Submarine[a] is an electro-mechanical arcade game that was released by Namco in 1978, and was licensed to Midway for US manufacturing and distribution in September 1979.
| Submarine | |
|---|---|
 Japanese promotional flyer. | |
| Developer(s) | Namco |
| Publisher(s) |
|
| Designer(s) | Akira Osugi[2] |
| Platform(s) | Arcade |
| Release | |
| Genre(s) | Torpedo shooter |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer (alternating turns)[1] |
Gameplay
editThe player uses the yellow periscope to aim at the moving submarines on the screen. Pressing the button on the right handle will fire a torpedo, and the goal is to shoot down all of the submarines in the fastest amount of time. The further the submarine is, the more points the player will receive, with green being the closest, and red being the furthest. The game ends when the timer on the cabinet reaches zero.
Reception and legacy
editThe November 11, 1978 issue of Cashbox called it ""one of the most realistic" games of its kind "ever put into a cabinet".[3] The December 30 issue noted the game's realistic design and gameplay features.[4]
In 1999, Namco demonstrated a sequel to Submarine, titled Submarines[b], at the Amusement Machine Operator's Union (AMOU) tradeshow in Tokyo.[5] It was a video game which used a goggle-like controller that the player moved around to aim and fire, and also featured periscope-like stereo speakers.[6] Submarines was designed to take full advantage of Namco's engineering technology, and was well-received by the press.[5][6] Despite its praise, the game was never released.
Notes
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "Submarine - Videogame by Midway Manufacturing Co". Killer List of Videogames. Archived from the original on 25 March 2019. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
- ^ "バンダイナムコ知新「第1回 ビデオゲームのはじまり 前編」大杉章氏インタビュー". Bandai Namco Entertainment. 5 March 2019. Archived from the original on 30 March 2019. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
- ^ "Namco's AMOA Exhibit Will Focus On Four Machines" (PDF). Cashbox. 11 November 1978. p. C-16. ISSN 0008-7289.
- ^ In Review (PDF). Cashbox. 30 December 1978. Retrieved 2 August 2019.
- ^ a b Hara, Takeshi (February 17, 1999). "【AOUショー'99レポートVol.2】タイトー、コナミ、ナムコなどのブースを紹介". ASCII (in Japanese). Kadokawa Corporation. Archived from the original on September 27, 2020. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
- ^ a b "一般人からマニアまで 怒涛のナムコの新作群" (in Japanese). ITmedia. February 18, 1999. Archived from the original on September 27, 2020. Retrieved 27 September 2020.