@ shocknawe371: There are no "side windows" on the sail if you're referring to the running lights and sonar projector covers. The sail is cramped enough as it is, so the trunk goes straight to the bridge and everyone gets some salt air, which is a good thing most of the time. . .
@ Julhelm: As for the 21 model, I like the UV, specular, and bump map texturing. The sail access plates are a nice touch. As a professional CG artist, I understand the trade-offs that must be made for gaming with respect to poly count and detailing to ensure memory allocation and smooth game play.
As for the orange marker buoys and DSRV lines that do not exist on the 21 boats, (except as previously noted) I completely understand the desire to add texturing details to what are otherwise bland hulls - Hollywood does this all the time.
But please consider this:
When submariners, (especially sonarmen and tactical officers) give positive feedback that echoes: "This is as close as you can get without going to sea!" and that sort of thing, as a dev, it's difficult to receive much better in the way of accolades. The devil is in the details, since the average player has never experienced life aboard a boat. If there's an obvious error, that's what the knowledgeable people will key in on - it happens to me constantly if I present a render; --someone will key in on the smallest detail I never considered or noticed in the reference material I used. Yeah, you can't please everybody, but I try to avoid the obvious errors whenever possible. I put a fly on the table in the background of a render once, along with some fingerprints on a glass and everyone commented (positively) about that more than the subject in the foreground. It's weird what people key on, but the little details can go a long way toward generating positive buzz about a sim; and that's what ultimately pays the bills.
Other than modeling details, --like a Hollywood movie, --no matter how many tops drop, if the story sucks, it isn't likely to gain traction with an audience. This sim builds on the success of Red Storm Rising, and really does a good job of taking it to the next level - especially in regards to the 3D graphics.
Real-life submarining is pretty darn dull; it's like Groundhog Day without Andie McDowell to hot rack with. This simulation, (I like that description better than "game") expands on the more exciting aspects of a profession we constantly trained for, hoping to never execute for real. Submariners are warriors, not war-mongers.
If I'm shopping for a realistic moon-landing sim and Buzz Aldrin says, "Yup, that's the way it was." I'm more apt to spend my money on it. And that's why I purchased this simulation; on the recommendation of submariners. It's a great way to pass the time when house-bound on a snowy day, (like today) and contemplate how a previous life could have turned out far differently.
My graphics critique about the two items above are meant as a positive observation to improve the authenticity of the sim, not meant as nit-picking. The most memorable ass-chewing we ever received for a render was when the customer stood up in the middle of a meeting and started ranting, "Who authorized you to spend money building this assembly!!!" Once he spun down, the boss calmly explained that it was computer-generated, and as such no hardware had been built. . . Afterwards, the customer came into my office and said he wanted to take the render back with him to show his office how well we understood their requirements. We subsequently won the contract with the help of that one shot.
Realism and great campaigns will keep this sim generating more buzz, and knock it further out of the park. Keep up the good work by keeping it real!
Rest assured I'll be spreading the Good Word for Cold Waters in the meantime through my contact list.
CCC
