Harpoon (series)

Harpoon is a series of not classified simulators of naval extremely precise and air Guerre, which classifies it like Strategy game in real-time. The simulators make it possible to take the control of all the elements of a modern naval group and to explore the complexity of the combat to the 21e century. The series of Harpoon in fact is regarded as being rather close to what was used during years by various branches of the Armed forces of the whole world for the hypothetical drives and scenarios.

The Harpoon video game is the electronic adaptation of the Wargame Harpoon of Larry Bond and Chris Carlson. Larry Bond collaborated with Tom Clancy on the techno-thriller red Tempête , this novel beginning again of the aspects of the wargame (air and sea war in the North Atlantic).

Genesis of the Harpoon series

Harpoon Classic , origins

Harpoon appeared initially in the form of play in plate. It since was adapted to data processing, even if a version play in plate always exists.

The first of the numerical series Harpoon is Harpoon Classic , developed by Three-Sixty and put on sale in December 1989. Three-Sixty sells and improves the product until the beginning 1994, at which time the rights were transferred to Applied Computing Services Inc. (ACSI), Interactive Alliance taking again the Source code and the rights in the middle of 1994 and adapting Harpoon Classic on the platform Windows 3.1. In 1996, Interactive Alliance sold the rights of Harpoon Classic 97 to Interactive Magic, which adapted it to Windows 95. In 2002, Harpoon Classic 2002 , very significant evolution of Harpoon Classic 97 left.

Harpoon Classic 2002 is the result of a 15 month work which continues with an aim of deeply improving the original version of Harpoon Classic . In August 2001, the players were consulted, and of tens of answers asking of the improvements were returned.

The improvements related to the Artificial intelligence (and particularly on the air and underwater fields) and the correction of Bogue S. In September 2002, Harpoon Classic 2002 is marketed. Among the major innovations to announce, the presence of an editor of platforms allowing the player to create personalized platforms.

Harpoon Classic 2002 will be with very short term replaced by Harpoon Classic 2005 Commander' S Edition whose exit is planned for the autumn 2006.

Harpoon 2 and 3 , successors

Harpoon II was the version MS-DOS simulator. It was marketed since 1994 and included/understood in the beginning a campaign réparie on 6 Disquette S of 3,5 inches. Five campaigns were added with the initial extension. The following version, Harpoon II Deluxe Multimedia Edition is for the first time on a CD-ROM and is decorated by many audio and video sequences. Another innovation, the presence of an editor of scenarios allowing to personalize a situation. The ultimate version was Harpoon II Admiral' S Edition which included/understood the six campaigns as well as a news. Harpoon II being an application MS-DOS, it suffered from serious problems of instability with the operating systems Windows 95, Windows 98 or Millenium and did not function any more with the systems Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000 or XP. These problems led to an improvement called Harpoon 3 .

Harpoon3 is conceived to function on the operating systems Windows 95, 98, ME, NT4.0, Windows 2000 and XP, but also Macintosh (Mac OS and Mac OS X). The Mac version was marketed since 2001 while the Windows version had to wait mid-February 2002. Harpoon3 calls upon very many modifications compared to the previous models, and because of the abandonment of the project Harpoon4 on November 26th, 2003, it is the most elaborate version while waiting for the new generation of Harpoon (known under name The Next Harpoon ). Harpoon3 ANW ( Naval Advanced Warfare , advanced naval war), left on June 15th, 2006, is the last come from the series. In addition to the correction of many bugs, Harpoon3 ANW incorporates a mode of the play Multijoueur in network, a functionality hitherto a41dernier $c-b1, e,10 $c-b26 ce $c-b16 $c-b43, bn,84 reserved only to the military users (see following paragraph).

Harpoon3 also exists in version “Pro”, reserved for the military . The Australian navy uses Harpoon to involve its Officier S. This version is much more skeletal than the civil version, it also allows to model the Guerre of the mines and the terrestrial troop movements, two aspects which are among the next options available for the civil players. It is delivered by including a one week formation, in order to explain the various functionalities with the users.

Future prospects

In the long term, Harpoon Classic Commander' S Edition and Harpoon3 ANW will be amalgamated in only one version whose name of the project is for the moment The Next Harpoon . Few details are for the time being known, but some speculate in the fact that graphics could be in 3 dimensions.

While waiting, as of the exit of Harpoon3 ANW , of the corrective measures are already envisaged. version .8 of Harpoon3 ( Harpoon3 ANW is version .7) already been the subject of reflections and inter alia, the war anti-mines could be one of the new options.

A success which is explained by the parametrability of the play

What makes the force of the Harpoon series, it is the extent of the parametrability of the play. This one relates to primarily the creation of Scénario S, but also of databases.

The basic designation of data is used here to describe the resources which the play uses. A base of data, a resource, gathers a whole of information on the elements reality to be simulated like the Navire S, the Aéronef S, the terrestrial structures. Harpoon is delivered with an editor of databases, who allows the player to personalize the forces into present and thus to regulate simulation. Harpoon3 is the first version to call upon this functionality, Harpoon Classic thereafter incorporated it within sight of its popularity.

Only for Harpoon3 , five databases exist:

the dB 2000 is an ambitious project born in 1996. It aims at adding platforms with those existing already in simulation. Currently, it comprises more than 4000 Navire S, Avion S, Sous-marin S and structures terrestrial and more than 1600 armaments, making it possible to recreate the battle orders of more than 60 nations over the period 1980 - 2015. The F-16 has for example 117 entries. The dB 2000 evolves/moves with the liking of the needs for the originators of scenarios (a new version can be available one week after the publication of the previous model).
database WW2 of Tom Herron makes it possible to use platforms of the Second world war.
the database Colonial Wars of Paul Bridge makes it possible to use the platforms between the years 1950 and 1964.
the database 1965 - 1979 of Quinton van Zyl makes it possible to use platforms of this period.
Advanced Database (ADB) de Dale Hillier covers the period 1980-1985, with a emphase on the not-led projects, like the cargo liner Porte-avions Arapaho or the Yak-141 " Freestyle".

Other databases are also available elsewhere or under development. The coexistence and the management of multiple databases will be facilitated with Harpoon3 ANW (cf supra).

Around Harpoon

Harpoon and other video games can marry, proof is made by the Projet Europe-88. The simulator can also be associated with the Modélisme, as shows it the Wars of Nortland.

References

FAQ Harpoon3: Dimitris “Sunburn” Dranidis and Ragnar Emsoy
FAQ Harpoon Classic 2002: Bruce Fenster, principal tester of HC2002

External bonds

AGSI site of the developer of the Historical series Harpoon
of the series
Wiki devoted to Harpoon on AGSI
Matrix ranges, the site to buy Harpoon3 ANW
Harpoon Headquarters, anglophone site primarily devoted to Harpoon3, shelters the DB2000, Colonial Wars Database, 1965-1979 Database and the WW2 Database
Hillier' S Harpoon pages is the site of Flagstone Hillier, creator of Advanced Database.
Doctor Who' S Harpoon pages proposes a whole of answers questions in connection with the series as well as scenarios.
Harpoon Users League List (HULL) is the discussion forum devoted to Harpoon Classic 2002.
Harpoon in France, a personal site dedicated to Harpoon

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