Some more info on the work-in-progress remake of TANX Squadron. This is a remake of an Amiga game that we created back in 1998. That version was made in Blitz Basic to run on AGA machines (using 68030 processors and 2MBs of RAM). It was a turn based strategy game, meaning that the player would first move their units, fire, pick up items, etc. and then end their turn. The AI would then take their turn and the game would progress like that.

As previously noted, the battles in the remake will occur in real time. The player will direct their units around the battlefield, telling them which enemies to engage, where to move to, and all the rest. By default, all units will follow the squadron leader, although they can be split up as needed and directed independently. This allows more fine grained strategy and permits the player to leave units in one place or tell them which targets to attack.

Another major change in the gameplay is that there are no longer five unit types for the player to choose from. Now there exists just the tank and the Akiko (the plane). To make up for this loss, the units themselves will have signficantly increased customization options: almost all weapons will be available to all units; shields can be added; armour can be upgraded; accuracy modules can be loaded, to help with aiming; and some other new upgrades that are being worked out. In addition, the player's units cannot be permanently destroyed. The original TANX Squadron was brutally hard in this regard: if a unit was destroy in battle it would be lost forever if the player chose to continue this way. Now, units that have their armour reduced to zero will be unable to participate further in battle until they are repaired by another unit (or the mission is complete).

Other changes include a non-linear progression system (see the very WIP world map below), optional missions, an increase in the overall length of the game (more mission, basically!), and a more immersive and intuitive story.

Again, no real ETA on the game right now, but maybe sometime in 2020.

tanx  games