Gameplay

The player controls a submarine going through enemy territory. The player must shoot targets in order to win the game.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. 

Development

The game was one of three developed by Atari exclusively for Sears, the others being Stellar Track and Steeplechase.It was based on the Midway arcade game Sea Wolf II that was played with a periscope.

Reception

A December 1982 review in Joystik magazine described Submarine Commander as being a "very basic shooting-gallery type game.

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. 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.