Tanks for the disappointment
If you play video games in the year 2026, I assume that you have no doubt heard of World of Tanks. They play ads all the times on websites and on consoles advertising their F2P PVP tank combat game. I am not a huge fan but WoT is a solid game that can be fun under the right circumstances. Panzer Knights: Commander Edition is an anime-fied take on the same type of gameplay but with a single-player focus. While the developers get credit for trying to tap into the tank combat genre, I just wish they had doubled up on the polishing phase.
MSRP: $24.99
Platforms: Xbox (reviewed), PlayStation, PC
Price I’d Pay: $14.99
Developed by Taiwanese studio Joy Brick, Panzer Knights: Commander Edition is a port of the original game for consoles that focuses on a newly trained panzer unit for the German army during World Ward 2. This isn’t a fictional military story either the game takes place shortly before German invades Poland and there will be other large-scale battles that make up the campaign – all from the perspective of the Germans. With that being said though this is mostly sanitized and there aren’t an nazi-related references or direct mentions of Hitler, but there is talk about the Fuhrer indirectly. I think for those who are historians they won’t find much issue here as its all historical accurate, but unlike games like Wolfenstein where the nazi’s are the butt of jokes; here players will be fighting on their side and being responsible for winning some of their campaigns.
Honestly this could have been helped with a better narrative but as it stands Panzer Knights is chook full of dialog scenes with exposition, complete with questionably spelling and grammar. Also look, I am all for those who love their anime subbed but I am not one of them. When the action is heavy the audio almost becomes overwhelming as your tank crew is all shouting that reloads are complete, firing was done, an enemy is spotted. I don’t know why they need to announce every attack and action like the Power Rangers, but it just made the audio experience really subpar.
I wish this was the part where I could tell you that the game is saved by some amazing combat/gameplay but alas, it’s not to be. Gameplay is pretty weak in Panzer Knights, especially if you have EVER played World of Tanks even once. For one this is an arcadey experience, so the slow, and mostly realistic controls from WoT don’t apply here. Players will have access to resupply beacons, and various artillery shells to use but when it comes to pull the trigger’ oof it’s not good. I am firing large tank canons and there is little to no real effects. Bullets feel like they have no weight, explosions are muted for what one would expect from tanks fighting. Further complicating things is the fact the game doesn’t always tell the players what they need to know. It can be hard to discern where enemies are coming from, enemy as well as ally units get stuck and can’t follow their pathfinding; it’s extremely frustrating because I really wanted to like this game.
Ultimately Panzer Knights Commander Editon feels like a really hollow experience. As an arcade tank battler without the grind of PvP gameplay I expected more than the lacking combat and boring narrative. There is some fun to be had in mindlessly blowing up tanks though, as long as you don’t look for anything more.
Review copy of game provided by publisher.
