Because we are now exclusively located on blocktanks.net!

Why?

It’s been a while since I (Kevin) have worked on BlockTanks due to a busy summer, but I am ready to start updating the game again! In a way, the break was good becase I am able to look at BlockTanks with fresh eyes.

After doing some research upon coming back, I realized that having two domains was hurting the game more than I thought. Specifically, splitting the domains hurt:

• Google Search Results: By splitting our traffic, I believe Google got confused about where BlockTanks was actually located; the worst-case scenario is that Google could have seen blocktanks.io and blocktanks.net as competitors and demoted them both in search results!
• Emails from BlockTanks: If you played on blocktanks.net and ever got an email from us (e.g. an invite to a clan), the email would contain the blocktanks.io link, and you wouldn’t be logged in on that domain.
• Sharing BlockTanks links: Similarly, if you were sent a link from one domain (e.g. a blocktanks.io link from a stream) but were logged in on the other domain, you would join those games as a guest instead of as logged in.

Because of that, I realized that I needed to choose one domain or the other. Why choose blocktanks.net?

• Website Blockers: Schools are generally more likely to block .io domains than .net domains.
• Existing Traffic: About 60% of players already use blocktanks.net
• Branding: The “IO Game” genre is not nearly as strong as it used to be, and I would like to distance BlockTanks away from that genre.

Let me expand on the second point. First, take a look at the difference in search traffic on Google between “IO Games” and “Online Games”

By branding to “BlockTanks” instead of “BlockTanks.io,” we have the chance to reach people that are looking for online games that aren’t necessarily interested in io games specifically.

Lastly, although BlockTanks has a lot of attributes of an IO game, it differs in some ways:

• No obvious “climb to #1:” Games like agar.io and slither.io are hinged on the idea of a slow climb to the top of a leaderboard, but BlockTanks has a faster, tighter gameplay loop where only one bullet can end your entire killstreak.
• More community features: Most IO games lack a sense of community. BlockTanks has chat features, clans, private matches, and an event calendar designed to encourage user involvement.

By not constraining ourselves to the “rules” of the IO game genre, we are free to give BlockTanks its own brand and identity without being pigeonholed into just being an IO game.

Because of all of these reasons, you can say goodbye to BlockTanks.io and hello to just BlockTanks, on blocktanks.net! Do you agree or disagree with this decision? Let us know in the comments on this post!

What’s Next

We also have some more stuff in the works:

• Map Updates and the Return of 3v3: We will have some new maps for all of the public matches around the beginning of October. We will also add the 3v3 game mode back to the game, available every day!
• Item Contest: We are also looking to add new items to the shop, and we would like to accept player submissions! We will release official rules soon, so stay tuned!

Sincerely,

Kevin Champagne

Creator of BlockTanks