Sonalyst is back to the surface ?

[Onkel Neal]

Does Sonalysts have something in the works?

Sonalyst is a US studio focused on military training programs. It also have (had?) a gaming division, which was producing fine naval combat simulations. Among them, i668 and Dangerous Waters made history in naval simulations, the latter one still having a very active community. But Dangerous Waters released in 2005 and since, Sonalyst vanished in the virtual sea and no one ever heard from them again.

That was until now.

Sonalyst just posted screenshots of their last engine in action, on their Facebook page. There is no mention of what it is about, and their website isn’t showing anything yet. However, they answered the question everyone is wondering....

FULL ARTICLE HERE

[Kaye T. Bai]

Looks good. Almost like a 3D version of CMANO. Fingers crossed!

[ET2SN]

Its beginning to look a lot like Christmas..

I just checked the date again to make sure this was a new announcement.

In reality, I would be more than happy with a "DW2" that featured an updated (16 X 9) graphics engine and world map while not forgetting what the mod community has done over the years (keep it accessible). Maybe an option for dynamic or even real weather/sea state for MP sessions?

Please have a buying option that doesn't include Steam (if possible).

I'm not sure how much we need advanced animations at stations, this would be a good "all hands" discussion so I'm open to other opinions.
"Gilding the lilly" is fun to talk about but bear in mind how it can effect game play. How many cores/threads will we need? How much blood will we need to sell for a new GPU? What kind of OS can be used?

Some type of "re-supply" option in campaigns. This could be dynamic based on how a campaign is going. For example, if the "red team" has targeted the "blue team's" supply chain, supplies (reloads) become harder to obtain. In practical terms, you want to reload 6 torps but only three are available at this stage of the campaign.

[Polak2]

It would be really a dream come through to have 2nd iteration of DW with all those modern bells and whistles.
However to me it looks rather like small presentation of capabilities of their new simulation engine to catch the interest of military procurement personnel for the purpose of education/training.
Similar what E-Sim has done and still is doing with Steel Beasts Pro.
Which could be perhaps also promising as they managed after all to spin both versions of the best tank sim for professionals in uniforms and all the rest of us.
Time may tell.

[Kaye T. Bai]

Lots of new platforms in the game from the looks of it. San Antonio LPDs, Zumwalt DDGs, P-8 Posiedons, even F-22 Raptors. I wonder if this means stealth capability will be modelled in the game engine. The LCS and OHP FFG are in, though the latter has been retired by the U.S.

[speed150mph]

Just watched chazlys video, I am excited. I hope they make it with open world campaigns, like the silent hunter series.

I'm also curious about the different views they have shown about the interior of the ship. It looks like they've modelled some internal areas of the ships. That would be interesting if they made it like silent hunter 5 or ship simulator where you could walk around. Hopefully they have a quick view tab so you can quickly toggle through the stations in the heat of battle.

I really can't wait to hear more

[makman94]

What a wonderful news is this !

These guys knows what the word 'simulator' means and if they go for a submarine simulator will be just heaven!

[Polak2]

I'm also curious about the different views they have shown about the interior of the ship. It looks like they've modelled some internal areas of the ships. That would be interesting if they made it like silent hunter 5 or ship simulator where you could walk around.

Those internal areas (with pipes etc.) are for "damage control" stuff. Intriguing....
I wish this project the best and I am most excited from the fact, that judging from external to code database, Lua AI scriptin Lua scripting, fbx 3D file format, as well as availability of SDK, seems to be quite open for outside moding and future development.

Thanks for FPS Chazly video I am leaning towards the idea that this could be DW2 for public consumption.

[jaop99]

Why not steam? for me is the better platform, since I pay in Mexican pesos and is better than the USD convertion!-

Originally Posted by ET2SN

Its beginning to look a lot like Christmas..

Please have a buying option that doesn't include Steam (if possible).

[ET2SN]

Then buy it from Steam.
I'm just asking for an option that doesn't include Steam.

[ET2SN]

Originally Posted by Polak2

Those internal areas (with pipes etc.) are for "damage control" stuff. Intriguing....

I also noticed that red pipe.
But, let's not jump too far ahead. We've only seen pictures from Sonalyst. We don't know if we're seeing a basic story board or screen shots of an actual game. A lot of this might be wishful thinking on their part, nevermind ours.

For example, if they include damage control stations how are they implemented? Do you just dispatch sacrificial nubs to fight the casualty? Is it an Auto Crew option? Do you have to stop an attack to turn the right valves?

We also don't know the most important question. WHEN?
I'm hoping for something on sale between Christmas and summer but we don't have a clue how far the game has progressed. If its already in Alpha or Beta, they've done a great job keeping it quiet.

Still, I can't stop grinning today.

[Kaye T. Bai]

Looks like it'll be a hybrid Dangerous Waters/Fleet Command style game where you can command warships but also man individual battle stations. Awesome.

Apparently they've been working on this for three years; hopefully this means it's near completion.

[Polak2]

Next update expected here:
http://www.sonalystscombatsimulation...eII/index.html
Perhaps this may shed some more information on the subject.
All in all its great that they still developing this awesome series of naval simulations with (perhaps) more user friendly mindset.

[ET2SN]

Originally Posted by Kaye T. Bai

Looks like it'll be a hybrid Dangerous Waters/Fleet Command style game where you can command warships but also man individual battle stations. Awesome.

Well, if you think about it, DW was already a hybrid between Sub Command and Fleet Command.

I like the idea of making an update but not straying too far from their roots. There's a good reason why we're still playing Sub Command and DW.

[ET2SN]

Just one request to Sonalyst-

Could I please sail north from "papa-hotel" and not hit a beach?

I understand why the USN could be sensitive about Pearl Harbor, I was home ported there for three years.