Shells bounce off walls twice, so hit around corners.
- 4Hit the other tank to score; first to 5 wins.
Tank Arena rules
Mazes and the start of a point
- Every point is played in a maze. Red starts at the bottom and Blue at the top, and each maze looks the same from both ends, so neither side has an advantage.
- There are twelve mazes, each also used flipped. The first point of a match uses one of the simpler ones, and after that a maze doesn't come back within three points.
- A 3, 2, 1 countdown comes before every point with the maze already visible. Both tanks start facing the centre with three shells.
- No maze lets a shot fired at GO reach the other tank in the first couple of seconds, so there are no spawn kills.
Driving and firing
- Push the stick and your tank turns to face that way, then drives. It can't reverse: push the other way and it turns around first.
- Tanks slide along walls and around each other, and ramming does nothing. Both tanks always have the same speed.
- Each tap of FIRE shoots one shell; holding it doesn't repeat. After three shells the tank reloads for a moment, and it never reloads while it still has a shell.
- Shells bounce off walls twice and disappear on the third wall, or after a few seconds in the air. Up to three of your shells can be flying at once.
Hits
- A shell that touches a tank scores a point for the other player. A hit off a wall is a “Bank shot!”.
- After a moment in the air, your own shells can hit you too, and that point goes to your opponent (“Oops”).
- If both tanks are hit at the same instant, it's “Double hit! Replay”: nobody scores and the point is replayed in a new maze.
Stalls and winning
- After about 30 seconds with no hit, “Overtime” starts: reloads get much quicker and shells bounce three times.
- After about 75 seconds with no hit, it's “Stalemate. Replay” in a new maze. After two stalemates in a row, the next point starts in Overtime.
- If three points in a row end in a double hit or a stalemate, a coin toss decides the third, so a match always finishes.
- First to 5 hits wins, or 3 or 7 if you change it. A match can't end in a tie.
Tips to win at Tank Arena
- 1Use bank shots: a shell off a wall can reach a tank hiding behind cover.
- 2Fire with purpose. After your third shell you reload for a moment, and that's when you're easiest to hit.
- 3Watch your own bounces. After a moment in the air your shells can hit you too.
- 4Tanks can't reverse, so plan your turns early and stay out of dead ends.
- 5After about 30 seconds Overtime makes reloads quicker and shells bounce three times, so look for cover.
Controls
Phone flat between you. Each player owns a half, and the far half faces the far player.
- Two thumbs each: the stick at the bottom left of your half drives, and the FIRE pad at the bottom right shoots.
- Lift your thumb off the stick and the tank stops where it is.
- While you reload, FIRE dims with a ring that fills back up, and small pips show the shells you have left.
- Blue's controls face Blue, so pushing up always means toward the other player. On a very small screen the game shows “This screen is too small for Tank Arena” instead of starting.
Options
Every option is free. Defaults are marked.
| Option | Choices | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Hits to win | 35 (default)7 | The number of hits that wins the match. |
| Shell trail | On (default)Off | On draws a short dashed line ahead of every shell in flight, bounces included; Off hides it for both players. |
Play Tank Arena against the bot
The bot plays Blue with the same tank, the same shells and the same mazes. It knows only what's on the screen, aims by tracing shots off the walls, and is never faster than your tank.
Easy
Fires wild, direct shots only, often empties its clip, rarely dodges and drives slower than you.
Normal
Tries one-bounce shots, leads your movement a little and dodges most shells.
Hard
Plays bank shots off up to two walls, dodges well, avoids hitting itself and keeps a shell in reserve, but it can be out-manoeuvred in tight mazes.
Online, tournaments and hints
- Online
- One phone onlyTank Arena is real-time: internet delay would decide every dodge and shot, so it stays on one phone.
- Tournament
- Can be drawn in a tournamentA tournament game uses the default options, first to 5 with the shell trail on, whatever your saved options.
- Hints
- No hints here: it's all about your own reactions.
Coming soon
- Power-up crates. An optional crate at the centre of the maze, holding a shield or a triple shot, the same for both players and never for sale.
- Aim assist. An optional gentle snap of your heading toward the other tank when it's nearly in line. It never fires for you.
- Left-handed controls. A controls-side option that swaps the stick and the FIRE pad.
How it feels
- A low engine hum that follows your speed, small dust puffs, and a punchy thump with a muzzle flash on every shot.
- A high clink on each bounce that rises on the second, so you can hear a shell running out of bounces.
- A comic puff and spin-out on a hit, never a realistic explosion, with a sun-yellow banner and a chime for a bank shot.
- A short sad trombone and a small “Oops” when you hit yourself.
Accessibility
- Red's tank carries a star on its turret and Blue's a diamond, and shells have a white core with a ring in the player's colour, so colour is never the only cue.
- Turn the shell trail off if the dashed paths feel cluttered.
- With reduced motion there is no slow motion or screen shake, and a hit shows a still star instead of a burst.
- The stick and FIRE pad are large, and steering and firing each take a single thumb.
Tank Arena questions
Hit the other tank with a shell to score a point. First to 5 hits wins by default, or 3 or 7 if you change it, and a match can't end in a tie.
Yes. After a moment in the air your own shells can hit you, and that point goes to your opponent.
Yes. They bounce off walls twice and disappear on the third wall or after a few seconds. In Overtime they bounce three times.
Yes. Tank Arena in Duo Clash is built for two players on the same phone. Phone flat between you. Each player owns a half, and the far half faces the far player.
Yes. The bot plays Blue with the same tank, the same shells and the same mazes. Choose Easy, Normal or Hard.
No. Tank Arena is real-time: internet delay would decide every dodge and shot, so it stays on one phone.
Play Tank Arena on one phone
Free on Android. Sit face to face, or take on the bot on Easy, Normal or Hard.
