Blue Water Development Diary

[AzureSkies]

Originally Posted by p7p8

It looks awesome - I'm say this as almost "fanatic" DW player

Thank you very much! I was quite a fan of the game, myself! It's aged quite a bit, but every now and then it's nice to break it out again and do some TMA work in a Los Angeles, or sail around in a Perry. Been awhile since I've done that, though.

[Medley1991]

Wow ! Harrier and Yak look amazing !

Difficult to wait this game...

[Medley1991]

Originally Posted by AzureSkies

Hello everyone,

I think I'll start trying to make these a regular Tuesday night thing.

Yeah ! Perfect idea !

[Medley1991]

Little question, french navy is planned ? With Aéronavale ? Nice to see Crusader and Super Etendard in game.

[AzureSkies]

Originally Posted by PurpleCow

Very interested in this game. The graphics look incredible. I would personally love to see a remake of a Fleet Command game. Command Modern Air Naval Operations doesn't have any graphics which really detracts from the immersion.

This is where Dangerous Waters hit the sweet spot. The game was not "dumbed down", rather the graphics added to the immersion and made it feel like you were really there observing the action. Your game looks to be right on that same track. Well done.

Originally Posted by Tnih_n

Hello AzureSkies ! I have a small question. What will this game be like ? Simulator-oriented like Dangerous Water or Real time strategy like Fleet command cause from screenshot i've seen so far, this look kinda like Dangerous Water

Apologies on the late response!

There is a single "focus" platform at any given time, though you can issue orders to any platform under your command by a map screen and switch between platforms under your command. In that way, it's a bit like Dangerous Waters with whatever platform you have focused at the moment (though of course not quite as in-depth as DW, switching to a ship allows a far greater level of control) and more like Fleet Command in regards to controlling the other platforms under your command.

Platforms, of course, being a ship, submarine, aircraft, helo, or even land installation. Early Access will probably only have ships at first, but the rest will come.

[AzureSkies]

Originally Posted by Tnih_n

Will this game feature some kind of mission editor, database editor like jane fleet command so player might later add more units, create custom scenario ?

I've always loved mission editors and modding tools, myself, but those are quite involved and getting the core game made is the first priority - but these are definitely things I'd like to add at some point, time and resources permitting, once the core game is complete.

An added advantage to making the data system moddable is it makes it easier to add new units, though it's more work upfront. Though there is effort being made to make things modular for this so it's easier to implement moddability later.

Originally Posted by Medley1991

Little question, french navy is planned ? With Aéronavale ? Nice to see Crusader and Super Etendard in game.

I'll look into it. I can think of a place they could fit in with current plans.

[Overkill]

Sound'n like it's gonna be really good! Thank you for the updates.

[Herman]

Originally Posted by AzureSkies

I've always loved mission editors and modding tools, myself, but those are quite involved and getting the core game made is the first priority - but these are definitely things I'd like to add at some point, time and resources permitting, once the core game is complete.

An added advantage to making the data system moddable is it makes it easier to add new units, though it's more work upfront. Though there is effort being made to make things modular for this so it's easier to implement moddability later.

Learn the hard won lessons taught from other games. Harpoon is still going after 25 years because of features like the open database.

Cold Waters learned it. It was only a matter of weeks after CW launched before a user had already modified the database to include new platforms. The sooner functional mod tools are released, the sooner the users can help you create content. IMO, it is an exponential return on the time and effort invested in proper mod tools.

[AzureSkies]

Today, we're going to be looking at a capital ship.



This is the Slava.

She was decommissioned in 1990, but re-instated in 2000 as the Moskva, and serves in the Russian navy as the flagship of the Black Sea fleet today. However, since we'll be talking about the ship as she was in November of 1983, we'll refer to it by its old name - the Slava.

Commissioned at the end of January of 1983, she's the only ship of her class to be in service during the events of Blue Water.



Anyone familiar with modern Soviet warships will probably know about the Kirov. The Kirov is renown for its extremely formidable loadout of 20 P-700 Granit (NATO name: SS-N-19 "Shipwreck") supersonic, long-range missiles and 96 very long-range S-300F Fort (NATO name: SA-N-6 "Grumble") SAMs.

Although not nuclear-powered like the Kirov, and only at around half the displacement, the Slava carried 16 comparable P-500 Bazalt (NATO name: SS-N-12 "Sandbox") missiles and 64 S-300F Fort SAMs.



Simply put, while not quite a Kirov, there's good reason that of the 3 Slava-class ships completed, two serve as fleet flagships today. In Blue Water, you will find the Slava as the flagship of a Mediterranean Soviet task force, either leading your fleet, or leading the fleet you must keep from reaching Italy or France.















Now let's take a look at her weapons -



First off, Slava carried an AK-130 dual gun. A 130mm gun capable of firing 90 rounds per minute - either HE or fragmentation AA rounds to intercept aircraft or missiles - it is a good gun for closer quarters.



However, with a maximum firing range of 23 km for ships, 15 km for aircraft, and only 8 km for missiles, ideally, you'd never let your enemies get that close...



Its primary armament is its enormous signature array of 16 P-500 Bazalt (SS-N-12 "Sandbox") supersonic cruise missiles that would cruise at Mach 2.5, striking targets up to 550 km (300 nmi) away. The 5-ton missiles could carry a payload of a metric ton - either enough explosives to end almost any ship in a single blow (except perhaps an aircraft carrier), or enough weight to fit a 350 kt nuclear warhead, as they were sometimes armed with.

Also visible in this shot are AK-630 CIWS guns. At 4-5,000 30mm rounds per minute, these posed a good defense against any incoming cruise missiles or vehicles in range.

[As with the Azov, not yet modeled are 2 RBU-6000s that will be included in the full game.]



In addition to the two on the bow, there's also a separate battery of two AK-630 guns (with their own independent radar director separate from the bow battery's) on each side of the ship.

Also visible in this shot is the utility boats.



Moving further aft, we find the S-300F Fort (SA-N-6 Grumble) missile silos. I wrote about this weapon system in the Azov post. These are very long-range SAMs that are highly capable for fleet defense, and the Slava carries 64 of them.

In the bottom-right of the picture is the "TOP DOME" radar director for the S-300 missiles.



Easy to miss since the doors are flush with the hull, and thus almost invisible until the doors open and they turn to fire, are the two 5x 533 mm torpedo racks. These could carry torpedoes with a range of about 20 km, and are generally a useful weapon to respond with if a submarine launches an attack.



And finally, we have the OSA-M (NATO name: SA-N-8 "Gecko") short-range SAM launchers on either side of the helicopter hanger. Behind it you can see the radar unit for its guidance.



And finally, the best weapon to use for hunting submarines. Getting close enough to fire from the torpedo racks means putting the ship closer than you'd ever want it to enemy submarines. A better weapon is an escort corvette or frigate - or the best weapon, an aircraft.



Our guest for today's highlight that you may have noticed in earlier shots, is the Ka-25 Hormone. A multipurpose helicopter that features as an extremely useful ASW asset.

The Hormone will get its own feature at some point, but until then, have a few shots showcasing its deployment from the Slava's hanger.





And that's all for today. Thanks for joining us!

[SmokingHeadStudio]

That are very nice Screens you show

i like to follow, and look forward to the Project.

best Greetings.

[Sparky_16]

Will Blue Water be released on steam and if so, in what time frame could we see this game on steam?

-Sparky_16

[Aktungbby]

Sparky_16!

[AzureSkies]

Originally Posted by SmokingHeadStudio

That are very nice Screens you show

i like to follow, and look forward to the Project.

best Greetings.

Thanks! I look forward to it, too!

Originally Posted by Sparky_16

Will Blue Water be released on steam and if so, in what time frame could we see this game on steam?

-Sparky_16

Yes! The current plan is to try to get an early access out by November 11th, the date that Able Archer 83 concluded, and thus the day that the events of the game will have started. Early Access would be extremely bare-bones, but will allow us to get feedback on the game early and possibly fund a great deal of expansion with it.

Of course I plan to meet the promises made with it so far no matter what, but a good turnout on early access sales could easily triple the number of aircraft, sub and ship classes that make it into the final game, double the number of missions and add a lot of neat details and mechanics in mind but that haven't been announced yet.

You won't find a page for it on Steam yet, though. That's something I'll need to be setting up soon.

Also, welcome to Subsim!

[AzureSkies]

Hello again, everyone!

It's Tuesday evening and time for a vehicle highlight - or at least a weekly update of some kind. With the new system set up, things have been moving a bit again.

Finally have some basic wake system implemented, and this week I've improved the gun system quite a bit. Did I mention that was done? Hmm.

Anyone familiar with modern naval combat will know that guns are almost irrelevant when it comes to world powers engaging each other, at least (modern asymmetric warfare is a whole different matter). However, depending on how successful missile interceptions and decoys are, they could become surprisingly relevant.

Nonetheless, they're certainly significant enough to be modeled, and I decided it'd be a relatively basic system to start with.



Notice the gun's radar directors - a recent improvement is that they track the target as well, now. Pretty basic stuff, but it's always fun to see incremental improvements.



A top-down-ish view to see the directors and guns on both sides in rest position and tracking a target, respectively (Notice the guns on the port side moving to the nearest position they can).





It's always fun to watch the rounds arc down to their target:



There's a lot more being done that isn't all being announced yet, of course, but I thought I'd share some of the work.

But now to today's vehicle highlight - short and sweet, it's the Ka-25 Hormone.

Developed in the 60s and entering service in 1972, the Kamov Ka-25 (NATO reporting name "Hormone") was somewhat aged by 1983. By this year, it had already began being replaced by the more modern Kamov Ka-27, which first saw introduction into the Soviet navy in 1982. Nonetheless, with being introduced only so recently, the Ka-25 was probably the more common helicopter in the Soviet Navy for a while still.







It had a cramped interior - not even tall enough for the crew to stand upright inside - but it could carry what mattered - two air-dropped torpedoes and/or conventional or nuclear depth charges.





Equipped with surface search radar, dipping sonar, and a MAD sensor, it was more than adequately suited for its ASW role.



During the Cold War, ELINT and "waving hi" to eachother's ships to do photography and gather intelligence was certainly not uncommon.



A quick disclaimer that many aesthetics are tweaked and improved fairly frequently, (for example, I'm not sure there's been more than two updates in a row where the water's settings have been exactly the same), but nonetheless, I do try to make the shots as accurate to what the final product will look like as possible, and these are, of course, taken in the game engine with the models and textures the game will use.

Thanks again for joining us, feel free to leave feedback, and until next time, clear sailing.

[ikalugin]

O dear, what did you do - did you just model Azov?