Competition can seem like an inseparable part of gaming. After all, a game needs rules and something to test - so why not test who’s better? Faster? Smarter?
But games don’t always have to be about comparing yourself to others. At their core, they’re entertainment! Something to enjoy and fill the time when you feel like chilling. Thinking of games as fun time for yourself was one of the main inspirations behind our game - Tank Marauder.

Without the meta and toxicity?

Singleplayer was one of the first core ideas we focused on. The pressure from other players, constant flaming, accusations, complaints about not following “the most optimal strategy”… Why not try something different instead? Maybe instead of grinding the same loop over and over just to climb the ranks, it’s worth experimenting?

That’s why in Tank Marauder we went with fast, roguelike inspired, rounds - you customize your tank throughout the run from randomly offered upgrades. Maybe early on you get a reinforced hull and decide you want to build a slow-firing cannon? Then after second upgrade you face the next choice: a bigger gun, or ramming damage? Should you pivot, or stick to your initial plan?

Our upgrade system is built to support experimentation and fun. We don’t want to create “meta” builds and force players to play the same way. More than that, we don’t want them to feel peer pressure pushing them in that direction. On our Discord, we have a #your-ideas channel where anyone can share their own vision for their ultimate tank.
We’re very open to ideas - so who knows, maybe we’ll implement your vision in the game?

Fire away your ideas - and we’ll let you fire them in the game

There are countless playstyle ideas out there. Every player has their own, and now you have one in the lifetime opportunity - we might build your vision for you.
Of course - we won’t be able to realize every idea. But remember: the sooner you drop your idea in, the higher the chance it makes it into the game. We’re not some AAA studio producing design documents that need a dozen sign-offs from executives who’ll probably want to turn it into a DLC.

We’re a group of friends who want to make a fun game that brings joy to others. You’d be surprised how often ideas come from the community. Recently, I was at one of the Polygon Warsaw game dev meetups, I was talking about our game, presented it as a neon aesthetic tank simulator where you fight on a virtual battlefield. I talked with j4nw, the creator of Pawnbarian - his idea was simple:

“So you drive tanks and blast them with lasers?”

And I have to say, I was stopped in my tracks. Because that sounds absolutely awesome, especially in our art style. Why don’t we have lasers yet? I couldn’t answer with anything other than “we’ll add them.”

If you’re a game developer yourself and you’re running low on ideas - just ask people around. There are so many gamers out there that you’ll definitely find someone who’ll drop a great idea on you.
We don’t have lasers yet, but it’s got a nice card on our TODO board. There are more important things there for now, and I’ll be sharing them with you in the future posts. We don’t always have to be the ones who call the shots! 😉 Stay tuned!