View source for Software:Submarine Commander (Atari 2600)

{{short description|1982 video game}}
{{Infobox video game
|title = Submarine Commander
|image = Sears_Submarine_commander.jpg
|caption =
|programmer = Matthew Hubbard<ref name=mania>{{cite web |title=Atari 2600 VCS Submarine Commander |url=http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-2600-vcs-submarine-commander_12251.html |website=Atari Mania}}</ref>
|developer = [[Company:Atari, Inc.|Atari, Inc.]]
|publisher = Sears
|platforms = [[Engineering:Atari 2600|Atari 2600]]
|released = {{vgrelease|US|1982}}
|genre = [[Software:Shoot 'em up|Shoot 'em up]]
|modes = [[Software:Single-player video game|Single-player]], [[Software:Multiplayer video game|multiplayer]]
}}

'''''Submarine Commander''''' is a [[Software:Shoot 'em up|shoot 'em up]] for the [[Engineering:Atari 2600|Atari 2600]] developed by Matthew Hubbard at [[Company:Atari, Inc.|Atari, Inc.]].<ref name=mania/> It released exclusively under the Sears Tele-Games label in 1982.<ref name="Weiss">{{cite book |last1=Weiss |first1=Bret |title=Classic Home Video Games, 1972–1984 A Complete Reference Guide |date=20 December 2011 |publisher=McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers |isbn=9780786487554 |page=117 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BzxTtml8Jq4C&dq=%22Sprintmaster%22&pg=PA111 |access-date=20 February 2021}}</ref><ref name="Joystik">{{cite news |title=Submarine Commander |url=https://archive.org/details/joystik_magazine-1982-12/page/n61/mode/2up?q=submarine |access-date=27 February 2021 |work=Joystik Magazine |issue=3 |date=December 1982 |page=60}}</ref>

==Gameplay==
The player controls a submarine going through enemy territory. The player must shoot targets in order to win the game.<ref name="Joystik" /> The player views the action via a periscope that can be rotated through 360 degrees - a rarity for the time. Information provided to the player includes a radar scope, a depth-charge-detector, a fuel gauge, and an engine temperature gauge for detecting engine-overheating. There are eight modes of play, made up of single and two-player mode and four different levels of difficulty for each. <ref name="8 Bit Central" />

==Development==
The game was one of three developed by Atari exclusively for Sears, the others being ''[[Software:Stellar Track|Stellar Track]]'' and ''Steeplechase''.<ref name="Lendino">{{cite book |last1=Lendino |first1=Jamie |title=Adventure The Atari 2600 at the Dawn of Console Gaming |date=2018 |publisher=Steel Gear Press |isbn=9781732355200 |page=32 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JkaoDwAAQBAJ&dq=%22Submarine+Commander%22+%222600%22&pg=PA32 |access-date=27 February 2021}}</ref> It was based on the ''Midway'' arcade game ''Sea Wolf II'' that was played with a periscope.<ref name="Lapetino">{{cite book |last1=Lapetino |first1=Tim |title=Art of Atari (Deluxe) |date=26 October 2016 |publisher=Dynamite Entertainment |isbn=9781524101060 |pages=196|url=https://archive.org/details/book_art_of_atari/page/104/mode/2up?q=slot+machine |access-date=27 February 2021}}</ref>

==Reception==
A December 1982 review in ''Joystik'' magazine described ''Submarine Commander'' as being a "very basic shooting-gallery type game."<ref name="Joystik" /> 

A retrospective review at ''8-Bit Central'' said the game was "not a visually pleasing experience", but that it the complexity of the gameplay made it "worth playing". ''8-Bit Central'' gave the game 2.5/5 overall.<ref name="8 Bit Central">{{cite web |title=Sears Submarine Commander |url=http://www.8-bitcentral.com/reviews/2600subCommander.html |website=8 Bit Central |access-date=27 February 2021}}</ref> A December 2012 review on the ''Video Games Critic'' website called it "an eye-opening experience" and liked the faux-3D graphics and action and gave it a grade of "B+" overall.<ref name="Video Games Critic review">{{cite web |title=Submarine Commander |url=https://videogamecritic.com/2600ssz.htm?e=22278#rev3992 |website=Video Games Critic |access-date=27 February 2021 |date=8 December 2012}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

[[Category:Multiplayer and single-player video games]]

{{Sourceattribution|Submarine Commander (Atari 2600)}}