Hello, looking for IJN subsims
 

Hello folks, just discovered your site and figured I'd join in. I'm not much of a gamer but I do like maritime history and I've an interest in Japanese submarines during WW2, so I was wondering if anyone could suggest some decent submarine simulators that allow you to play as an IJN submariner?

I'd prefer games that give you an option to only control one sub since I'm a pretty poor multi-tasker and strategist, but I'm open to all games. Also I'm a Mac user so anything with a Mac version would be a big bonus, although I do have a program that lets me run some Windows games so its not a huge issue.

Thanks.

hi komi, and welcome to Subsim.:Kaleun_Cheers:

Man, don't I wish there was a Silent Hunter IJN version. The closest I can think of is SH4, where you play as an American submariner fighting the IJN. So, you see and interact with the IJN, but alas, you cannot play as a Japanese. Maybe there is a mod that someone can recommend that puts a playable IJN sub in the game? :06:

One day I will be retired, and this would make a great mod/crowd funded project, yeah? I just don't have the time currently but I would love a "Japanese Aces" game.

Welcome to SubSim komi. :Kaleun_Salute:

Thank you for the speedy welcomes, you folks are certainly on top of things here.

Thanks for your suggestion Onkel Neal, I have heard of that game, but I would prefer if I could actually play as the IJN rather than blasting them out of the water :P

welcome aboard!
 

Haha, yeah, I understand. There are a lot of things that an IJN submarine game would bring to the table that are different than the U-boat or fleet boat sims, such as Long Lance torpedoes, long shipping lanes for the Allies, landing zones, and radio DFing and codes. I hope some day to see a Japanese subsim.... it would be quite interesting.

Ahhhh, but there ~IS~ a Silent Hunter that can do the IJN, and that just happens to be "Silent Hunter: Wolves of the Pacific", aka SH4, but only if you do the v1.5 with Uboats, or better still, the Gold Editions. I direct thee to Amazon dot com (via the SubSim Shopping linkie):

Silent Hunter: Wolves of the Pacific Gold Edition

Do NOT install it in the default "C:\Program Files (x86) \ Ubisoft..." directlory, but rather edit that line, and make it either a different drive altogether, or at least get rid of the "Program Files (x86)" portion of the path. Windows is very protective of its system, and will not allow you to mod the game in that Program Files directory. Anyway, after you get it installed, and have JSGME (JoneSoft Generic Mod Enabler (I'm not sure if that's v2.6 or not) and 7Zip ready to go, then go find the keltos01 JyunsenB (includes JyunsenB, AM Type, Kaidai and Kaichu) (Release Thread) and the Sen Toku, downloads.

Peabody started work on a campaign, which did not get finished, but I've taken to working on it. With all of the current happenings in the FotRSU mod, I have had to put CMN on the back burner for a few weeks again, but still do experimental missions in it (for future use in it and FotRSU). Cybermat47 took some of the files and made a quick "campaign" for the first keltos01 mod above. It is mostly the German Campaign, but you're driving an IJN boat. Zuikaku1944 was also working on some files, but I don't know as he ever uploaded those for public use, but they will be in the Climb Mount Niitaka mod when it comes out. The most difficult part of making a Japanese campaign is the fact that they thought of war just a little differently than the Westerners, besides the fact that they had some innovations on their submarines that are not allowed for in the Silent Hunter series game engine, like launching planes and / or Daihatsu barges and / or Kaiten from your submarine... so we'll definitely be missing some of the "action" of a Japanese submarine, but hopefully, not all of it. Just remember, Peabody has quite a lot going on in real life and isn't able to join us here very often, and keltos01 is also busy with real life, but I think he enjoys his job just a little too much for sanity's sake (:har:), so you don't "see" a whole lot of activity going on with the mod... :salute:

A Warm Welcome To The Subsim Community > komi
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Thanks for that information propbeanie! Unfortunately I don't know how to do the kind of editing you described in the emulation I use for Windows games on my Mac, but at least I can wish youse best of luck with the future of your mod! :)

Also thanks Aktungbby and THEBERBSTER for your welcomes!

There is a sub game where you can play with a japanese sub: Cold Waters with the mod "More subs and more", but it's a sub sim in modern times, not a WWII sub game.

The subs you could play there are the SS Yushio and SS Oyashio. In the current version of CW (v.1.09) they have added a Chineese Campaign so using this mod would make sense I think.

Interesting, thanks for pointing that out.

Not much editing required. It might take a bit to get used to how JSGME (JoneSoft Generic Mod Enabler) works with the game, but generally speaking, you install the game (a Winetricks or similar is necessary with the Mac), "install" JSGME by placing the executable in "root" folder of the game, run it. It creates a MODS folder, which is where you then download the mod to. Use 7zip or a similar archive program to, double-check the folder structure of the mod, and then use JSGME to activate it. The keltos01 "JyunsenB" mod can be run as-is. You just start the Silent Hunter 4 game, and go to the German side (pretend like it says "Axis"), and choose your IJN submarine. The SH4 game "simulates" the Monsun Gruppe from Penang starting in 1943, so it is rather limited, but you get to drive a WWII Japanese submarine... although, you do have a bunch of Saxons onboards, and the speak with a strange accent... :roll: - there-in lies the rub with trying to mod the game for a different country, in that it's a little difficult to change the 3D crew to properly represent your crew... What there is right now for the Japanese submarines is like several "rough draft" versions of mods... :salute:

Thanks for that tutorial. Hopefully it will work in Crossover (my Windows emulator). If I manage to get a copy of SH4. In the meantime, I'll continue crossing my fingers for someone to come along with a "true" IJN sub sim. :)

While an accurate simulation of how Japanese submarines worked in WWII would be very interesting, I am not sure how the game play would run out.

If the game were to attempt to match history, the game play might not appeal to too many video game enthusiasts. With some isolated exceptions, post mid/late 1943, the majority of the missions for the INJ submarines were supply runs where the ultimate goal is to avoid and not engage the enemy. Another large number of INJ submarine missions were reconnaissance, also not big in the excitement factor. Few people will buy a "war game" when most of the action is no action.

Perhaps this might explain the dearth of supply sergeant simulators on the market. :up:

Perhaps a more marketable niche would be INJ anti-submarine simulator?

Ah come on, a supply sergeant and an IJN sub aren't nearly the same thing ;)

Why not take a bit of a different spin on things, and rather than making the game a purely action title have it focused more on espionage and hit-and-run ops? Subs certainly lend themselves to the genre, and it would match more how the IJN used their subs. For example, have a mission where you have to participate in the sub raids on Sydney and try to make it out alive, carry out pre-invasion intelligence gathering operations on American territory in the Aleutians, carry a VIP like Subhas Chandra Bose to Japan while dodging anti-sub patrols, or avoid detection across the Pacific and dodge minefields to make a hit-and-run attack on Fort Stevens? Or...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Americ...ine_operations

Include something like that?

Plenty of room there for some tense gameplay, just of a different kind than all-guns-blazing.