''Sub Hunt'' is a

submarine simulator A submarine simulator 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 ...

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...

released by

Mattel Mattel, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational toy manufacturing and entertainment company founded in January 1945 and headquartered in El Segundo, California. The company has presence in 35 countries and territories and sells products in more ...

for its

Intellivision The Intellivision is a home video game console released by Mattel, Mattel Electronics in 1979. The name is a portmanteau of "intelligent television". Development began in 1977, the same year as the launch of its main competitor, the Atari 2600. I ...

video game system A video game console is an electronic device that outputs a video signal or image to display a video game that can be played with a game controller. These may be home consoles, which are generally placed in a permanent location connected to a t ...

in 1982. Players take control of a wolfpack of submarines attempting to stop an enemy invasion.

Gameplay

In ''Sub Hunt'', the player commands a fleet of four submarines. An enemy nation is preparing an invasion fleet to attack the player's home island, and it is up to the player to either destroy the convoys arriving to build the invasion fleet or, failing that, to destroy the invasion fleet itself before it reaches the player's island. After selecting from one of five skill levels, the "deployment" mode game map appears, showing the player's island on the far right side of the screen and an enemy-controlled harbor at the top of the screen. The first of six convoys, each with six ships, begin arriving from the far left of the screen, on a course to the enemy staging harbor. All four of the player's submarines are active, but only one can be controlled at any one time. The player dispatches submarines to intercept the convoys as they make their way across the ocean; the submarines will move in a straight line on their last heading until ordered to stop or until they reach an enemy convoy. When a submarine encounters a convoy, the game switches to the "battle" mode. Here, the player is presented with a simulated

periscope A periscope is an instrument for observation over, around or through an object, obstacle or condition that prevents direct line-of-sight observation from an observer's current position. In its simplest form, it consists of an outer case with ...

view and a

sonar Sonar (sound navigation and ranging or sonic navigation and ranging) is a technique that uses sound propagation (usually underwater, as in submarine navigation) to navigation, navigate, measure distances (ranging), communicate with or detect o ...

map of the immediate area. The player controls the depth, speed and rudder position of the submarine as they attempt to hunt down and sink each ship in the convoy. The convoy is defended by a

destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in ...

(two destroyers in higher difficulty levels) equipped with surface cannons and

depth charge A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon. It is intended to destroy a submarine by being dropped into the water nearby and detonating, subjecting the target to a powerful and destructive Shock factor, hydraulic shock. Most depth ...

s that will seek out the player's submarine if it is detected. The player's submarines are armed with a pair of

torpedo tube A torpedo tube is a cylindrical device for launching torpedoes. There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units (also referred to as torpedo launchers) installed aboa ...

s and an unlimited supply of torpedoes, and the player may turn off the submarine's sonar and engines in order to run silent and avoid detection. If the player's submarine takes too much damage, it will sink (indicated by the screen turning blue, as if being flooded) and the deployment map screen will reappear. Similarly, if the player destroys all six ships, or if the player's submarine is far enough away from the enemy convoy, play switches back to the map screen. If enough convoys reach the staging harbor, the enemy's invasion fleet, made up of three destroyers and three

troop transport A troopship (also troop ship or troop transport or trooper) is a ship used to carry soldiers, either in peacetime or wartime. Troopships were often drafted from commercial shipping fleets, and were unable land troops directly on shore, typicall ...

s, will be launched toward the player's home. The player must stop the fleet before it reaches their home, otherwise the game is over. However, if the player successfully destroys all six convoys (36 ships in total), or too few ships reach the staging harbor such that an invasion fleet cannot be formed, the player wins.

Legacy

''Sub Hunt'' was re-released as part of the '' Intellivision Lives!'' collection for computers and other video game consoles.

References

{{reflist 1982 video games Intellivision games Intellivision-only games Mattel video games North America-exclusive video games Single-player video games Submarine simulation video games Video games developed in the United States