Bismarck
Developer(s)Personal Software Services
Publisher(s)
  • UK:Mirrorsoft
  • US:Datasoft
Designer(s)Alan Steel
SeriesStrategic Wargames
Platform(s)Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum, Amiga, Apple II, Atari ST, Atari 8-bit
Release
  • NA: 1988
Genre(s)Turn-based strategy
Mode(s)Single-player

Bismarck is a turn-based strategy video game developed by Personal Software Services and published by Mirrorsoft. It was first released for the Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum in 1987 for the United Kingdom. It was ported to Amiga, Apple II, Atari ST and Atari 8-bit home computers in both the United Kingdom and the United States the following year. The game is the tenth instalment in the Strategic Wargames series. In the game, the player can choose to control either the German battleship Bismarck or command the pursuing fleet of Royal Navy ships.

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The game is set during the Last battle of the battleship Bismarck of World War II and revolves around the Bismarck attempting to escape a pursuing fleet of Royal Navy ships, who desire to avenge the deaths of 1,412 men in the sinking of the flagship and 'pride of the Royal Navy', HMS Hood. The game received positive reviews upon release; critics praised the graphics and presentation, though one reviewer found difficulty with the controls.

Gameplay[edit]

The Bismarck must evade the pursuing Royal Navy fleet by either heading to Iceland or Nazi occupied France.

The game is a turn-based strategy and takes place during the Last battle of the battleship Bismarck on 27 May 1941. The battle is a sequel to the Battle of the Denmark Strait, in which the Kriegsmarine ships Bismarck and Prinz Eugen sank the Royal Navy flagship, HMS Hood, resulting in the deaths of 1,412 men.[1] Incensed by the loss of the 'pride of the Royal Navy', a large British force was dispatched in order to pursue and destroy the Bismarck and its support ship, the Prinz Eugen.[2]

Mac

The player has the option to choose which side they wish to command at the beginning of the game. If the German side is picked, the objective of the game is to evade the Royal Navy fleet by either sailing to Iceland or heading to the safety of Nazi occupied France. The player will only have the ability to control the Bismarck itself, and must defend themselves against Royal Navy and Royal Air Force attacks if compromised.[3] If the British side is chosen, then the player must command the hunting Royal Navy fleet in order to search and destroy the Bismarck.[1][3] To achieve both these ends, the player will be able to access an in-game command centre, which will give out alerts depending on the side chosen. If controlling the Bismarck, the player will be reported of hostile British U-boat sightings. If controlling the Royal Navy fleet, they will be told of radio intercepts, which will pinpoint the Bismarck's approximate location.[3]

A diagrammatic representation is displayed once any ship comes into contact with the enemy.

If the Bismarck has been intercepted or compromised by Royal Navy ships, the game will automatically shift to an arcade sequence which will give the player an opportunity to defend the ship against a British attack, or alternatively, if playing as the British, the sequence is utilised in order to destroy the Bismarck.[1] The feature can be displayed at any time, though it is automatically enabled if either side comes into conflict.[3] The interface of the feature is split into three sections; the upper part of the screen shows a view of the ocean in front of the ship and any hostile ship in the vicinity. The middle section contains buttons and icons which are used to control ship movement and to fire weapons. The lower part of the screen displays a diagrammatic representation of the ship from the side chosen (Bismarck or Royal Navy ships); the diagram will change colours once the ship receives damage from shelling.[3]

Once a hostile ship is in range, the player will have the choice to either open fire or outmanoeuvre the enemy. The Bismarck is able to withstand 99 points of damage; internal fires may break out during battle and will risk destroying the ship if the fires are not contained quickly enough or if they reach fuel tanks.[3] If fires occur, the player is given the option to order fire-fighting crews to contain the blaze, although it will cause the ship to disengage from combat. The game proceeds in real time, and has the option to change speed from slow to fast at any time.[3]

Reception[edit]

Review scores
PublicationScore
Crash7/10[3]
CVG8/10[2]
Your Sinclair7/10[4]
Sinclair User[1]
Computer Gamer84%[5]

The game received positive reviews upon release. Peter Berlin of Your Sinclair praised the presentation of the game, stating that it was 'good to look at' and well organised.[4] Philippa Irving of Crash asserted that the graphics and interface were 'rather bland' but 'pretty'. Despite stating that the map of the game was 'unexciting', Irving noted that it was offset by 'pretty touches' and new graphical additions.[3] A reviewer of Computer and Video Games stated that the game was 'historically good'. Their only criticism was the unsuitability of using a joystick for the game, which they deemed 'virtually unusable'.[2] David Buckingham of Computer Gamer considered Bismarck the best game Personal Software Studios had released at the time, and added that the two genres of strategy and action work 'very well'.[5]

Gary Rook of Sinclair User heralded the gameplay as an 'exciting' blend of strategy and arcade simulation.[1] Berlin suggested that Bismarck was a good introduction for players who were 'bored' with the arcade genre and preferred 'something a little bit tougher'.[4] Irving praised the gameplay as smoothly-presented and 'undemanding', stating that the type of game Personal Software Studios were creating was 'successful'. She also considered the rules of the game to be detailed in all important respects, well-presented and 'helpful', albeit 'not voluminous'.[3] Regarding the arcade aspect of the game, Rook noted that the level of action in it was sufficient, but was sceptical that it was a 'true' wargame.[1]

References[edit]

  1. ^ abcdefRook, Gary (June 1987). 'Bismarck review'. Sinclair User (63): 96. Retrieved 4 December 2015.CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  2. ^ abc'Bismarck and Battle of Britain review'. Computer and Video Games (63): 98. July 1987. Retrieved 4 December 2015.CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  3. ^ abcdefghijIrving, Philippa (June 1987). 'Bismarck review (ZX Spectrum)'. Crash (41): 87, 88. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2015.CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  4. ^ abcBerlin, Peter (July 1987). 'Bismarck review'. Your Sinclair. Archived from the original on 2015-12-08. Retrieved 4 December 2015.CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  5. ^ abBuckingham, David (June 1987). 'Bismarck review'. Computer Gamer (27): 40. Retrieved 4 December 2015.CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
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Epic vs. Apple/Google

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The North Dakota state Senate is jumping into a simmering feud between Apple and iOS software developers with a bill that would make it illegal for device makers to require to use their app stores and payment systems.

The bill (PDF) has two main prongs. First, it would make it unlawful for companies such as Google and Apple to make their app stores the 'exclusive means' of distributing apps on their platforms. Second, it would prohibit those providers from requiring third parties to use their digital transaction or in-app payment systems in their applications.

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The proposed law applies to app stores for which gross sales receipts to North Dakota residents exceed $10 million in a calendar year. It applies to any 'general-purpose hardware,' including tablets and smartphones, but it explicitly excludes 'special-purpose digital application distribution platforms' such as gaming consoles, music players, and 'other special-purpose devices connected to the internet.' Thread that needle, and you're left with a pretty firm arrow pointing directly at Google's and Apple's mobile app platforms. (It could also apply to the Mac OS and Windows app stores for laptop and desktop computers, but those platforms are already less restrictive.)

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'The purpose of the bill is to level the playing field for app developers in North Dakota and protect customers from devastating, monopolistic fees imposed by big tech companies,' Republican state Sen. Kyle Davison said to local reporters when he introduced the bill, The Bismarck Tribune reports.

The targets

Google does permit users to go around the built-in Android app store to side-load apps, which would probably put it in the clear as far as that part of the bill goes. Apple, however, infamously does not, and it is facing antitrust complaints about that restriction from the makers of several apps including Telegram.

Even more under threat, however, is the 30 percent cut of sales that Apple and Google make from requiring apps on their respective platforms to use their own payment platforms. ProtonMail's founder and CEO last year called Apple's cut 'virtually indistinguishable from a protection racket.' ProtonMail in this is in line with several other developers, such as Spotify, who have publicly complained that the fee amounts to a tax on non-Apple software that makes it harder to compete against Apple-native apps, because they either have to take a 30 percent hit to their revenue or pass the cost along to consumers and look more expensive in comparison.

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If you're thinking this sounds familiar, you're right. The proposal is closely bound to the heated fight between Epic and Apple playing out right now in federal court.

All of this has happened before right now...

Back in August, Epic Games, maker of Fortnite, picked a fight with Apple and Google by launching an alternative payment system for in-app purchases inside of the game. Apple booted it from the iOS app store within hours, as predicted, and Epic immediately filed an antitrust suit against the company in federal court. That case is still very much in progress at the moment.

Last fall, in the midst of this dispute, Epic brought in 12 other companies to launch a lobbying group, the Coalition for App Fairness, to fight back against Apple. Spotify, Bandcamp, and Protonmail, all of whom publicly took Apple to task for its App Store policies, were among the founders, alongside Epic; the group now has more than 45 member businesses.

According to the New York Times, the lobbyist who proposed the draft legislation to the state senator who sponsored it was working on behalf of both Epic Games and the Coalition.

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(Update 6:00pmEST: After Ars published our story, Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney and the Coalition for App Fairness both clarified that the coalition, not Epic, wrote the draft bill. Epic and the lobbyist both submitted testimony supporting it, as did several other members of the coalition.)

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North Dakota may be just one low-population state (it has fewer than 1 million residents), but it's not the only state where legislators are looking at taking action against the big international tech firms on their own. Arizona also has an extremely similar bill under consideration in its state legislature at the moment.

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In the absence of federal regulation states are acting on other facets of the digital economy, too. Virginia last week became the second state, after California, to pass a comprehensive digital privacy law, and Maryland last week became the first in the nation to impose a tax on digital advertising revenue.