[5] Miller spent about two months writing and editing code and producing about 200 pages of hand-written notes of computer printouts.

Miller consulted with his fellow designers at Activision and began programming in the games graphics that included mountains, tanks, colors, and other visual features.

[12][13][14] From contemporary reviews, critics such as Bill Kunkel, juvenile journalist Rawson Stovall and publication Computer Entertainer all praised the game for its visuals.

[18] Stovall praised small touches to the graphics, such as the visuals becoming screen static when the player's tank is destroyed.

[18][20] Michael Blanchet of Electronic Fun with Computers & Games stated "for every obvious strategy there is another subtle, almost hidden one that must be discovered and implemented.

Dan persons of Video Games suggested developers "should be moving on from this simple sort of shoot 'em-up, but Robot Tank has been done with such obvious care and so much style that I can't help but love it.

[25] From retrospective reviews, Brett Alan Weiss of AllGame referred to Robot Tank as both "far ahead of its time" and "one of the most sophisticated Atari 2600 games."

while stating that most of the weather and time change gave the game a false sense of versatility, since it was still just about dodging and attacking other tanks which grew repetitive.

Dunham stated that along with Pitfall II: Lost Caverns (1984), Robot Tank really stood out for its graphics with its 3D-aesthetic and the aforementioned weather and short-circuit effects.