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Silent Service (video game)
Encyclopedia
Silent Service is a 1985
submarine simulator
computer game. It was designed by Sid Meier
and published by MicroProse
for various 8-bit home computer
s, and in 1987
for 16-bit systems like the Commodore Amiga. The follow-up game Silent Service II
was released in 1990
.
during World War II
, with the player assuming control of a United States
submarine
for various war patrols against Japan
ese shipping. Although hugely successful during the war, this side of the war in the Pacific is seldom told.
as well as near invisibility at night (if the sub's profile is kept to a minimum). The game's realism was hampered by the simulation's inability to handle more than four projectiles at a time. This was particularly troublesome when battling multiple destroyers, since the submarine would not be able to fire if four torpedoes were already in the water.
force in the Pacific Ocean
during World War II
.
The game accelerates real time when not in combat. Sid Meier described a number of key factors that influenced the design of the game: The size of the theatre
, the variety of tactical situations, and evolving technology, such as torpedoes that did or did not leave trails of bubbles on the surface, and the use of surface radar. Tasks such as navigation, damage repair, and firing were compartmentalized into different screens to allow players access to a great deal of information, but also focus on the task at hand.
In 1986
, Silent Service won the Charles Roberts/Origins Award
for Best Adventure Game for Home Computer of 1985. It was followed by the much more realistic Silent Service II
.
port of Silent Service developed by Rare was released in 1989 by Konami
in Europe
and by Ultra Games
in North America
.
1985 in video gaming
-Notable releases:* Brøderbund releases Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?, the first game of the prolific Carmen Sandiego series* Nintendo releases Super Mario Bros. on September 13, 1985, which eventually sells 40 million copies making it the best-selling video game of all time until 2008.*...
submarine simulator
Submarine simulator
A submarine simulator, or subsim for short, is usually a computer game in which the player commands a submarine. The usual form of the game is to go on a series of missions, each of which features a number of encounters where the goal is to sink surface ships and to survive counterattacks by...
computer game. It was designed by Sid Meier
Sid Meier
Sidney K. "Sid" Meier is a Canadian programmer and designer of several popular computer strategy games, most notably Civilization. He has won accolades for his contributions to the computer games industry...
and published by MicroProse
MicroProse
MicroProse was a video game publisher and developer, founded by Wild Bill Stealey and Sid Meier in 1982 as Microprose Software. In 1993, the company became a subsidiary of Spectrum HoloByte and has remained a subsidiary or brand name under several other corporations since...
for various 8-bit home computer
Home computer
Home computers were a class of microcomputers entering the market in 1977, and becoming increasingly common during the 1980s. They were marketed to consumers as affordable and accessible computers that, for the first time, were intended for the use of a single nontechnical user...
s, and in 1987
1987 in video gaming
-Notable releases:* January 14, Nintendo releases Zelda II: The Adventure of Link in January for the Famicom Disk System in Japan only. The game would go unreleased in America for nearly two years afterwards.* February 20, Konami releases Contra...
for 16-bit systems like the Commodore Amiga. The follow-up game Silent Service II
Silent Service II
Silent Service II is a submarine simulation game released in 1990 for DOS and ported in 1991 to Amiga. It is a World War II video game sequel to Silent Service....
was released in 1990
1990 in video gaming
-Notable releases:*Bonk's Adventure is released for NEC's TurboGrafx-16 and is the first US appearance of Bonk, the mascot of the TurboGrafx-16.*February 12 — Nintendo releases the NES game Super Mario Bros. 3 in North America...
.
Plot
The game is set in the PacificPacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, with the player assuming control of a United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
for various war patrols against Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese shipping. Although hugely successful during the war, this side of the war in the Pacific is seldom told.
Gameplay
The game allows the player to choose when to attack and a whole range of realistic tactics are available, including the End AroundEnd Around (submarine tactic)
An End Around was a World War II submarine attack tactic. It was used when the initial relative position of the submarine and its target did not give the attacking submarine a positional advantage. The submarine estimated the path and speed of the target, then submerged until the target was out...
as well as near invisibility at night (if the sub's profile is kept to a minimum). The game's realism was hampered by the simulation's inability to handle more than four projectiles at a time. This was particularly troublesome when battling multiple destroyers, since the submarine would not be able to fire if four torpedoes were already in the water.
Development history
Silent Service was a nickname for the U.S. Navy's submarineSubmarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
force in the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
The game accelerates real time when not in combat. Sid Meier described a number of key factors that influenced the design of the game: The size of the theatre
Theater (warfare)
In warfare, a theater, is defined as an area or place within which important military events occur or are progressing. The entirety of the air, land, and sea area that is or that may potentially become involved in war operations....
, the variety of tactical situations, and evolving technology, such as torpedoes that did or did not leave trails of bubbles on the surface, and the use of surface radar. Tasks such as navigation, damage repair, and firing were compartmentalized into different screens to allow players access to a great deal of information, but also focus on the task at hand.
In 1986
1986 in video gaming
-Events:-Notable releases:*Namco releases Sky Kid Deluxe, Hopping Mappy, Toy Pop, The Return of Ishtar, which is the sequel to Tower of Druaga, Genpei Tōma Den, and Rolling Thunder....
, Silent Service won the Charles Roberts/Origins Award
Origins Award
The Origins Awards are American awards for outstanding work in the game industry. They are presented by the Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts and Design at the Origins Game Fair on an annual basis for the previous year, so the 1979 awards were given at the 1980 Origins.The Origins Award is commonly...
for Best Adventure Game for Home Computer of 1985. It was followed by the much more realistic Silent Service II
Silent Service II
Silent Service II is a submarine simulation game released in 1990 for DOS and ported in 1991 to Amiga. It is a World War II video game sequel to Silent Service....
.
NES version
An NESNintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
port of Silent Service developed by Rare was released in 1989 by Konami
Konami
is a Japanese leading developer and publisher of numerous popular and strong-selling toys, trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, slot machines, arcade cabinets and video games...
in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and by Ultra Games
Ultra Games
Ultra Software Corporation was a spinoff company created in 1988 as a subsidiary of Konami of America, in an effort to get around Nintendo of America's strict licensing rules for the North American Konami release games for Nintendo consoles. One of these rules was that a third-party company could...
in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
.
External links
- Silent Service Amiga version info page
- Silent Service 2 Amiga version info page