Somebody on another board pointed it out for me. Turns out it wasn't tanks at all, don't know why I'd remember that but I could have sworn it. But as soon as I saw it I knew it was the game: King's Knight.
Ha I picked up Kings Knight years ago, brand new and sucked! I still played it a lot tho but never got far. I bought a replacement cart for my original a year or so ago, but haven't played it yet. I wonder if I could be better now, with my current shmuping skills.
Funny story. When I got it, the guy talked me into it, saying it was a lot like Zelda, which I loved. So I talked to folks into buying it. Turns out, its nothing like Zelda, and that planted the seed of never listening to store clerks about games. They don't know wtf they are talking about, and will say anything to make a sale, even lie to young children about Zelda. Ha