With the Google Play and web versions lost due to reasons I’ve already talked about in this DML 2.X GitHub issue, the only available version of Tank Rider was the slightly outdated Android build on IndieDB (and the sketchy modded APK ones…).

I wanted to preserve the game, so I’ve dusted off its sourcecode and made one last update:

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This small update (0.95b) includes:

  • Updated the Unity engine from 2020.3.40f1 to 6000.3.3f1, which fixes a vulnerability in the Unity engine.
  • Removed links, as they were crashing the browser version of the game when clicked. I didn’t bother investigating further, given that you’re already on my website if you’re playing it…
  • You can now just hold LMB instead of spamming it.
  • Removed all actions linked to rewarded ads (daily reward, continue, double money, etc…).
  • Removed leaderboards, as I’m no longer on Google Play, and the open-php-leaderboard project I was working on never saw the light of day.
  • Unlinked project from unity dashboard (should no longer ping unity server).

A bit of history about the game

Tank Rider (originally named Tank Rampage, but later changed due to an unrelated game with the same name releasing around the same time) is an endless shoot ’em up with a nostalgic, retro look, made for Android and browser (WebGL).

Since my first year of high school (2012), I’ve dreamed of making a mobile game. In 2015, I made a space-themed game called Random Spaceship Travel (which I’ll talk about in more detail in another post).

Years later, at the end of the awful year that was 2020, I started working on Tank Rider, keeping the retro aesthetic and endless side-scroller mechanic from RST.

The Android version supported leaderboards, and a custom-built cross-platform leaderboard system was planned. However, working with Google Play proved to be a pain, and given the low interest in the game, combined with me being busy with other things… I eventually stopped development.

Still, it was a fun experience overall. I still like the game and play it sometimes, and I learned quite a lot about Android game development and maintaining a multiplatform codebase.