THE INDEPENDENT SHELF

Knifetank brings a knife to tank fight

KnifeTank is metal. It’s so metal it’s steel tanks armed with jagged knives. This game is preposterous. Esoteric designer Dr. Popular has bestowed an oddity upon us. This card game is compact yet robust.

Featuring top-down artwork of these trundling cutlery, players scoot their machines across the board using movement cards. You have opportunities to pivot as well as proceed in straight lines. You can slap new attacks down on the table or play special cards for various effects. It’s wild and kind of stupid, but in the best of ways.

What makes this game is that you can’t stop laughing. It plays a bit like X-Wing on an acid trip, at of course a fraction of the price and plastic. The difference is that the cards in your hand really determine your capabilities. You don’t always have all available movement templates or attack options at your fingertips.

Participants draw from the same deck of possible options. This is both good and bad, as it allows for even opportunity but also avoids asymmetry. It can also lead to very lucky outcomes as someone draws an exceedingly useful card at the right opportunity.

And there are a lot of cards. You can drop mines from above the table. You can extend an elongated knife and slash at your foe. You can even spin a helicopter card – one with sharp edged propellers – hoping to land on your foe. One bonkers option is the ability which allows you to

physically blow a card across the table.

In this way it combines hand management with dexterity. Neither aspect of the game is particularly dominant and both require consideration. It’s a wonky mixture that you’re not going to find elsewhere. That strong identity helps the game carve out a niche and cement its presence.

All of this is done in the pursuit of either eliminating your foe by dishing out enough damage, or by scooting your bladed vehicle to the opposite table edge. You can play one-on-one or in teams of two, both working quite well. The minimal rules overhead results in a design that works well with younger or inexperienced gamers. It can feel a little loose at times and there is some component fiddliness of precisely lining up cards, so it’s best approached with a laidback attitude.

Spiritually, it’s all about small stories arising from small moments. This game generates memories at will, beckoning for you and the friends to recall that time Jen dropped the bladed-copter right onto both Tim and Pete’s tanks. Much like the game, the memories are best shared over beer. The glorious artwork and concept performs much of the heavy lifting; no one’s coming into KnifeTank looking for tremendous depth. And that’s totally fine. This game knows exactly what it is. It’s one of those weird artifacts that will draw wandering eyes. When you pull it off the shelf no one will have any idea what to expect and curiosity will reign. It’s very much an indie record for a band only you’ve discovered. *