PeeWeeTanks support
For the web game at tanks.lukewade.net and the PeeWeeTanks iOS app.
Stuck, found a bug, or have an idea? Email lukeswade@gmail.com.
PeeWeeTanks is made by one person, so you'll hear back from the developer, usually within a couple of days. It helps to say which device you play on, which level, and what you expected to happen. Screenshots and screen recordings are very welcome.
How to play
Clear each tabletop arena of enemy toy tanks. One hit winds any tank down, yours included. Your cork shells bounce off walls once, so bank them around cover, and watch out: they can bounce back at you.
Your wind-up key
Every tank runs on a spring, shown by the key under your tank and the gauge at the top right.
- Drain: driving, firing and dropping mines unwind your key. On early levels it barely moves; by level 20 it runs down at full speed.
- Stall: a key that runs dry stops your tank dead. It can't drive, fire or lay mines until the key has wound back to about a third.
- Rewind: stand still and stop firing, and the key winds itself back, faster the longer you wait. Riding a conveyor belt counts as standing still.
- Crank and surge: hold the crank control to wind fast. Past full it slows into an overwind; let go there for a surge of speed and quicker shots, with no drain, for up to five seconds. Crank all the way and the spring snaps (SPROING), and you stall.
- Enemies wind down too. Each toy stops to rewind at its own rhythm, showing an amber dial and holding its fire: that's your moment. Bandits steal wind from your key up close.
- Co-op: park beside a stalled buddy to wind them back up.
- Rather play without it? Settings → Wind-up key switches it off from the next level. Online, the host's setting applies to both players.
Touch (iPhone and iPad)
- Drive: put your left thumb down anywhere in the lower-left area and slide it. The stick appears under your thumb.
- Fire: tap the board, and your tank fires at that spot.
- Aim and hold: touch and hold the board to place a crosshair (it snaps onto nearby enemies), keep driving, and let go to fire. Slide onto your own tank before letting go to cancel.
- Mine: the MINE button drops a mine where you stand.
- Crank: hold the WIND button, or touch and hold your own tank.
- Prefer two thumbsticks? Settings → Touch aiming → Right thumbstick. Left-handed? Settings → Left-handed touch.
Keyboard and mouse
- W A S D to drive, the mouse to aim, click to fire.
- Space or right-click drops a mine. Hold Q or Left Shift to crank your key.
- Esc pauses. R retries after a defeat.
Game controller
- Left stick or d-pad drives, right stick aims.
- Right trigger, right bumper or A fires. Left trigger, left bumper, X or B drops a mine. Hold Y to crank your key. Menu pauses.
The battlefield
- Wooden blocks crack and shatter. Steel blocks never break.
- Mines explode after a few seconds, or when a tank rolls over them. They also blow open wooden walls.
- Two power-ups hide under wooden blocks in every level. Break the block, then drive over the capsule.
- Clear a level fast for more stars. The par and three-star times are on the results card.
Playing with a friend
Online co-op
One player chooses Co-op → Host online game and shares the 4-letter code. The other chooses Co-op → Join with a code. Both devices need an internet connection. Codes never use the letters I or O or the digits 0 or 1, so there's nothing to mix up.
Same-device co-op
Co-op → Same device. Player 1 uses the keyboard and mouse (or a controller). Player 2 uses a second controller, or I J K L to drive, the arrow keys to aim, Enter to fire, Right Shift for mines and U or O to crank. On iPhone and iPad, connect one game controller: player 1 plays on the touch controls and player 2 on the controller (or connect two controllers, one each).
Troubleshooting
My tank stopped moving
Your wind-up key ran dry. Stand still for a moment and it winds back up, or hold the crank control (WIND on touch screens, Q on a keyboard, Y on a controller). Pace yourself: short drives with pauses keep the key from running out.
My tank stopped after I cranked it
The spring snapped. Cranking past full is safe up to a point, but go all the way and it snaps and stalls you. Let go during the overwind for a surge instead.
The game feels choppy
Settings → Graphics → Medium or Low. Auto picks a level for your device and lowers the resolution when frames run long.
There's no sound
Check the Music and Sound effects sliders in Settings. On iPhone, the game follows the Ring/Silent switch.
Online co-op won't connect
Check that both devices are online and that the code was typed exactly. If a host leaves, the room closes, so host a new game and share the new code.
My progress is gone
Progress is saved on each device (and, on the web, in each browser), with no account or cloud sync. Deleting the app or clearing the website's data erases it.
Privacy
No accounts, no ads, no tracking. The details are in the privacy policy.