While the first Battletanx was only released in America, its sequel got a more global release. And by that, I mean it also came out in Europe. Just like the game itself which, despite the name, is only set in America, London, Paris, and Berlin. The first game has a surprisingly serious plot, while this just decides to throw in a villain with magical powers of mind control.

For the most part, it’s more of the same fast-paced tank action, although this one seems much faster and much jerkier. All the tanks feel like hovercars, which is suitable for the hovertank you can control, but not the many other tanks you can be. There are a lot of different tank classes, but the weaker ones aren’t much use on their own – it really feels like a system that would work better with big teams fighting each other, and not just four players.

The levels in this game feel more open, which would be nice, but the fog feels even worse as a result. In one mission, you have to destroy the Eiffel Tower, but you can barely see any of it. The levels are also more maze-like with a mixture of barriers you can and can’t destroy, and hidden tunnels you need to find and navigate, with the map not helping much.

From the singleplayer side of things, I didn’t like this as much as the first. The first felt like you were slowly building up your army as you worked your way across the USA. This is random events where sometimes getting a few hundred metres is a big task, but then you can just pop from Washington, DC to London in a post-apocalyptic world with no issues. The multiplayer, though, is much expanded with more modes and features, so is where the main enjoyment is.

Fun

Sooo, then, there’s plenty to enjoy here, provided you’ve got some chums to share the fun with. As a single player game, Global Assault leaves little to be desired, offering only a lightweight Rage Wars-style sequence of fights, but 3DO have managed to fashion a multiplayer game that makes excellent use of the four controller ports on the front of your N64, and for that we applaud them.

Jes Bickham, N64 Magazine #40. Review Score: 81%

Remake or remaster?

A remaster that combines both games and adds online would be a lot of fun.

Official ways to get the game

There is no official way to get Battletanx: Global Assault