Harrier Combat Simulator Explained

Harrier Combat Simulator
Developer:	H+H Software^[1] Eigen Software Rowan Software (DOS)^[2]
Designer:	Rod Hyde
Genre:	Flight simulator
Modes:	Single-player
Platforms:	Atari ST, Amiga, IBM PC,^[3] Commodore 64^[4]

Harrier Combat Simulator (also known as High Roller^[5]) is a combat flight simulation game published in 1987 by Mindscape for the Commodore 64. Ports for Amiga, Atari ST and IBM PC (as a self-booting disk) followed in 1988.

Gameplay

Harrier Combat Simulator is a game in which the player assumes the role of a pilot in a Harrier-jet.^[6] The player needs to become proficient in flying the jet, including its horizontal and vertical thrust and its advanced weaponry.^[6] The player pilots the only jet fighter that was not destroyed in a saboteur attack, and will need to destroy the headquarters of the enemy before they can launch a successful attack to destroy the Sixth Fleet. Most of the missions take place in Grenada, which was undergoing an American-led military invasion during the year 1984.^[6]

Reception

Harrier was reviewed in 1988 in Dragon #131 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 4 out of 5 stars.^[7] The Palm Beach Post that year said that the game "would have been a pretty impressive simulator a couple of years ago", but compared to Falcon, Fokker Triplane, Gunship, and F/A-18 Interceptor, Harrier was "primitive" and "silly".^[8] Computer Gaming World rated the game a 2 of 5 in 1991^[9] and 1992.^{[10] [11]}

Reviews

• ASM (Aktueller Software Markt) - January 1990^[12]

See also

• Strike Force Harrier, a 1986 video game by the same designer and publisher, simulating the same aircraft
• Rowan Software, the company that Rod Hyde founded after designing Harriet Combat Simulator

External links

• • Harrier Combat Simulator at Lemon64
  • Harrier Combat Simulator at Atari Mania

Notes and References

1. Harrier Combat Simulator . H+H Software . . 1988 . . Title screen . ©1988 Mirrorsoft Ltd, ©1988 Rod Hyde, Design: H+H Software, Code: Eigen Software.
2. Harrier Combat Simulator . H+H Software . . 1988 . . Title screen . ©1988 Mirrorsoft Ltd, ©1988 Rod Hyde, Design: H+H Software, Code: Rowan Software.
3. Web site: Jack. Warner. Lucasfim's Strike Fleet has feel of real warfare. The Palm Beach Post. 192. August 12, 1988. March 21, 2022. Newspapers.com.
4. Web site: L.r. Shannon. Peripherals; Call of the Dogfight Beckons Armchair Pilots. The New York Times. July 26, 1988. March 21, 2022.
5. Back of the game box (DOS) . Harrier Combat Simulator . 1987 . . C64 and Atari ST Harrier Combat Simulator are enhanced versions of programs formerly known as High Roller..
6. http://www.mobygames.com/game/harrier-combat-simulator Harrier Combat Simulator
7. The Role of Computers. Lesser. Lesser. Lesser. Hartley. Patricia. Kirk. Dragon. 131. March 1988. 78–86.
8. Web site: Warner . Jack . August 12, 1988 . Lucasfim's Strike Fleet has feel of real warfare . March 21, 2022 . 192 . . Cox News Service . The Palm Beach Post.
9. Web site: Survey. Computer Gaming World. 123. June 1991. March 21, 2022.
10. The Modern Games: 1950 - 2000 . Computer Gaming World . June 1992 . 24 November 2013 . Brooks, M. Evan . 120.
11. Brooks . M. Evan . January 1994 . War In Our Time / A Survey Of Wargames From 1950-2000 . Computer Gaming World . 194–212.
12. Web site: Aktueller Software Markt (ASM) Magazine (February 1990) . February 1990.