Silent Service

About Silent Service

Silent Service (1985) is Sid Meier's Second World War submarine simulator for MicroProse, putting the player in command of a US submarine hunting Japanese shipping in the Pacific.

Silent Service in Depth

Set in the Pacific during the Second World War, it gives the player command of a US submarine on war patrols against Japanese shipping; "Silent Service" was the nickname of the US Navy's submarine force there. Players choose from realistic tactics, such as the End Around, or exploit near invisibility at night by keeping the submarine's profile low. Up to four projectiles can be in the water at once, a challenge when fighting several destroyers, and time runs faster when there is no combat. Navigation, damage repair and firing each have their own screen, giving access to a great deal of information while keeping attention on the task at hand.

Sid Meier identified the size of the theatre, the variety of tactical situations and evolving technology as key influences on the design: surface radar and wakeless torpedoes are only available in scenarios set after their real introduction. There are three kinds of mission. Torpedo/Gun Practice teaches the mechanics in a controlled setting, Convoy Actions are short missions based on individual historical submarine attacks, and War Patrols are longer missions based on real patrols but with freedom to plot one's own route. Computer Gaming World called it "easily the best [submarine simulator] for its simplicity of use and execution", praising its realism and criticising only the lack of saved games.

Making Silent Service

Sid Meier designed it over eight months for MicroProse, which released it in 1985 for the Apple II, Atari 8-bit, Commodore 64 and IBM PC before other ports. Co-founder Bill Stealey hired an illustrator whose work convinced Meier others' artistic talent was superior to his own. MicroProse sold 250,000 copies by March 1987 and about 400,000 overall, and it was the company's second best-selling Commodore game by late 1987. Info gave it four stars, Antic said Meier's team had "outdone themselves", and Compute! called it "both intriguing and addictive". Computer Gaming World credited it with introducing the control-room interface to submarine games, though by 1993 it considered it superseded by Silent Service II, released in 1990.