Super Tank Poker

The best thing about Super Tank Poker is that is has a clearly defined hook. It is Advance Wars-meets-poker. Simple as that.

The only problem with a description like that, though, is the very likely chance that the game falls uncomfortably between the two abovementioned stools.

So, let's get one thing straight immediately: Super Tank Poker is barely a strategy game. Yep, the poker element of this game's name is clearly to the fore.

The plot justification for all the tank-on-tank carnage here - a fairly incidental narrative, by the way, delivered via text-based exposition - is that a very important-looking president-type man has declared war on "the enemy", who are believed to have weapons of mass destruction.

Your mission, then, is to conquer this 'naughty' nation, attacking from the coast and blowing the country up tank by tank, base by base. It's a wonderfully vibrant take on war, much like the primary-coloured devastation of Advance Wars.

However, it quickly becomes apparent that all resemblance to Intelligent Systems and Nintendo's TBS classic is merely skin-deep. With the power of poker - not stats or tactical nous - defining all outcomes, it initially comes as something of a disappointment that all of the visual ingredients don't translate into satisfying tactical gameplay.

There has been an effort though, to integrate a sense of positional strategy with the poker-powered tank tussles - you are given a greater chance of success if you approach a tank from behind, for instance. This makes you keenly aware of your tank's orientation on the field, to get the tactical jump on your enemies and avoid being taken unawares.

It still isn't enough to shake the feeling that Super Tank Poker is little more than a well-framed game of cards. For the most part, though, you simply won't care.

The melodramatic seriousness of the story, the dastardly nature of the enemy commanders, and the stirring battlefield soundtrack are enough to make something as innocuous and sedate as a card game feel genuinely nail-bitingly epic and exciting.

Casino chips represent a tank's life force, so gambling too fast and loose will result in your tank exploding in a shower of plastic casino currency - a neat touch.

There has also been an effort to mix up the formula. There are defensive missions, for example, in which the odds are weighed heavily against you and in which you have to survive a certain number of turns while the enemy continually bolsters its forces. This against-all-odds tower defence angle represents a welcome change of pace.

I don't really care for poker, but I had fun with Super Tank Poker. The lack of truly tactical battling may be a sticking point for some, but for all my quibbles I was undeniably drawn in. If you're after a cheap slice of gaming on PS Moble, then there's not much to rival it at this price point.