A message from the Silent Hunter IV Dev Team

[Onkel Neal]

A message from the Silent Hunter IV Dev Team:

“We are working hard to correct the bugs discovered by the community or the testing team. Already patch v1.1 corrects many of the issues, and we’re at work on the next one. We have strong hopes it will include both Anti-Aliasing and a fix for the issues experienced when running the game in very high resolutions.

However, some issues pointed out, like for example the 2D appearance of crewmembers, the random counting by the crew or the eyes popping out from the men’s heads are actually part of the protection scheme. Playing a cracked version of the game or even using a no-cd crack over a legal install of SH4 game triggers this protection.

Obviously, running a legit version of the game should not produce these problems. Since we have found at least one documented case where such behavior was experienced by the owner of an actual copy of the game, we have contacted the company producing the protection used by the game.

We will track down the issue and sort it out. In the interest of helping us do so, please post here if you are seeing these issues, while running a legit version of the game."

Thank you,
The SHIV dev team


__________________________________________________ ______

Updated 30 March
http://img246.imageshack.us/img246/7201/radiomescv7.jpg



Discuss TDC Bulletin here (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=108874)


.

[cherbert]

This is great news!!! Thanks Neil. (and thanks Dev team!!)

The anti-protection system explains why I've never experienced the popping-eyes and paper thin crew members. (clever!)

[partyboy]

Good to hear.

And.. :rotfl:to the people who complained about the 2d crew/eyes/countdown bugs.

[Immacolata]

"PWNT" as they say on less mature forums :arrgh!:

Thanks for the headsup neal.

Oh, and neal. Please tell the devs back that at least one subsim.com skipper is having a great time here. Got my Subsim-store ordered game yesterday and have been patrolling since.

[P_Funk]

Since we have found at least one documented case where such behavior was experienced by the owner of an actual copy of the game, we have contacted the company producing the protection used by the game.
I wouldn't sink anyones boat just yet.

[OneTinSoldier]

If they fix the resolutions to give us 'true' resolutions of the 3d rendered world that are selectable as in-game resolutions, then they will be making right what is currently wrong and is a cheat and a lie.

If they give us AA capability... Happy Days are ahead! :rock:

Let's just hope they do it.


At any rate, thank you very much for the heads up on the Message. :)

Cheers

[fredbass]

Sounds great. Now I'm wondering just one thing. Will my 64bit operating system play the game? (without you know what) :hmm:

[Father]

Let's hope there is indeed light at the end of the torpedo tube!

And a high res one without jaggies! ;)

[hyperion2206]

Great news, I knew the devs wouldn't leave us in the lurch!:D:up::rock: I have a question however: The problem that some crew members don't have eyes so that they look like zombies, is that aso caused by the protection system?:hmm:
If someone of the devs reads this: You've done a great job!!:yep:

[Misfit138]

Sounds really good. I wish the best of luck to the devs in a mission to squash some bugs! :arrgh!:

Probable going to buy this game soon :)

[Barkhorn1x]

Good, positive message.

[Dowly]

Great news, I knew the devs wouldn't leave us in the lurch!:D:up::rock: I have a question however: The problem that some crew members don't have eyes so that they look like zombies, is that aso caused by the protection system?:hmm:
If someone of the devs reads this: You've done a great job!!:yep:

Nope, not caused by the CP ( I HOPE!!), as I reinstalled the game before patching and havent applied the *COUGH* yet and last night all the crew members had eyes missing. That was after a long period of max TC, so dont not if that´s the case.

[Ragtag]

I have the Deluxe box and i did experience eyes missing once and transparent crewmembers. Never seen the papercut crew though :)

Very pleased to see that FSAA might get fixed :D Excellent news.
I gotta say i really like the patch. It added and fixed quite some bugs. Good job and kudos to the Dev team.

[maerean_m]

Sounds great. Now I'm wondering just one thing. Will my 64bit operating system play the game? (without you know what) :hmm:

The game runs perfectly on Windows XP 64 bit.

[Potoroo]

A message from the Silent Hunter IV Dev Team:
However, some issues pointed out, like for example the 2D appearance of crewmembers, the random counting by the crew or the eyes popping out from the men’s heads are actually part of the protection scheme. Playing a cracked version of the game or even using a no-cd crack over a legal install of SH4 game triggers this protection.

Obviously, running a legit version of the game should not produce these problems. Since we have found at least one documented case where such behavior was experienced by the owner of an actual copy of the game, we have contacted the company producing the protection used by the game.
I thought only Microsoft was capable of this sort of insanity. Obviously I was very wrong.

This copy protection scheme will be cracked like every other such scheme has been cracked. In the meantime how many more false positives will there be? There are much smarter ways of protecting intellectual property but Ubi seems utterly incapable of moving into the 21st century. It's sad, really.

[enemyminds81]

Great news, I knew the devs wouldn't leave us in the lurch!:D:up::rock: I have a question however: The problem that some crew members don't have eyes so that they look like zombies, is that aso caused by the protection system?:hmm:
If someone of the devs reads this: You've done a great job!!:yep:
i saw this earlier on my first career patrol, my helsman's eyes looked like something out of a howling movie, very red and creepy looking. havent noticed any popping out of the sockets though!:rotfl:

very good to see the dev's are active in making this game even better

hope that AA get's put in.

[Rotor]

Fabulous ! - Great news from the Dev Team; They support us indeed :up:

[KrvKpt. Falke]

HELL! It's nice to hear from them! Good luck guys in finishing this game. I live in Poland and here SH4 - as far as i know - waits for localisation, so one more month (i hope) of waiting which is in that case a good thing because the game will be released here fully playable (again - i hope so).

But - still - its sad that whole world saw Silent Hunter 4 in unfinished state (Ubisoft publishing politics is sooo weird :down:).

[Tranton]

This is great news! Better than I expected. Shame on all those people running a cracked version and getting us even more stirred up about something they brought upon themselves.

[ryuzu]

Well that must be some pointless copy protection.

I guess it shows the state of the game when those things were thought to be bugs rather than copy protection.

Request for patch 1.2 - display a bit of text when that happens so the player knows the cause and can report the bug properly (i.e. my copy is legal but it's telling me it's not and weird things are happening). I assume people with illegal copies will then stay away from reporting bugs...

r.

[P_Funk]

This is great news! Better than I expected. Shame on all those people running a cracked version and getting us even more stirred up about something they brought upon themselves.
Well we gotta prove it first. The devs themselves said that there was at least one guy that had the protection software finger him in court wrongly.:smug:

[Dowly]

I still think keeping the CP as a secret was a bad move, it´s well known fact that lots of people use *CENSORED* to keep their disc clean & working. It´s easier & faster than making a backup copy of the disc. :yep:

[Immacolata]

Part of the CP is to keep it under wraps. This way the 31337 guys pirating the game and cracking gets poo on their face as well as the idiots on the webforums whining over bugs (that is caused by their CP circumvention). Its been what, 4 days since release? I think they let the cat out of the bag fairly early.

[The General]

Oh God please help! I have the following computer specs:

3.4 Ghz Pentium 4

6200SE Nvidia Geforce with 256MB RAM

I HAVE NO SOUND CARD

I HAVE A 1.1 PATCHED version of SH4 (UK) Version

The game runs so slowly as to be unplayable. Is the lack of sound card the crucial factor or is there something very wrong with this software?:cry:

[redsolo]

Well that must be some pointless copy protection.

I guess it shows the state of the game when those things were thought to be bugs rather than copy protection.

I dont agree. The best copy protection Ive seen was in the Operation Flashpoint game.Operation Flashpoint would randomly kick out players from multiplayer servers stating "Real gamers doesnt cheat"; and the accuracy of the rifles would degrade over time. The good thing was that the hackers thought they hacked the game, and would move on to newer games; which meant that they had to re-release cracks several times to improve the hack. Meanwhile we who owned a legit copy always smiled when someone complained about missing all the time, and when someone was randomly kicked out from a multiplayer game.

This is a better CP than the common ones where the crackers directly see if they have hacked the CP or not. WIth this fuzzy CP, people will start to play the game and get engulfed with it (see it like a big demo), but then as the game degrades they might buy the game.

[maerean_m]

Oh God please help! I have the following computer specs:
3.4 Ghz Pentium 4
6200SE Nvidia Geforce with 256MB RAM
I HAVE NO SOUND CARD
I HAVE A 1.1 PATCHED version of SH4 (UK) Version

The game runs so slowly as to be unplayable. Is the lack of sound card the crucial factor or is there something very wrong with this software?:cry:

The cheapest video card that can play the game is nVidia GeforceFX 6600GT. Anything below that simply lacks the computing power.

It would also help to have at least 1.5 Gb of RAM.

[mookiemookie]

I had the "demon eyes" effect occur with my bridge officer while running with red lights on. I took a screenshot but lost it (:damn: ) and I will be more than happy to take pictures of my box, manual, reciept, etc.

I don't think that copy protection is the problem, but I do appreciate the developers taking the time to let us know they're listening.

Never had the counting bug or the stick thin crewmen, though I did have them look a little flat as I swung the anti aircraft gun around the conning tower and the camera moved.

[Mentalist]

Oh God please help! I have the following computer specs:

3.4 Ghz Pentium 4

6200SE Nvidia Geforce with 256MB RAM

I HAVE NO SOUND CARD

I HAVE A 1.1 PATCHED version of SH4 (UK) Version

The game runs so slowly as to be unplayable. Is the lack of sound card the crucial factor or is there something very wrong with this software?:cry:

Your processor is fine but your GFX card is the problem. It's an old card and SHIV demands a lot of raw power. You also didn't mention how much memory you have. You will want 2gb to run it smoothly alongside a decent GFX xard.

[The General]

Thanks for the help guys. I have 1 GB of RAM. My GFX Card is listed on the back of the box as being a 'minimum' system requirement. However the game is unplayable, which is a little ridiculous with a 3.5 GHZ processor et al. :nope:

I guess I better bite the bullet and get a decent GFX card.

[bobo]

Sounds great. Now I'm wondering just one thing. Will my 64bit operating system play the game? (without you know what) :hmm:

The game runs perfectly on Windows XP 64 bit.

It also runs on my 64bit Vista

[Mentalist]

And on topic:

The fact that Ubisoft has the ability to spend time adding aggressive CP to a game that was rushed and pressed in an unfinished state is bad form. They should of spent the time fixing fundemental problems with the game. Ubisoft really need a chat with Stardock. That is a company that knows the score when it comes to customer relations and the fact that CP of this ilk is obsolete and retarded. As is patently obvious, legit users are suffering problems already due to it. The "right" to use a N*CD patch for those who own the game has also been taken away. Yet they couldn't even push the game for a proper development cycle?

As someone with experience in both cracking and hacking from days gone past I could probably remove this protection from the game in an matter of hours. I don't need to because I bought my copy but nobody should be under the illusion that others won't do the exact same thing. First Starforce and now this.


It's a waste of time and they should of spent it on improving the game or at least finishing it.

[ryuzu]

Well that must be some pointless copy protection.

I guess it shows the state of the game when those things were thought to be bugs rather than copy protection.

I dont agree. The best copy protection Ive seen was in the Operation Flashpoint game.Operation Flashpoint would randomly kick out players from multiplayer servers stating "Real gamers doesnt cheat"; and the accuracy of the rifles would degrade over time. The good thing was that the hackers thought they hacked the game, and would move on to newer games; which meant that they had to re-release cracks several times to improve the hack. Meanwhile we who owned a legit copy always smiled when someone complained about missing all the time, and when someone was randomly kicked out from a multiplayer game.

This is a better CP than the common ones where the crackers directly see if they have hacked the CP or not. WIth this fuzzy CP, people will start to play the game and get engulfed with it (see it like a big demo), but then as the game degrades they might buy the game.

OFP - had text to let you know at least.

The devs only said 2D crew and bulging eyes were copy protection - not much of a gamebreaker are they.... Making all torpedos duds, or messing with the shot calculations - that would stop people enjoying an illegal copy. Perhaps those things do happen, who knows? The problem is, perhaps one in 5 of my torps is wildly off track because of copy protection, but I don't know because my perfectly legal copy of the game is apparently working normally.

Regardless, without some text (like OFP had and ArmA has) then who can tell whether a bug is a problem with the game or the copy protection and therefore how to report it?

r.

[Mentalist]

Thanks for the help guys. I have 1 GB of RAM. My GFX Card is listed on the back of the box as being a 'minimum' system requirement. However the game is unplayable, which is a little ridiculous with a 3.5 GHZ processor et al. :nope:

I guess I better bite the bullet and get a decent GFX card.

Unless you have oodles of cash to throw at a top range card (most of us don't) then may I reccommend this card:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814130056&ATT=14-130-056&CMP=OTC-pr1c3grabb3r


It has to be the best price to performance ratio out there. A very powerful card for a very reasonable price.

[ReM]

Maybe Starforce would've been better as copy protection.....:lol:

[Guido]

It's a waste of time and they should of spent it on improving the game or at least finishing it.

here here!

what he said...............:up:

[DragonRR1]

Well that must be some pointless copy protection.

I guess it shows the state of the game when those things were thought to be bugs rather than copy protection.
I dont agree. The best copy protection Ive seen was in the Operation Flashpoint game.Operation Flashpoint would randomly kick out players from multiplayer servers stating "Real gamers doesnt cheat"; and the accuracy of the rifles would degrade over time. The good thing was that the hackers thought they hacked the game, and would move on to newer games; which meant that they had to re-release cracks several times to improve the hack. Meanwhile we who owned a legit copy always smiled when someone complained about missing all the time, and when someone was randomly kicked out from a multiplayer game.

This is a better CP than the common ones where the crackers directly see if they have hacked the CP or not. WIth this fuzzy CP, people will start to play the game and get engulfed with it (see it like a big demo), but then as the game degrades they might buy the game.
OFP - had text to let you know at least.

The devs only said 2D crew and bulging eyes were copy protection - not much of a gamebreaker are they.... Making all torpedos duds, or messing with the shot calculations - that would stop people enjoying an illegal copy. Perhaps those things do happen, who knows? The problem is, perhaps one in 5 of my torps is wildly off track because of copy protection, but I don't know because my perfectly legal copy of the game is apparently working normally.

Regardless, without some text (like OFP had and ArmA has) then who can tell whether a bug is a problem with the game or the copy protection and therefore how to report it?

r.

Great news regarding the resolution and AA!!

I don't think any official has acknowledged that the game has fade protection at all..... I don't really see how anyone running a modified version of the game (nocd crack or whatever) can really complain if a modification causes problems. On the other hand I totally agree that IF legit users have issues then the protection is over the top.

[Spaxspore]

And on topic:

The fact that Ubisoft has the ability to spend time adding aggressive CP to a game that was rushed and pressed in an unfinished state is bad form. They should of spent the time fixing fundemental problems with the game. Ubisoft really need a chat with Stardock. That is a company that knows the score when it comes to customer relations and the fact that CP of this ilk is obsolete and retarded. As is patently obvious, legit users are suffering problems already due to it. The "right" to use a N*CD patch for those who own the game has also been taken away. Yet they couldn't even push the game for a proper development cycle?

As someone with experience in both cracking and hacking from days gone past I could probably remove this protection from the game in an matter of hours. I don't need to because I bought my copy but nobody should be under the illusion that others won't do the exact same thing. First Starforce and now this.


It's a waste of time and they should of spent it on improving the game or at least finishing it.



AGreed! FOR example leaving METERS in the game, when your on the a WW2 US boat is extremely sloopy at best, makes it look like a hurried port from sh3.

[Lt commander lare]

neal can you pass along the information to the dev team about the crew all just start dying on the way home and see if they can correct this in the next patch the fact there working on some items thanks

lt commander lare

[OneTinSoldier]

The devs only said 2D crew and bulging eyes were copy protection - not much of a gamebreaker are they.... Making all torpedos duds, or messing with the shot calculations - that would stop people enjoying an illegal copy. Perhaps those things do happen, who knows? The problem is, perhaps one in 5 of my torps is wildly off track because of copy protection, but I don't know because my perfectly legal copy of the game is apparently working normally.

Yep, that's all they said, ahem, mentioned. For all we know there is more to it than just those 2 items. It's seems I have seen some people say something like they put 6 torps into a Merchant but it would not sink! I saw one guy(can't remember if it was on here or the Ubi forum) say he put 8 freakin torps into a T3 and it was still going strong. He posted a screenshot. From the screenshot I wouldn't have said it was still going strong, far from it. It was ablaze all over, listing to the side heavily, and water was well above the waterline would normally be(undamaged), but it hadn't sunk. If he really had put 8 torps into it like he said he did, then hmmm. :hmm:

Anyway, my point is, they only mentioned those 2 items. It certainly doesn't mean there might be more to it than just those two! Is there some reason we should think they are going(or want) to reveal them all to us? :hmm:

[maerean_m]

AGreed! FOR example leaving METERS in the game, when your on the a WW2 US boat is extremely sloopy at best, makes it look like a hurried port from sh3.

The 1.1 patch fixes the problem: you can switch between metric and imperial measurement units before you start the patrol.

[tonyeh]

And on topic:

The fact that Ubisoft has the ability to spend time adding aggressive CP to a game that was rushed and pressed in an unfinished state is bad form. They should of spent the time fixing fundemental problems with the game. Ubisoft really need a chat with Stardock. That is a company that knows the score when it comes to customer relations and the fact that CP of this ilk is obsolete and retarded. As is patently obvious, legit users are suffering problems already due to it. The "right" to use a N*CD patch for those who own the game has also been taken away. Yet they couldn't even push the game for a proper development cycle?

As someone with experience in both cracking and hacking from days gone past I could probably remove this protection from the game in an matter of hours. I don't need to because I bought my copy but nobody should be under the illusion that others won't do the exact same thing. First Starforce and now this.


It's a waste of time and they should of spent it on improving the game or at least finishing it.


I agree completely.

Tony

[ryuzu]

Yep, that's all they said, ahem, mentioned. For all we know there is more to it than just those 2 items. It's seems I have seen some people say something like they put 6 torps into a Merchant but it would not sink! I saw one guy(can't remember if it was on here or the Ubi forum) say he put 8 freakin torps into a T3 and it was still going strong. He posted a screenshot. From the screenshot I wouldn't have said it was still going strong, far from it. It was ablaze all over, listing to the side heavily, and water was well above the waterline would normally be(undamaged), but it hadn't sunk. If he really had put 8 torps into it like he said he did, then hmmm. :hmm:

Anyway, my point is, they only mentioned those 2 items. It certainly doesn't mean there might be more to it than just those two! Is there some reason we should think they are going(or want) to reveal them all to us? :hmm:

And that is exactly the problem. Legitimate players may be seeing weird things, and assume it is historically accurate, when in fact it is the copy protection.

It seems to me if the copy protection doesn't alter the gameplay, then it is pointless it being there at all.

So now you start to question - did that torp miss because it historically could have, or because my game thinks it is illegal? Is that fuel burn accurate or not? Did that destroyer detect me too early or not? etc etc If these kind of changes are in the copy protection how would you know?

I also wonder what impact this may have on modding the game. External data files are probably ok but anything deeper than that may cause a problem...

r.

[gmohr]

I took a risk and bought this game knowing all the present faults, and hoping the dev's would make good. They've come through bigtime! Thanks guys, we all await your fixes!! :up:

[Anachronous]

I generally have around 10 different games installed on my PC at any given time. I also have children....

This makes it quite a pain to keep an eye on disks. Especially disks that you cant make a backup copy of. So if one gets under the wheel of the chair (has happened) or sat face down on the desk and becomes useless, thats another 100 bucks I need to throw at buying another disk even if i OWN the game still, i cant PLAY it.

In SH3, i managed to find a forum post that showed how to make a 1:1 backup of your own disk so you can run it through a Virtual drive, and this worked great. The best of all was when the 1.4 patch came out and finally there was a NOCD for it. That saved me 4 gig of space for an image.

Much like Macrovision, or whatever its called these days. Doesnt stop people copying DVD movies. It just makes it so if I want to watch my BOUGHT DVD via remote box on the other TVs in the house (No dvd player in bedrooms, just remotes), i have to make a copy of it, because the original wont work. How REDICULOUS is that.

COPY Protection DOESNT stop pirates at all, in fact there isnt a single popular GAME or MOVIE. out there that hasnt got its protection cracked or bypassed.
If it can be engineered, it can be reverse engineered. Also most those pirates probably wouldnt have bought the game, even if they couldnt copy it. In actual fact, it's probably good advertising to have a game out there and popular, which many people wouldnt have known about otherwise.

It just punishes those who own the software. Stops us game buyers being able to backup our expensive disks, or letting our children be trusted with those disks. (yes we can teach them proper handling, but they are KIDS, and kids have a tendancy to get distracted or not pay attention to all those little things). This is even more of an issue for laptop users and people who spend a lot of time away from home. So in the end, the pirates are probably better off, because they can use their disks free of all these limitations.

In this day and age, it seems archaic to think you need to have a disk in your drive to play, for the purpose of a copy protection scheme that DOESNT WORK.

I think that money spent on false protection would be better served adding content to the game that makes it worthwhile to buy. Such as multiplayer (requiring a CD key), Online unlockable content (BF2, BF2142), special manuals, and limited edition boxes.

Stop chasing those imaginary customers, that wouldnt have bought your software, even if they couldnt copy it and focus on making it more attractive to the buyer, instead of punishing them.

Protection software companies are snake oil salesmen, and they have the game publishers suckered.

BTW I own each game installed on my HDD. Before you ask.

[Spaxspore]

AGreed! FOR example leaving METERS in the game, when your on the a WW2 US boat is extremely sloopy at best, makes it look like a hurried port from sh3.
The 1.1 patch fixes the problem: you can switch between metric and imperial measurement units before you start the patrol.

yes i know, my statement was reflecting on the games release.. not the patch.

[Spaxspore]

I generally have around 10 different games installed on my PC at any given time. I also have children....

This makes it quite a pain to keep an eye on disks. Especially disks that you cant make a backup copy of. So if one gets under the wheel of the chair (has happened) or sat face down on the desk and becomes useless, thats another 100 bucks I need to throw at buying another disk even if i OWN the game still, i cant PLAY it.

In SH3, i managed to find a forum post that showed how to make a 1:1 backup of your own disk so you can run it through a Virtual drive, and this worked great. The best of all was when the 1.4 patch came out and finally there was a NOCD for it. That saved me 4 gig of space for an image.

Much like Macrovision, or whatever its called these days. Doesnt stop people copying DVD movies. It just makes it so if I want to watch my BOUGHT DVD via remote box on the other TVs in the house (No dvd player in bedrooms, just remotes), i have to make a copy of it, because the original wont work. How REDICULOUS is that.

COPY Protection DOESNT stop pirates at all, in fact there isnt a single popular GAME or MOVIE. out there that hasnt got its protection cracked or bypassed.
If it can be engineered, it can be reverse engineered. Also most those pirates probably wouldnt have bought the game, even if they couldnt copy it. In actual fact, it's probably good advertising to have a game out there and popular, which many people wouldnt have known about otherwise.

It just punishes those who own the software. Stops us game buyers being able to backup our expensive disks, or letting our children be trusted with those disks. (yes we can teach them proper handling, but they are KIDS, and kids have a tendancy to get distracted or not pay attention to all those little things). This is even more of an issue for laptop users and people who spend a lot of time away from home. So in the end, the pirates are probably better off, because they can use their disks free of all these limitations.

In this day and age, it seems archaic to think you need to have a disk in your drive to play, for the purpose of a copy protection scheme that DOESNT WORK.

I think that money spent on false protection would be better served adding content to the game that makes it worthwhile to buy. Such as multiplayer (requiring a CD key), Online unlockable content (BF2, BF2142), special manuals, and limited edition boxes.

Stop chasing those imaginary customers, that wouldnt have bought your software, even if they couldnt copy it and focus on making it more attractive to the buyer, instead of punishing them.

BTW I own each game installed on my HDD. Before you ask.

I agree, the only company i know who does what u have said is star dock, they dont assume every one is a pirate, they put no copy protection on thier games. U can run it off the hd, dont need to use the disc, if u register your S# with them it will allow u to dl patchs with new features and improvements, and u can even dl the game that u purchased from them directly if u dont feel like using the discs, or looking for them. God i love star dock, i buy all thier games that follow this protectino scyeme... they only release quality products.

[SharpShin]

Good post Anachronous, I made the same point yesterday and the whole thread was deleted lol.

[Dowly]

Yep, that's all they said, ahem, mentioned. For all we know there is more to it than just those 2 items. It's seems I have seen some people say something like they put 6 torps into a Merchant but it would not sink! I saw one guy(can't remember if it was on here or the Ubi forum) say he put 8 freakin torps into a T3 and it was still going strong. He posted a screenshot. From the screenshot I wouldn't have said it was still going strong, far from it. It was ablaze all over, listing to the side heavily, and water was well above the waterline would normally be(undamaged), but it hadn't sunk. If he really had put 8 torps into it like he said he did, then hmmm. :hmm:

I´m pretty sure that it was me who posted that. But the thing was, I shot it with 8 torpedos, only two were contact only fuses. AFAIK, hitting a ship with the contact influence fuse makes the torpedo go off slightly before it actually hits (correct me if I am wrong), so at times, it doesnt even hit the hull -> no hole for the water to go in, just maybe some fires on the deck.

I had the same thing last night while raiding a port, fired 6 torpedos to a T3, first 4 contact influence fuses, which didnt make hole. But only after the last two contact fuse torpedos punched holes to the ship it started to sink fast.

[OneTinSoldier]

Good point, but let me put it this way...


When I get my game(i'm going to try and see if I can get it at a store today), after playing it for a few/several days days, if I never see 2D paper thin crew or any bulging eyes, then I will chalk it up to historical accuracy. The CP is probably has an all or nothing effect. Let's say that guy that I mentioned who couldn't sink the T3 Tanker with 8 torps, couldn't sink it due to CP. Well, he probably had the 2D paper thin crew and bulging eyes at some point too.

[Harmor]

Well, the thing is that I cannot even start the game thanks to Securom, it says that a required security module cannot be loaded which is utter bs since I don't have any illegal tools installed. It might be the firewall, my anti virus, some other (LEGAL) tools I got .. whatever it is, it simply won't work .. so I wouldn't call those who get these bugs pirates per se. It just goes to show me that the devs are obviously not competent enough to handle this sort of aggressive cp in a way that legit buyers are not effected. Heck, the bugfest that SH 4 apparently is according to various ppl is prove enough for the obvious lack of testing that went into this game. Ubi Soft products have so drastically declined in quality (SC 4 anyone?) it is getting rediculous honestly.

*EDIT* Ahahaha I found out what is most likely causing it ... Sysinternal's Process Explorer. I am using it instead of the Windows Task Manager (cause by using PE you can monitor the processes running on your system a lot better, plus I need it cause I have issues with one of Norton's applications, CCProxy.exe, eating up my CPU resources so I have to kill said process using Process Explorer) ... yet apparently, Process Explorer isn't liked by Securom. Right, so .. I understand why a cp would prevent a game from starting if you had some anti blacklisting tool installed or whatever, but Process Explorer is a 100 % LEGIT tool .. and in all honesty, this is nothing but outragious.

[Mentalist]

Well said guys, well said. Stardock is the smartest company out there and they have the most respect out of any games company I've ever heard of from their users. And even without any copy protection they make massive sales and are very successful. Reason being? - They make kick-ass games. Simple as. They listen to the fans and they make brilliant software. Ubisoft make good games; the Silent Hunter series is clearly awesome as we all know, but they don't have much in the way of PR. They released an unfinished game. It doesn't matter how many patches they release for it because they KNEW before they shipped that they were releasing an unfinished game. That's not acceptable and it shouldn't be apologized for by the fans. Add to that this archaic CP software that will only end up hurting legit users and will be cracked anyway and you have yet another disrespect handed down to the community. They REALLY should of learned their lesson with Starforce. Clearly not it would seem.

And hey, I'm not one of those who complains for the sake of complaining. I'm more than happy to gush over the good aspects of what they're doing (high simulation, little in the way of dumbing down, ect) is to be applauded in a market saturated with the likes of EA games but when they screw up they should be taken to task for it and this is one big screw up.

[Liszt_]

I´m pretty sure that it was me who posted that. But the thing was, I shot it with 8 torpedos, only two were contact only fuses. AFAIK, hitting a ship with the contact influence fuse makes the torpedo go off slightly before it actually hits (correct me if I am wrong), so at times, it doesnt even hit the hull -> no hole for the water to go in, just maybe some fires on the deck.

I had the same thing last night while raiding a port, fired 6 torpedos to a T3, first 4 contact influence fuses, which didnt make hole. But only after the last two contact fuse torpedos punched holes to the ship it started to sink fast.

yea! I'm pretty sure many of the complaints about having to unload X torps are coming from people who arn't checking whether the torp is set to mag or contact. Mag is the default on a newly loaded torp so you need to manually switch it to contact for each tube at present before you fire.

If mag torps are really this unreliable, what is a proper situation to use them? It seems contact is the way to go 99% of the time.

[OneTinSoldier]

I´m pretty sure that it was me who posted that. But the thing was, I shot it with 8 torpedos, only two were contact only fuses. AFAIK, hitting a ship with the contact influence fuse makes the torpedo go off slightly before it actually hits (correct me if I am wrong), so at times, it doesnt even hit the hull -> no hole for the water to go in, just maybe some fires on the deck.

I had the same thing last night while raiding a port, fired 6 torpedos to a T3, first 4 contact influence fuses, which didnt make hole. But only after the last two contact fuse torpedos punched holes to the ship it started to sink fast.

Ahhhh, it was you eh? Man, sounds like T3's are pretty tough! :lol: Well, I'm glad to hear that you were able to figure out what it takes to sink a T3!

And I hope you don't think that I was trying to make you sound like a pirate. I was just using your situation as an example of something that might be possible with the Copy Protection.

Cheers

[Dowly]

No worries, mate. Still a lot to learn about the torpedos, but from now on, I will only use contact only fuses. ;)

[Spaxspore]

Well said guys, well said. Stardock is the smartest company out there and they have the most respect out of any games company I've ever heard of from their users. And even without any copy protection they make massive sales and are very successful. Reason being? - They make kick-ass games. Simple as. They listen to the fans and they make brilliant software. Ubisoft make good games; the Silent Hunter series is clearly awesome as we all know, but they don't have much in the way of PR. They released an unfinished game. It doesn't matter how many patches they release for it because they KNEW before they shipped that they were releasing an unfinished game. That's not acceptable and it shouldn't be apologized for by the fans. Add to that this archaic CP software that will only end up hurting legit users and will be cracked anyway and you have yet another disrespect handed down to the community. They REALLY should of learned their lesson with Starforce. Clearly not it would seem.

And hey, I'm not one of those who complains for the sake of complaining. I'm more than happy to gush over the good aspects of what they're doing (high simulation, little in the way of dumbing down, ect) is to be applauded in a market saturated with the likes of EA games but when they screw up they should be taken to task for it and this is one big screw up.


Couldnt agree more, i was on galciv2.com forums when titan quest came out, talkin to them almost about this exact same problem. THQ (publisher of titan quest) put secrom 7, many people who legally purchased it couldnt play it(you think these forums were bad when sh4 came out.... thiers was 100x worst) I know i bought TQ,which was a really good game and addictive. But Over zealous copy protection almost killed it. THQ later released in a patch that removed secrom 7 completely. And now its new expansion just has cd checks, which is what it should be. Cause if some one is goin to pirate a game they r goni to do it. Just pissing off paying customers isnt goin to help any one. If anything it will hurt you more then the pirates.

[Seminole]

This is great news!!! Thanks Neil. (and thanks Dev team!!)

The anti-protection system explains why I've never experienced the popping-eyes and paper thin crew members. (clever!)

Yep...ain't it delicious......:lol: ....all day yesterday I kept watching for these horrors to pop up....and they never did...I guess you do indeed get exactly what you pay for.

[Potoroo]

I'm very much a Stardock fan too. Unfortunately, I think it will take years more before the message sinks in to the suits: copy protection only hurts legitimate users.

With the current exception of SH4 I don't own a game for which I don't have the N*CD crack - and I'm perfectly happy to show off my pile of retail game boxes and all the rest. I'm a legitimate user protecting himself against idiots, nothing more.

[OneTinSoldier]

If mag torps are really this unreliable, what is a proper situation to use them? It seems contact is the way to go 99% of the time.

For the most part, to wait until later in the war at which point most of the problems with them had been worked out. Of course I'm an XO from the year 2007, don't tell your 1942 Skipper or XO that you heard it from me, they'll think your looney. :lol:

[sjw985]

Open letter follows.

*****
3/23/2007 (a.k.a. 23/3/2007)

Dear Ubi,

Thank you for publicly acknowledging our concerns regarding image quality.

Please consider this an official notice of our intent to extend boundless and neverending gratitude to you upon resolution of this issue.

(Pun intended.)

SH4 can and should be a worthy successor to SH3. Ensuring that image quality meets the highest standards and expectations of the community will contribute mightily to the long-run success of SH4 as well as our enjoyment of it.

Sincerely,
sjw985
Founding member of SSWRBM (Simulated Submariners With Really Big Monitors)
**********

[Anachronous]

Furthermore. Game OWNERS are forced to control software on their systems. Such as being forced to remove certain emulation software or burning software that can have perfectly legitimate uses. This is a protection scheme that allows one company, to tell a consumer what other company's software they can have on their OWN PC.


Also. Hardware protection for consoles and portables (PSP, PS2, XBOX), all of which are cracked too, and if pirates are going to go to the level of hardware modification to run ANY game, then why would a little software bother them.

Again those hardware protections only stop the consumer from making backups (not pirates). Yes the company might sell more disks to people who destroy their originals, but that has limited ability. Instead they lose customers who refuse to buy consoles because they cant make backups so their kids can play without risking hundreds of dollars in the process (Like me and many others).

[KING111]

I also use you know what with my original games
It keeps the original DVD’S safe and it’s easier?
So you mean I have re-installed SH4 about 10 times
For no reason all I needed to do was not use you know
What? We will see if it’s still full of bugs playing it with
Out you know what I will be back :nope::nope::nope::nope::nope:

[Immacolata]

neal can you pass along the information to the dev team about the crew all just start dying on the way home and see if they can correct this in the next patch the fact there working on some items thanks

lt commander lare
Ithinkillstopusingspacesfromnowon.Imeanifyoucanjus tnotusecommasorperiods,thenIthinkImperfectlyokwith notusingspaces.Itdoeswondersforotherpeople'sreadin gexperience.

[Dowly]

I also use you know what with my original games
It keeps the original DVD’S safe and it’s easier?
So you mean I have re-installed SH4 about 10 times
For no reason all I needed to do was not use you know
What? We will see if it’s still full of bugs playing it with
Out you know what I will be back :nope::nope::nope::nope::nope:


Yeh, the you-know-what is the problem. I usually use it too in my games, but it seems I just have arse myself to the store to buy an empty DVD to backup the game. :hmm:

[Dowly]

neal can you pass along the information to the dev team about the crew all just start dying on the way home and see if they can correct this in the next patch the fact there working on some items thanks

lt commander lare Ithinkillstopusingspacesfromnowon.Imeanifyoucanjus tnotusecommasorperiods,thenIthinkImperfectlyokwith notusingspaces.Itdoeswondersforotherpeople'sreadin gexperience.


:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

[Greytop]

Great positive news :)
If the Upscaling and AA is fixed they have another customer.

Oh and hi as its my first post, although I have been lurking for a while (SHIII days)

[Schlageter-JG26]

Ok, this is new. So using a you-know-what program to back up my disc might be causing my crew to die? Or is this a coding problem? :hmm:

No offense, but other than BF2142 (of which I have 4 copies anyway for LAN purposes), I don't use ANY of my discs. I store most of them in a Dacal rotary and the rest in some nice cd storage cases.

I'm with Anachronous on this one. I remember OFP..... and I remember having to replace ONE original disc and TWO Resistance discs. Heck, that experience is what prompted me to go through ALLLLLLLLLLLLL my games and gaming drives and hook them all up with NOCDs or a virtual copy. Same reason I'm putting all my DVDs on my PC... instant access throughout the house.

As a management type, I understand Ubi's interest in protection of their bottom line. They just haven't come full circle with the logic that it imposes problems for many of the regular customers and hurts their product. Edit: not that it's "OMG terrible", but its just one more annoyance.

No offense, but I hope its fixed soon by the aftermarket, if not already.

[StandingCow]

I really wish NOCD cracks did not cause this issue :( Having to have a CD in to play a game you purchased really sucks, as they get scratched, lost, etc...

But, enough of my negativity, thanks for the update neal, this is very good news. :D

[mookiemookie]

No offense, but I hope its fixed soon by the aftermarket, if not already. Or does someone have a functional NOCD working already?

Asking for such things is one of the quickest ways to earn a trip to the brig on these boards. Don't do it.

[P_Funk]

Or does someone have a functional NOCD working already? You broke the 3rd law! http://maxed.gry-online.pl/forum/html/emoticons/scared.gif

But I'm with Anachoranus. He has it down. This kind of aggressive anti-pirating software doesn't work and only punishes us. Its like mandatory minimum sentenses or prohibition. It doesn't work! It never worked! It isn't going to work! All it does is make normal use into a trial. You're guilty until proven a legitimate consumer.:rotfl:Let people smoke their blunts and hunt their merchants! http://thefamilybiz.org/ezboard/emoticons/weed.gif

I especially hate the ones that make you remove certain progs. That is particularly offputting. Barring use because I have a program that CAN do something illegal is just wrong.

Maybe they're just scared that we'll download the game before we buy it and realise that we don't actually want to pay for it!;)

[GT182]

:hmm: Unless he takes out the reference to you know what in his post, me thinks Schlageter-JG26 will be in the Brig or history very soon.

Mentioning what you did Schlageter, is NOT allowed and will beget you an untimely demise here on SS. Any mention of it is TABOO. :yep:

[Flanker15]

So if they get AA working, which option will have to be disabled fro cards older than the 8800? Which one of the graphics options controls the HDR it dosn't really say?

[Potoroo]

So if they get AA working, which option will have to be disabled fro cards older than the 8800? Which one of the graphics options controls the HDR it dosn't really say?
That's a good question I doubt many people have fully considered. Having said that, for most people I think FSAA is more important than HDR, not least because HDR is a much heavier drain on the card and hurts your frame rate a lot more. Radeon X1800 and X1900 series cards can simultaneously handle FSAA and HDR, as well as the Geforce 8 series, but the rest of us will have to make a choice.

[Safe-Keeper]

Good news, developers. Keep up the good work. I'll be sure to buy your game.

However, some issues pointed out, like for example the 2D appearance of crewmembers, the random counting by the crew or the eyes popping out from the men’s heads are actually part of the protection scheme. Playing a cracked version of the game or even using a no-cd crack over a legal install of SH4 game triggers this protection.Can you say "busted":rotfl:? I love the "bugs that go off when you play a cracked version" system. It's the #1 way to get pirates to fess up:rotfl:.

Awesome, developers. Simply awesome. I thought large-scale developers didn't do this anymore:lol:.

[CaptJodan]

Thank you Neal for getting to the bottom of this. I know there were a lot of people that had an issue with both of those main themes. It'll solve some headaches. Thanks also goes to the devs who were listening and will do the best they can to fix this issue. It warms my heart that they are going to try and get some kind of AA and resolution fix, as I'm sure those aren't very easy to fix.

[Mentalist]

Good news, developers. Keep up the good work. I'll be sure to buy your game.

However, some issues pointed out, like for example the 2D appearance of crewmembers, the random counting by the crew or the eyes popping out from the men’s heads are actually part of the protection scheme. Playing a cracked version of the game or even using a no-cd crack over a legal install of SH4 game triggers this protection.Can you say "busted":rotfl:? I love the "bugs that go off when you play a cracked version" system. It's the #1 way to get pirates to fess up:rotfl:.

Awesome, developers. Simply awesome. I thought large-scale developers didn't do this anymore:lol:.

That's because it's stupid for the reasons noted above. And yes, I have a legit version of the game.

[Spaxspore]

Good news, developers. Keep up the good work. I'll be sure to buy your game.

However, some issues pointed out, like for example the 2D appearance of crewmembers, the random counting by the crew or the eyes popping out from the men’s heads are actually part of the protection scheme. Playing a cracked version of the game or even using a no-cd crack over a legal install of SH4 game triggers this protection.Can you say "busted":rotfl:? I love the "bugs that go off when you play a cracked version" system. It's the #1 way to get pirates to fess up:rotfl:.

Awesome, developers. Simply awesome. I thought large-scale developers didn't do this anymore:lol:.
or it could be detecting legal imageing software... used for legal purposes....

[Dowly]

Good news, developers. Keep up the good work. I'll be sure to buy your game.

However, some issues pointed out, like for example the 2D appearance of crewmembers, the random counting by the crew or the eyes popping out from the men’s heads are actually part of the protection scheme. Playing a cracked version of the game or even using a no-cd crack over a legal install of SH4 game triggers this protection.Can you say "busted":rotfl:? I love the "bugs that go off when you play a cracked version" system. It's the #1 way to get pirates to fess up:rotfl:.

Awesome, developers. Simply awesome. I thought large-scale developers didn't do this anymore:lol:.

SK, you are saying that everyone who uses a you-know-what has an illegal copy of the game and is considered as 'pirate'? Ok then, YARRR!! GIVE ME YER RUM!! :stare: I´m not hiding it, I use the you-know-what in any game that allows it. I use it because it is easier & faster to use than make a backup of your disc, besides some CPs dont even allow you to backup your game (which is AFAIK, everyone´s right, making a backup of your bought disc).

And like said before, this doesnt work, OFP´s & ARMA´s FADE protection was cracked fast and sometimes it went active on totally legit copies of the game with no cracks used. And the same thing happens on this one. It will be cracked, and as mentioned in the dev´s letter, there has been already case where it went active on a legit copy.

So, instead of laughing.. I think I just cry. :cry:

[ComradeP]

It's good news that Ubisoft is working to improve the game, but I'm still not happy with the way it was initially released, an opinion that is shared by many it seems.

Somehow, I really doubt that the people that complained about weird eyes and the like on this board have an illegal copy too.

As to the whole discussion about you-know and copy protection: most of my SSI (Whatever General series, for example) games could be copied from the disk to the harddrive without any problems. I support the plea from the members that state some sorts of copy protection should be removed, as they're ridiculous. Clearly, the copy protection on SH IV also bugged legitimate copies and clearly Ubisoft put as much thought in that as in the fact that US subs use the imperial system.

I'm confident that SH IV is a great game and that it will be better, but it has a bad start for sure.

[stefostef]

A message from the Silent Hunter IV Dev Team:

“ We have strong hopes it will include both Anti-Aliasing and a fix for the issues experienced when running the game in very high resolutions.


I do believe its a joke not seing that AA problem for all the time passed in developpement.

All the loading screen in game are without AA so is this just communication buzz to delay hangry customers posting in order to make sales the first month (the one that counts ) and will the hope vanished after days and delay into a well guy you know we said it, that was only an hope !!!

I hope to be wrong

[nova bomb]

It’d be absolutely hilarious if they made it so that in pirated (arrr!) copies every fifth fish or so fired had an advanced “human player acoustic homing” capability.

Well, it’d make me laugh….

[ReM]

Wouldn't it be a good idea for UBI to release a you-know-what that only works with legal versions?
The benefits of these types files have been expressed enough here, maybe the dev team can come up with a magic pill like a nocd file that inspects your hard drive for legit SH IV files...
1) works only with legal SH IV, so copy protection intact
2) customers (at least some of the crying hordes) satisfied...

I am really scared what my SH IV DVD will look like in a couple of weeks, because the wife, kids etc...all use my comp, and change cd's/dvd's....
My SH III dvd still looks pristine.......I would prefer to have the SH IV dvd look like this too, two years from now.

Maybe next time UBI might want to use something like this for their games:

http://www.cmbbswe.dataphone.se/images/SBsmall2.jpg

[CptGrayWolf]

Good news, developers. Keep up the good work. I'll be sure to buy your game.

However, some issues pointed out, like for example the 2D appearance of crewmembers, the random counting by the crew or the eyes popping out from the men’s heads are actually part of the protection scheme. Playing a cracked version of the game or even using a no-cd crack over a legal install of SH4 game triggers this protection.Can you say "busted":rotfl:? I love the "bugs that go off when you play a cracked version" system. It's the #1 way to get pirates to fess up:rotfl:.

Awesome, developers. Simply awesome. I thought large-scale developers didn't do this anymore:lol:.

SK, you are saying that everyone who uses a you-know-what has an illegal copy of the game and is considered as 'pirate'? Ok then, YARRR!! GIVE ME YER RUM!! :stare: I´m not hiding it, I use the you-know-what in any game that allows it. I use it because it is easier & faster to use than make a backup of your disc, besides some CPs dont even allow you to backup your game (which is AFAIK, everyone´s right, making a backup of your bought disc).

And like said before, this doesnt work, OFP´s & ARMA´s FADE protection was cracked fast and sometimes it went active on totally legit copies of the game with no cracks used. And the same thing happens on this one. It will be cracked, and as mentioned in the dev´s letter, there has been already case where it went active on a legit copy.

So, instead of laughing.. I think I just cry. :cry:

Yup, copy protection will stump the crackers for about two weeks. But might give legit users problems for a long long time...

[Spaxspore]

Good news, developers. Keep up the good work. I'll be sure to buy your game.

However, some issues pointed out, like for example the 2D appearance of crewmembers, the random counting by the crew or the eyes popping out from the men’s heads are actually part of the protection scheme. Playing a cracked version of the game or even using a no-cd crack over a legal install of SH4 game triggers this protection.Can you say "busted":rotfl:? I love the "bugs that go off when you play a cracked version" system. It's the #1 way to get pirates to fess up:rotfl:.

Awesome, developers. Simply awesome. I thought large-scale developers didn't do this anymore:lol:.
SK, you are saying that everyone who uses a you-know-what has an illegal copy of the game and is considered as 'pirate'? Ok then, YARRR!! GIVE ME YER RUM!! :stare: I´m not hiding it, I use the you-know-what in any game that allows it. I use it because it is easier & faster to use than make a backup of your disc, besides some CPs dont even allow you to backup your game (which is AFAIK, everyone´s right, making a backup of your bought disc).

And like said before, this doesnt work, OFP´s & ARMA´s FADE protection was cracked fast and sometimes it went active on totally legit copies of the game with no cracks used. And the same thing happens on this one. It will be cracked, and as mentioned in the dev´s letter, there has been already case where it went active on a legit copy.

So, instead of laughing.. I think I just cry. :cry:
Yup, copy protection will stump the crackers for about two weeks. But might give legit users problems for a long long time...

Yep, u can tell ubi didnt learn from thier last mistakes IE sh3 and a certain copy protection known as starforce, was cracked less then a week after its release.... sad why hurt the paying consumers .....

[FIREWALL]

Hi All I have only read the first page of this thread as i'm just wakeing up so sorry if this has been brought up but when i installed game i didn't have to use key code . Anyone else?

[SharpShin]

Hi All I have only read the first page of this thread as i'm just wakeing up so sorry if this has been brought up but when i installed game i didn't have to use key code . Anyone else?

It doesn't ask until you try to play online.

[maerean_m]

So if they get AA working, which option will have to be disabled for cards older than the 8800? Which one of the graphics options controls the HDR it dosn't really say?

SH4 uses Shader Model 2.0, to work on all recent video cards (including Ati X800).
HDR can't be supported since it requires Shader Model 3.0.

No graphics option is disabled, no matter the installed video card.

The 1.2 patch will feature FSAA and superior texture filtering if forced from the video card driver.

[CptGrayWolf]

Spaxpore your sig is a SHIV screenshot I'm assuming? It looks like a freakin picture, SHIV has some sweeeeet graphics. :up:

[Spaxspore]

Spaxpore your sig is a SHIV screenshot I'm assuming? It looks like a freakin picture, SHIV has some sweeeeet graphics. :up:
yes its directly takin from the game, no photoediting, i took teh screen shot, all i did was crop it and resize. Thats the uss drum , gato class,off the tokyo coast. 1942

[gnirtS]

Copy protection is dumb to the extreme.
Star Force was a borderline illegal terrible system - it caused havoc for legitimate users everywhere. The only people it didn't affect were pirates who had a No-CD within hours or days of a patch. So in SH3 case, buy the game, use it legally, get bits of system broken or be not allowed to install other legal software but download it illegally and none of the problems.

SH4 could be the same, they've already identified one case of it affecting legit users. Somehow i doubt thats the only one. Given the number of other bugs in the game its not a stretch to assume that the fade type system is flawed too. If you could GUARANTEE it would be 100% working for ALL legal users then fine, however you cant and it isnt. Therefore you're potentially ripping off legal people by deliberately degrading their game by insisting on a pathetic copy protection scheme that doesn't work and the pirates will have their working version soon anyway.
Again, penalises nobody but legitimate users.

The best way to make people buy your game is to make it worth it. Back in the old days where a sim came with a 300 page manual, large maps and so on. It was worth the price alone for something like that. Im thinking of Falcon 4 (which incidentally had NO copy protection but was very succesful), Formula One Grand Prix series (again no protection), back even further to Tornado and so on.

Make it worthwhile and people interested WILL buy the game. Giving them little value for money in the form of a tiny summary leaflet of a game and treating them like children with ridiclous and flawed protection schemes is only going to encourage fewer people to spend money on the game and create more of a market for pirates.

Rant over bit devs treating legal people like children really annoys me.

[Onkel Neal]

Hi All I have only read the first page of this thread as i'm just wakeing up so sorry if this has been brought up but when i installed game i didn't have to use key code . Anyone else?

It didn't ask for a key code.

[maerean_m]

Hi All I have only read the first page of this thread as i'm just wakeing up so sorry if this has been brought up but when i installed game i didn't have to use key code . Anyone else?
It didn't ask for a key code.

The key code is only for online play.

[ReM]

Did SH III actually ask for the cd-code? I can't recall. I do remember that the code was placed on the DVD itself of all places..

Placing the code on the booklet like they did this time is much smarter for sure

[Spaxspore]

Did SH III actually ask for the cd-code? I can't recall. I do remember that the code is placed on the DVD itself of all places..

yes it did , when u first attempted to run the game, it was part of the starforce copy protection scyeme

[Flanker15]

So SHIV dosn't use HDR lighting? Some of the graphics do look very HDRish but I guess it could be something else. Do you have a thingy that sese it only uses PS 2.0?

[Stirling]

At one time. I had 14 games installed that all needed the disk.

Since then, I don't buy games until there is a nodisk crack for it.

It is unreasonable, and borderline unethical, to expect me to put that much wear-and-tear on my computer and disks for a massively over-hyped 'piracy' problem (the vast majority of those who use pirated or 'borrowed' copies weren't going to buy a copy anyway--that's just common sense).

If this game isn't successfully cracked (or the disk requirement isn't officially removed like it was for OFP), I won't buy it. That's the developer's loss, not mine.

[Schlageter-JG26]

Really? My bad. But why would I get banned from an open forum for mentioning you-know? Esp when about 10 posts before me did also?

I didn't think it was supposed to be a state secret that I don't load my discs in my disc drive every time I play a game. That would SUCK, since they are all stored in the next room with my work stuff. And who cares, since I do not share or download them anyway. Woooo, look out! He left the dvd in its case! There's going to be a tragedy! LOL :rotfl:

I hadn't thought to look for a nocd for 2142 until after the last post, but glad I did because now I can use the drive for music and other things and not have it running all the time when I play... at least until the nextversion of 2142 is released.

So don't go thinking I support people ripping off the game. Ubi needs to make some money so they keep the devs patching and hopefully future versions of the game coming out. But for my own purposes, yes, I look forward to not having to run back and forth in here swapping discs every time I change games. For that matter, I look forward to not having ONE program conflict with all my OTHER programs which I've gone to great lengths to set up as a centralized system for the house with instant access (for movies and music) at any outlet. Spent quite a bit of time and money on that home-made system. For now I have to play SH4 on my old FX-53 rig with the X850xt video because of the conflict. And while it "runs", I imagine it is nothing like it could achieve on my C2D with 4g ram and x1900x card.... :roll:

[ReM]

I won't buy it. That's the developer's loss, not mine.
Actually it's a double loss:

1)their profit
2)your gaming pleasure

[mookiemookie]

Really? My bad. But why would I get banned from an open forum for mentioning you-know? Esp when about 10 posts before me did also?

I didn't think it was supposed to be a state secret that I don't load my discs in my disc drive every time I play a game if I'm not sharing or downloading them. :rotfl:Woooo, look out! He left the dvd in its case! LOL



SUBSIM Review has a longstanding policy against software piracy. We do NOT allow discussion or even mention of warez, abandonware, peer-to-peer game swapping, illegal download sites, or rip-off websites. Nothing will get you banned faster than pointing people to illegal software distribution sites. Don't ask for serial numbers, manuals, or cracks. Any admission that you have in your possession illegal software can and usually will result in revocation of your Radio Room forum account. Support computer game programmers buy legally purchasing their work. They have to eat too, you know.

And that's that. The crack conversation always snowballs into bad things. It's best left undiscussed.

[Spaxspore]

I won't buy it. That's the developer's loss, not mine. Actually it's a double loss:

1)their profit
2)your gaming pleasure


there isnt any gaming pleasure for him if he cant game the way he wants to

[Potoroo]

So if they get AA working, which option will have to be disabled for cards older than the 8800? Which one of the graphics options controls the HDR it dosn't really say?

SH4 uses Shader Model 2.0, to work on all recent video cards (including Ati X800).
HDR can't be supported since it requires Shader Model 3.0.
It's common for games to support more than one shader model. There is no technical reason SH4 cannot support both SM2.0 and SM3.0/HDR right now.

No graphics option is disabled, no matter the installed video card.

The 1.2 patch will feature FSAA and superior texture filtering if forced from the video card driver.
You are not in a position to know that for sure.

[Schlageter-JG26]

MookieMoo - I revised my wording to make it more clear. I do not mention any of the things you listed: piracy, warez, (what IS abandonware? never heard of it), PtP swaps, etc etc. None of that was mentioned at all. Hopefully my rewording clarifies it AND my position, since I have enjoyed this forum since SH3. For my part, I'll just clamp the 'ol trap after this since it would only prompt further discussion on the discussion of taboo topics.... which is kinda funny. :yep:

[DaMaGe007]

I would rather not pay the devs to waste time on being aholes to people that arent going to buy the game anyway, the accelerated dev scheduale doesnt allow time for this, and Im disgusted that they wasted my money.

With UBi consistantly releasing buggy and incomplete games and then walking away from the product before its acceptable (sh3), they have lost me as a customer.

This is the last Ubi game I will buy, I dont like them making me feel like this and Im not going to put up with it.

and before you say gbye dont let the door hit you...I have paid about $400 to get this game, and I dont want to waste the time to return it so, you will just have to put up with me.

for me the no cd crack isnt a big deal, although I would like to run it for convinience, I dont buy enough games anymore to be worried about it, this is the straw that broke the camels back as far as PC gaming goes for me, on principal.
I will still game on the PC if the game and company making it does a good job, but with so many game companies *protecting* themselves, I have doubts.
Im not taking part in your stupid war, just for the sake of having a war your not wining anyway.

Sad to lose a hobby to corporate Aholes who arent even going to make aditional money for thier actions and money spent. I will have to tolerate the controls of a console from the looks, and missout on simulations. A price Im willing to pay so I dont pay the price.

Boo Ubi (definatly)..and Im very disapointed in the devs...

[Fubar2Niner]

Really? My bad. But why would I get banned from an open forum for mentioning you-know? Esp when about 10 posts before me did also?

I didn't think it was supposed to be a state secret that I don't load my discs in my disc drive every time I play a game if I'm not sharing or downloading them. :rotfl:Woooo, look out! He left the dvd in its case! LOL



SUBSIM Review has a longstanding policy against software piracy. We do NOT allow discussion or even mention of warez, abandonware, peer-to-peer game swapping, illegal download sites, or rip-off websites. Nothing will get you banned faster than pointing people to illegal software distribution sites. Don't ask for serial numbers, manuals, or cracks. Any admission that you have in your possession illegal software can and usually will result in revocation of your Radio Room forum account. Support computer game programmers buy legally purchasing their work. They have to eat too, you know.

And that's that. The crack conversation always snowballs into bad things. It's best left undiscussed.

Piracy..... yeah it's the bain of all our lives, leads to baaaaad protection tools etc. Remember the starwars debacle? Now I'm not gonna defend the buggers but when UBI don't even have the decency to reply to 2 emails now regarding the NON delivery of my super deluxe version 4 days after it shipped :/\\!! , need I go further?

Fubar

[flyingdane]

I would rather not pay the devs to waste time on being aholes to people that arent going to buy the game anyway, the accelerated dev scheduale doesnt allow time for this, and Im disgusted that they wasted my money.

With UBi consistantly releasing buggy and incomplete games and then walking away from the product before its acceptable (sh3), they have lost me as a customer.

This is the last Ubi game I will buy, I dont like them making me feel like this and Im not going to put up with it.

and before you say gbye dont let the door hit you...I have paid about $400 to get this game, and I dont want to waste the time to return it so, you will just have to put up with me.

for me the no cd crack isnt a big deal, although I would like to run it for convinience, I dont buy enough games anymore to be worried about it, this is the straw that broke the camels back as far as PC gaming goes for me, on principal.
I will still game on the PC if the game and company making it does a good job, but with so many game companies *protecting* themselves, I have doubts.
Im not taking part in your stupid war, just for the sake of having a war your not wining anyway.

Sad to lose a hobby to corporate Aholes who arent even going to make aditional money for thier actions and money spent. I will have to tolerate the controls of a console from the looks, and missout on simulations. A price Im willing to pay so I dont pay the price.

Boo Ubi (definatly)..and Im very disapointed in the devs...

Tell us how you realy feel. :roll:

[Harmor]

Well what can I say .. I rebooted my pc and didn't start Process Explorer and lo and behold, the game works. Imo, Securom is going the Starforce route these days .. I just hope they're gonna stop pissing off paying customers with this garbage soon and begin to realize that games get pirated no matter WHAT you do .. and tbh, if someone buys a game and it does not work, and someone else downloads the same game and it does work for him, there is something fundamentally wrong.

[Liszt_]

This is the last Ubi game I will buy, I dont like them making me feel like this and Im not going to put up with it.

See u for Silent Hunter 5!

[Capt. D]

A message from the Silent Hunter IV Dev Team:

“We are working hard to correct the bugs discovered by the community or the testing team. Already patch v1.1 corrects many of the issues, and we’re at work on the next one. We have strong hopes it will include both Anti-Aliasing and a fix for the issues experienced when running the game in very high resolutions.

However, some issues pointed out, like for example the 2D appearance of crewmembers, the random counting by the crew or the eyes popping out from the men’s heads are actually part of the protection scheme. Playing a cracked version of the game or even using a no-cd crack over a legal install of SH4 game triggers this protection.

Obviously, running a legit version of the game should not produce these problems. Since we have found at least one documented case where such behavior was experienced by the owner of an actual copy of the game, we have contacted the company producing the protection used by the game.

We will track down the issue and sort it out. In the interest of helping us do so, please post here if you are seeing these issues, while running a legit version of the game."

Thank you,
The SHIV dev team

Thanks Neal for the update!:D Hopefully the devs will be getting any of the other "bugs" soon.

Happy Hunting! :ping:

[novafluxx]

I don't need the disc to play...

I got it on direct2drive. heh

No swapping discs for me!

Good news though! I hope the next patch really fixes things and maybe adds some features! Love the chice between imperial and metric!

[ref]

No graphics option is disabled, no matter the installed video card.

The 1.2 patch will feature FSAA and superior texture filtering if forced from the video card driver.
You are not in a position to know that for sure.

Yes he is ;)

Ref

[ryuzu]

So if they get AA working, which option will have to be disabled for cards older than the 8800? Which one of the graphics options controls the HDR it dosn't really say?

SH4 uses Shader Model 2.0, to work on all recent video cards (including Ati X800).
HDR can't be supported since it requires Shader Model 3.0.
It's common for games to support more than one shader model. There is no technical reason SH4 cannot support both SM2.0 and SM3.0/HDR right now.

No graphics option is disabled, no matter the installed video card.

The 1.2 patch will feature FSAA and superior texture filtering if forced from the video card driver.
You are not in a position to know that for sure.

He might be in a position to know that for sure - I came across his name in one of the files delivered on the game dvd ;)

r.

[Ping Jockey]

Good to see the DEV Team is supporting SHIV this way. Already working on patch #2. Thanks for the "heads up" Neal. :up: :up:

[Potoroo]

He might be in a position to know that for sure - I came across his name in one of the files delivered on the game dvd ;)
Fair enough. I do wonder why a dev isn't on the official Ubi forum though.

[highkoo]

Its really sad to see the effects of big industry on any format of public consumption, now that games are huge and the player bases are growing we can all pretty much expect to see the value of products and any respect for customers dive further and further into the hole. Such is the way of greed i suppose but it is a sad state of affiars that we as paying customers can become so well trained and complacent that we no longer bare the strenght to fight nor stand up for what we know is right. I see people all over these forums stating how "Ubi is great" and "what an amazing job they did" while in reality i dare any of you to honestly show me how this is the case? But fine everyone is entitiled to there opinnions so i have no quarrels with anyone who really enjoys Sh4 in its current state, but please do not attack those who wish to express there disatisfaction.

As far as software companies using copywrite protection to protect there bottom line, well this is a clear example of what is important to these companies and strangley enough its not there costumers. Now most of you may think well.... what else are companies supposed to care most about??? they have to make money right!
Yes of course they do, but strangley enough making your customers happy and making lots of money go hand in hand (what a strange concept i might add:roll:) why companies dont seem to unerstand this human dynamic still eludes me but thats besides the point.

A note to all:
If you find that you are not happy with a product then i encourage you to speak up about it as the squeeky wheel gets the oil. if you do not let these companies know that you are not satisfied by voice and purchase then i assure all of you they will continue to serve you an increasingly complex and well packaged plate of steaming hot Poo!

PS.
SH4 is by no means a subsim; there is very little that is simulator about it, actually. Check out "Dangerous Waters" if you want a SIMULATOR although not nearly as pretty as SH4

Commence with the Flamming!!!!:arrgh!:

[Spaxspore]

Commence with the Flamming!!!!:arrgh!:

am not, cause i agree

[SharpShin]

I also agree.

[Koinonos]

I personally thank you for being willing to chase down the easy and the thorny issues related to SH4. Those of us who are fans of your developement projects (SH3/SH4) completely separate your coding/fixing ability from UBI's game development cycle. You got shoved into the pressure cooker with a 9 month schedule and now your desire to leave a legacy of delivering a great game to your fans is what is driving you to fix the issues as you find them.

I personally am looking very forward to having FSAA and a higher fidelity 3D world at 1920x1200.

Here's hoping you are permitted to release the SH3/SH4 SDK's soon to see what the modders (ex: jscones, juju, ducimus, etc and the GWX team) is capable of to further enhance this already great game.

shanec (Koinonos)
Issaquah, WA

[ReM]

Fair enough. I do wonder why a dev isn't on the official Ubi forum though.

Because Subsim is: The Web's #1 BBS for all submarine and naval simulations!
The UBI forums definitely are not

[nhall70]

Wow! :D

If they can get FSAA into this game and fix the resolution problems, this may end up being one of the best looking games I've ever seen! I can barely believe what I'm hearing...this has made my whole weekend!

I'm very impressed that the dev team has acknowledged these problems and are working to correct them. Now I can play SH4 with a whole new level of interest and dream about what it will be like after the next patch.

To the dev team...thanks very much for taking the time to let us know you are working on these issues.

[Immacolata]

Maybe next time UBI might want to use something like this for their games:

OMG! IS that a dongle? LOL! I haven't seen one of those since...

/looks at macbook

Oh wait I have :) Mac - worlds biggest softwaredongle :P

Highkoo, its not as much that your points are not valid. They are. But its that you and seemingly the rest of all the world's good men and their dogs feel the urge to step up on each their little soap box, and each voice their righteous indignation and spilling it all over us. Its just getting to be
Really
Old
Hat

Sigh.

Im not going to start coming up with defenses for what state SH4 ships in or not. I take it as it is now. Im done whining. I suggest you do to. You REALLY want to give your opinion to someone who cares? Send Ubisoft a letter! And spare me for more of theses trite rants about paying beta testers, copy protection, companies that give a hoot about customers etc.

So
Tiresome.

I wanna talk about submarines. Not see endless pages of contentious drivel.

... Ill step off MY soap box now.

[mookiemookie]

Highkoo, its not as much that your points are not valid. They are. But its that you and seemingly the rest of all the world's good men and their dogs feel the urge to step up on each their little soap box, and each voice their righteous indignation and spilling it all over us. Its just getting to be
Really
Old
Hat

Sigh.

Im not going to start coming up with defenses for what state SH4 ships in or not. I take it as it is now. Im done whining. I suggest you do to. You REALLY want to give your opinion to someone who cares? Send Ubisoft a letter! And spare me for more of theses trite rants about paying beta testers, copy protection, companies that give a hoot about customers etc.

So
Tiresome.

I wanna talk about submarines. Not see endless pages of contentious drivel.

... Ill step off MY soap box now.

http://www.lehtone.net/kuvat/smiley_applause.gif Well said.

[Onkel Neal]

Ok, this thread has passed 100+ posts and we've gotten the same tired arguements about the millions of man-hours and thousands of lives wasted taking care of your game CD and putting it in the drive; and how shameful it is that a game company should protect its investment. I'm switching this thread to read-only.