Sub Battle Simulator

{{Infobox video game |title = Sub Battle Simulator |image = Sub Battle Simulator cover.jpg |caption = |developer = TX Digital Illusions |publisher = {{vgrelease|NA|Epyx|EU|U.S. Gold}} |series = |engine = |released = 1987 |genre = Submarine simulator |modes = |platforms = Amiga, Apple IIGS, Commodore 64, Atari ST, Macintosh, MS-DOS, Tandy Color Computer 3. }} '''''Sub Battle Simulator''''' is a naval combat simulation game released by Epyx in 1987. The game was developed by Digital Illusions, Inc. It was released for the Amiga, Apple IIGS, Commodore 64, Atari ST, Macintosh, MS-DOS, and the Tandy Color Computer 3.

==Description== ''Sub Battle Simulator'' sets the action in times of World War 2, with the player on the American or German side. There are 36 German missions and 24 American missions in which the player can command six different submarines. The player is responsible for navigation, using five different levels of mapping, attacks' planning based on weather and surroundings as well as paying attention to the radar. The game gives the possibility to play underwater or on the surface. A player can choose target practice, individual missions or war commands as either a German or an American submarine Captain.

==Reception== Game reviewers Hartley and Pattie Lesser complimented the game in their "The Role of Computers" column in ''Dragon'' #122 (1987), calling it "the finest of the submarine simulation games" and stating "This is a real winner for wargaming enthusiasts!"<ref name="Dragon122">{{cite journal |title=The Role of Computers |author=Lesser, Patricia |journal=Dragon |issue=122 |date=June 1987 |pages=76–80}}</ref> ''Computer Gaming World'' was less positive, stating that "the taste is a little disappointing ... as a game, ''Sub Battle'' is fast and fun. As a simulation, it falls far from reality". The review as examples of its flaws being able to see Iceland with binoculars from 500 miles away; sinking an aircraft carrier with a deck gun; and multiple bugs.<ref name="carey198707">{{cite news | title=Sub Battle Simulator | magazine=Computer Gaming World | date=June–July 1987 | accessdate=2 November 2013 | author=Carey, Regan | url=http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1987&pub=2&id=38 | pages=14}}</ref> 1991 and 1993 surveys of strategy and war games gave it three stars out of five.<ref name="brooks199112">{{cite news | url=http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1991&pub=2&id=89 | title=Computer Strategy and Wargames: The 1900-1950 Epoch / Part II (M-Z) of an Annotated Paiktography | magazine=Computer Gaming World | date=December 1991 | accessdate=18 November 2013 | author=Brooks, M. Evan | pages=126}}</ref><ref name="brookssurvey199310">{{cite news | url=http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1993&pub=2&id=111 | title=Brooks' Book Of Wargames: 1900-1950, R-Z | magazine=Computer Gaming World | date=October 1993 | accessdate=26 March 2016 | author=Brooks, M. Evan | pages=144–148}}</ref> David Plotkin of ''STart'' liked the game, stating that it was not too difficult for novices but very challenging at higher difficulty levels.<ref name="plotkin1987w">{{Cite magazine |last=Plotkin |first=David |date=Winter 1987 |title=For The Fun Of It: Plutos, Airball, Barbarian and Sub Battle Simulator |url=https://www.atarimagazines.com/startv2n3/forthefunofit.html |magazine=STart}}</ref> Jerry Pournelle criticized a pre-release version of ''Sub Battle'' for being both too realistic (reproducing the long, uneventful periods of submarine service) and not realistic enough (too powerful on the surface against aircraft, unrealistic binoculars, buggy navigation). His review included an addendum that his complaints had been addressed by an updated version that "turns a boring simulation into an exciting game".<ref name="pournelle198710">{{cite news | url=https://archive.org/stream/byte-magazine-1987-10-rescan/1987_10_BYTE_12-11_Heuristic_Algorithms#page/n277/mode/2up | title=New Life for Lucy | work=BYTE | date=October 1987 | accessdate=6 November 2013 | author=Pournelle, Jerry | pages=255–6}}</ref>

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== * {{Internet Archive game|msdos_Sub_Battle_Simulator_1987|Sub Battle Simulator}} * {{mobygames|/1616}}

Category:1987 video games Category:Amiga games Category:Apple IIGS games Category:Atari ST games Category:Classic Mac OS games Category:Commodore 64 games Category:Digital Illusions games Category:DOS games Category:Epyx games Category:Submarine simulation video games Category:TRS-80 Color Computer games Category:U.S. Gold games Category:Video games developed in the United States