Mattel originally released the game in 1979 as Armor Battle for its Intellivision console.

[2] Armor Ambush is a game that gives players control over tanks that battle one another over terrain that offers varying degrees of texture and traversability.

Dueling tanks was a theme familiar to owners of the Atari 2600 since Combat, the game packaged with nearly every Atari 2600 system, and has a similar premise, but Armor Ambush expands upon the simple battles available to players of Combat.

Additionally, players can drop mines on the battlefield by simultaneously pressing the fire button and pulling down on the joystick.

The terrain is more diverse, featuring areas of foliage, water, and natural barriers.