Tom Clancy FAQ - Games

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Tom Clancy Inspired Games

Tom Clancy books are not only excellent fodder for movies but have also proven to be well suited for games.  The very first Tom Clancy book related game was "Red Storm Rising", in which the player was the Captain of a nuclear submarine tasked with various missions in support of the war in Europe.  Of course, Red Storm Rising, the book, was a collaborative effort between Tom Clancy and Larry Bond.  In reality, Mr. Clancy has stated that research for the Hunt for Red October was conducted using the Harpoon board game developed by Mr. Bond.  It could be said that this was actually the first Clancy related game.

In 1996, Tom Clancy joined with Simon & Schuster Interactive and Virtus Corporation to produce a game called "SSN".  A companion book was written which also goes by "SSN".  Mr. Clancy's collaborator on this game was Doug Littlejohns who became President of Red Storm Entertainment, the software company which was formed in and around 1996.  Red Storm Entertainment was then purchased by Ubi Soft and is now part of this gaming conglomerate.

The first offering of Red Storm Entertainment was "Politika", a game dealing with the geopolitical scene and was set in Russia post-Yeltsin.  The game was offered in both computer and board versions with the board version sold in Toys R Us stores among others.  The computer game was intended for online multi-player internet play and has developed a large following.  A companion book was written by a ghost-writer.   The game established several firsts in that it is the first "conversational gaming" effort as well as being the first computer game completely written in Java, and the first online game set strictly in current events.

The second game from Red Storm was released August 23, 1998 and is known as "Rainbow Six".   The Ryanverse book "Rainbow Six" was written by Tom Clancy and the game tracks with some of the events in the book.  Although playable by one person, the game also has a multiplayer mode which is developing a very strong following.   Rainbow Six is termed a "tactical strategy" game and requires that the player not only be well versed in small unit tactics and planning but also be a good shot!.

The next offering from Red Storm Entertainment was Dominant Species.   This is a 3D strategy game in which you are an alien battling with other hives in your home world.  This game was not accompanied by a Tom Clancy book or other offering as it is not a Tom Clancy title.  Similarly, Bang! is a Red Storm title but not a Tom Clancy story line.

After Dominant Species was a second title in the "Power Plays" series, known as "ruthless.com".   This game is a strategy game dealing with corporations in a small but lucrative market (such as software).  Since "ruthless.com" is a "Power Plays" game, it was accompanied by a companion book written by a ghost writer.  

Next, Red Storm Entertainment produced "Rainbox Six: Eagle Watch".  This is an extension to Rainbow Six and has five new missions and additional weaponry.  

Force 21, a real time tactical strategy game involving primarily land combat between armored vehicles, appeared August 19, 1999.  General Fred Franks joined Red Storm during development of this game and helped in its creation.

Rainbow Six: Rogue Spear hit the shelves September 22, 1999.  This game can be viewed as Rainbox Six 2.0 or 1.5 in that there are numerous improvements in the game but the same Rainbow team is present.  A number of playability issues were undertaken in this release.  It is considered to be the finest first person shooter game on the market.

Shadow Watch was announced by Red Storm next and hit the shelves in March of 2000.  Shadow Watch is based on the Tom Clancy's Power Plays: Shadow Watch book.

Red Storm announced on January 24, 2000 that Rogue Spear: Urban Operations would be available in April, 2000.  This is similar to Eagle Watch in that it is an extension of Rogue Spear.

Rogue Spear: Black Thorn is the final expected expansion pack to the Rogue Spear series. 

Ghost Recon shipped on November 13, 2001 and was essentially an upgrade to the Rogue Spear gaming engine.  This game became "Game of the Year" after review and release and has won numerous awards and accolades.

Ghost Recon: Desert Siege is the expansion pack to Ghost Recon and was released in March, 2002.

Sum of All Fears appeared on May 29, 2002 in conjunction with the pending release of the movie.  Note, however, that the game, the movie, and the book all have similar but still different story lines.  The game is based on the highly successful Ghost Recon game engine. 

Raven Shield is the latest in the Rainbow Six / Rogue Spear line.  Raven Shield is expected to be released in the Fall of 2002.