Not to be confused with action-oriented game of the same name by Grandslam, Mindscape's Hunt for The Red October is a submarine simulation set in the same period, also based on Tom Clancy's classic political intrigue novel.
Despite a poweful license, Hunt for The Red October is not a very good sub sim. The game basically follows the outline of the book, which means that your first mission, as captain of a Russian submarine, is to head west to escape all the ships of the USSR in order to defect to the United States.
The graphics are very poor even compared to Epyx' earlier Sub Battle Simulator, and the controls are very confusing. Screen layouts are unintuitive, and there are numerous unrealistic and anachronistic features in the game that submarine fans will fret over.
Overall, an average submarine sim -- if even that -- that armchair commanders would do well to avoid. A definite thumbs down for this one, although it's not horrendous enough for a Real Dog tag.
Review By HOTUD
English 
Comments and reviews
This is the CGA version. Where's the EGA version I grew up with? Unless, the EGA version is broken and that's why I could never beat the game when I was little.
The graphics on those screen shots are terrible.
The graphics on the Apple IIGS version are so superior it is not even funny. They actually look really good (for 1989).
I own the game, it was given to me for Christmas for my Apple IIGS back when I was a kid. It also included the novel in the package, which got me hooked on Tom Clancy.
I strongly recommend trying the Apple IIGS version instead of the MS-DOS version, the graphics are so much better. You'll need an emulator either way to play it on a modern system so you might as well play the good version.
Interestingly enough, the graphics for HFRO look better on the Apple IIGS than the Apple IIGS version of Sub Battle Simulator, which I downloaded from an abandonware site at the library in the mid '90s and played on my Apple IIGS before we got (dial-up) internet access at home.
Buggasmugs is so ignorant he literally couldn't figure it out.
being a clancy fan, i loved video game when it came out. now happy to play again but only for a few min.
Buying games in the good old days cost a lot of money, so I could only buy one or two a year, but this one was so bad I literally threw it out.
ok
No comment nor review for this game at the moment.