How it all got started

by Larry Bond

I decided to write the simulation that eventually was named Harpoon as a response to NAVTAG, a naval wargame that appeared in July of 1976. Familiar with wargames, I obtained a copy through official channels and proposed that I run a series of training games on my ship, USS McKean (DD-784). While the captain endorsed the plan, and several games were played, there were difficulties.

     First, because the game was classified, there was only one copy and it had to be locked up if not in actual use. This prevented players becoming familiar with the game beforehand. Second, none of the other players, although naval officers, were familiar with wargaming. The game system was complex, and in places unclear.

     I decided to write a modern naval wargame that would be as simple as I could make it, using real-world terms wherever possible. This would make it more accessible to naval officers. I also decided to use only publicly available information, from standard references like Combat Fleets of the World. This would also facilitate access. Any significant differences in real-world data would be dealt with in a classified annex, which, it turned out, was never needed.

     While the first use of the game was as a naval training tool, it was also my intent from the beginning to publish the game commercially. Adventure Games, Inc. published the first edition. The same features that made it workable as a training tool also made it attractive to civilian gamers. When Harpoon was published in April of 1980, it was the only commercial modern naval simulation available.

     Almost as soon as it was published, individuals in the naval service saw the value of it as a training tool, and reported good results using it for midshipman and junior officer training. I remember I was approached by one college ROTC unit to teach tactics, using Harpoon and making it an official part of the syllabus.

     These grass-roots efforts benefited the navy, but were all short-lived, lasting only as long as the original advocate, always a wargamer, remained in that billet. When he left, the games stopped. This was not because the command did not appreciate the value of the training, but because the manual game could only be run by a wargamer, or by someone willing to become a wargamer. While most gamers rate Harpoon a "simple" game, the rules, conventions, and techniques common to wargaming take time and effort to learn.

     Once the game could be computerized, there was more interest in using it in different parts of the Navy, but still only at a grass-roots level. While the game was now more accessible to the average naval officer, the cost of the computer equipment now made it vulnerable to the naval procurement system, and a competitor with other demands.

     One bureaucratic requirement was that the models, or algorithms in the rules be "validated," so that the students would not receive bad information. The fact that the game was unclassified did not matter. The cost of this validation process had to be added to the other acquisition costs, making it even less attractive.

     Meanwhile, the unofficial use has continued.