Plot: Short and sweet. You're a guy in a tank. There's other guys in tanks. They're trying to destroy your base (represented by an eagle) and you're defending it. Use the terrain and various powerups to destroy all the tanks and move up to the next, more difficult, stage. Or, design your own custom battlefield.

Might I add that this is a Famicom game? Before you wonder what's going on, let me explain. Back in 1992 or so, my older brother had a friend that'd done some traveling to various European countries where piracy was running rampant. Well, he happened to buy an NES multicart with several (a couple hundred or so) NES/Famicom games. My brother and I borrowed it for a while (his friend was getting into SNES and didn't mind how long we kept it.) Anyhow, that's how I got introduced to Excitebike, Wild Gunman, and a slew of other first–generation games, including Battle City. Boy, I sure wish I still had that. Moving on, you're not going to find this game unless you go to Japan or buy it off someone on the internet. So, if you're an emukiddie, grab the ROM; otherwise, you'll have to buy it online.

Challenge: D. To be honest, this is one of the easiest games around against the computer early on. But against the later levels or a second player, you might find yourself overwhelmed by enemy tanks, much like a naked person coated with honey is swarmed by stinging fireants. (Uhh, how the fuck did that come up?) But, as always, it's simple to defend your base with a little practice.

Graphics: D. Well, I can tell what's a tank, what's water, and what's a brick wall, so things can't be that bad. I'm almost getting sick of saying that things are "average." I suppose I should stop repeating myself then. The "Battle City" battlefield is pretty neat. Anyway, no complaints here...

Sound: D–. Nonexistant, basically. Put on something else to listen to when you play. Otherwise, you'll be exposed to hours upon hours of droning engines. The sound isn't that bad, by the way, but like almost all first–generation games, it's horribly repetitive and cheesy. Oddly, though, it's the little jingle that plays when entering a stage that cought my attention while sifting through a multicart ROM that containted this game, thus rekindling my interest (and memories) of it.

Fun: B–. The "create your own level" feature is probably what you'll find yourself playing around with most. Lots of interesting scenarios are possible. A few more powerups that appear more often would've been a plus, but I'm not complaining. It's simple fun in a simple, compact package.

Overall: C+. I say this a lot: this is one of those games that you bust out once every three months when you've played everything else in sight. It's cool for a while, but don't expect a ton of replay value. Still, it's a neat little first–generation game that can be fun every once and a while.