688 Attack Sub

Airplane sims have always been around, but sub sims are rare - and always surprisingly popular. 688 Attack Sub is an excellent way to acquaint yourself with the claustrophobic atmosphere of underwater warfare. Nice, easily accessible main screens, along with digitised faces of the crew as they make reports. Sound is also pleasing with some atmospheric effects adding to the action. Highly recommended.

I had a lot of fun playing this and soon I was hooked. It is nowhere near as involved as Red Storm Rising, but it is an atmospheric product, and a highly exhilarating one at that. But I would advise you check it out if you are after something to tax the brain.

You have to be a certain kind of person to enjoy a sub-sim: someone who likes to think about their actions and does not mind waiting a few minutes for things to happen. Sub sims rely on building tension and 688 does it beautifully. A great example of the genre and a brilliant game to play with a remote friend via a cable link.

NES Silent Service proved that simulations can be brought to the consoles very easily, and I'm glad to say that 688 Attack Sub only adds weight to the argument. This sort of game would require lots of keys on a home computer, but the console version's control method is surprisingly quick and easy to use. The graphics are okay, but not really special in any way - like the sound. The speech seems pretty pointless (it doesn't even sound human, in fact it wouldn't sound out of place on my new Kraftwerk CD!), but what really annoys me is the Russian text when you choose the Soviet sub - it's incredibly pointless and really lets the game down. As sims go, 688 is quite tense and atmospheric, and there's a good challenge in there as well - I found that completing even the first real mission was quite difficult. If you're after something different and longer-lasting for your Megadrive, 688 Attack Sub is a must.

688 Attack Sub is a ported PC simulation allowing you to control a nuclear attack sub and its key components during peacetime, and a simulated war with the Russians. You can choose from a total of 10 missions of increasing difficulty, varying from hiding from and evading other subs, to straight-out attacking them and other aquatic vessels, to bombing the Soviets into the Stone Age with some Tomahawk cruise missiles and dodging their retaliation.

A superb navy simulation which, unlike most, boasts first-class graphics and sound, as well as keeping faithful to the real atmosphere and tension involved in modern naval warfare. The graphics in this version manage to excel those on the PC making this a definite winner for Amiga sim fans.

688 Attack Sub ist eine weitere tolle Simulation für PCs. Die hervorragende Benutzerführung mit der Maus und die Ausnutzung aller gängigen Grafikkarten heben die U-Boot-Simulation aus dem aktuellen Angebot heraus. Gerade die Funktion, auch über Modem spielen zu können, bringt zusätzlich Spaß. Verwirrend sind anfangs die vielen Stationen, auf denen gearbeitet werden kann - da ist "Silent Service" etwas einfacher. Doch nach einiger Eingewöhnung macht 688 Attack Sub wegen seiner größeren Realitätsnähe mehr Spaß. Die Sounds, die der PC während des Spieles von sich gibt, sind sehr realistisch. Mit 688 Attack Sub werde ich sicher noch einige Tage auf See verbringen.

Die etwas stimmungsarme, aber detaillierte Simulation eines High-Tech-U-Boots hat eine lange Fahrt hinter sich: Nach gut einem Jahr schipperte das "688 Attack Sub" vom PC auf den Amiga rüber. Spielerische Abstriche muß man bei der Amiga-Version nicht machen und grafisch gibt's nur wenig Unterschiede zur VGA-Pracht der PC-Version.

Your complement of weapons varies for each mission - you even have Tomahawk cruise missile on one mission. Overall, the game is challenging and highly recommended to enthusiasts of submarine simulations.

In the end, 688 Attack Sub is not as complex or involved as similar games (Pacific Theater of Operations and Advanced Military Commander come to mind, although in truth those are firmly grounded in grand strategy and understandably have more features) but as a forerunner of the genre it remains a unique experience, with a competent – even if unremarkable – presentation and sober gameplay. It's got all the markings of an early classic, one that simply wasn't tweaked enough or given better production values to draw in a bigger crowd. But don't let that get in the way of Ivan meeting G.I. Joe, hunter-killer style.

Loads for simulation buffs to get their teeth into, and as a straight strategy game it works just fine. But thrills and atmosphere are in short supply - you never get the feeling you're actually sitting at the helm of a submarine. Silent Service 2 would be a much better alternative, but I don't think that's out on budget yet. Pity.