Well, there’s a new picture up! It showcases the use of bullets. See it down below.

So what’s next on the TO-DO list?  A collision detection system that goes beyond the one I used in Pong…which was admittedly as basic as it gets.

Well, I thought I’d release some information related to Tank Attack! that isn’t just screenshots of crappy graphics.

Tank Attack! v1.0

Artwork

Levels:

There will be only a single level, and its terrain type will be all grass.

Images:

The tank will be a color-coded representation of players, both human and AI. The tank the player controls will be green, the tank the AI controls maroon, and tank of other players will be royal blue. Bullets and rockets have unannounced image representations.

User Interface:

The UI (user interface) will feature menus to the left, allowing the player to quit or create a new game. On the bottom portion of the UI, a number will be placed over a weapon backdrop. Each number corresponds to the weapon behind it. Each number changes the active weapon the player is using. For more information, see Gameplay Mechanics, below.

Gameplay Mechanics

Life and Death:

Each tank has 100 hit points. These points are subtracted from each time a tank is struck by a bullet or other projectile (see Weapons below).

Weapons:

There will be one weapon: a standard tank gun equipped with HEAT–High-Explosive Anti-Tank–rounds.

Movement:

Movement will consist of the W, A, S, and D keys to move forward, turn left, move backward, and turn right, respectively. Strafing will be impossible, just as in real life.

Attacking:

Attacks will be made by pressing the spacebar. One HEAT (High-Explosive Anti-Tank) round will be expelled in the direction the tank is facing.

Well, that’s about it for version one I think. Certain improvements are already being written. Without giving too much directly away, one improvement is hinted at early in the design documentation. Keep your eyes peeled for the release of version 1.0 Beta release!

I’ve started work on Tank Attack!, a 2D, top-down shooter. I’ve made a little bit of progress, including drawing the map, scrolling the map, drawing the tank, and rotating the tank. Check out the screen shots below.

The Tank Attack! map. This is not final. The textures are only placeholders.

The player’s tank. Again, this is just a placeholder. Final images will be made and provided as the game progresses.

Same as before, this time rotated and showing a different portion of the map.

Work continues. The next thing on my list is to implement BULLETS! YAY! SHOOT STUFF!

The source code for TaiPong has been released.  It does NOT include any resources; if you would like these resources (sounds and images), please use the Contact Violent Crayon page.  Thanks!