SH4 Yes or No?

[Capt. D]

I have noticed some negative comments regarding another Pacific Theater of Operation Sub Sim - SH4. Some of the comments were the Atlantic was more intense or as the war progressed it became easier in the Pacific and therefore the game will become boring. The Atlantic campaign for the German U-Boats only became more difficult and so the game will continue to be difficult.

I agree there were less and less targets in the PTO as the war drew to a close - in '45, but if you read anything on the Pacific war you must remember we lost 52 boats during the war - 48 of which were lost in the Pacific. As vetern submariners say 52 are still on Eternal Patrol. One the USS Bullhead was lost on Aug. 6, 1945!!! How? Through enemy action in particular aircraft action. 8 boats were lost in '45 and 19 in '44 alone. Those men on the 8 boats lost in '45 sure would argue the "easy" comments and I am sure those boats lost in '44 as less and less Jap shipping were found would also agure on the easy factor.

From the USS Sealion lost in 12/41 to the Bullhead there never was a "milkrun" when a boat went out on patrol. SH4 with all the improvements I am sure it will have will be just a challenging throughout the whole PTO war. More photo recons were done more pilot recoveries were done. These were not easy and there was always the danger of enemy anti submarine patrols.

We talked about Wolf Packs in prior comments. Later in the war packs were formed and sent out to the Sea of Japan. Again not easy and boats were lost. If those who will put the game together and look at our wish lists and make the game interesting, realistic, the game will never be boring.

Those that like the Atlantic war go for it. I have played Aces of the Deep and SH3. These are great sub sims. I have read Iron Coffins and Das Boot. Have the DVD of Das Boot and have watched it many times. However the Atlantic was the Atlantic and the Pacific was the Pacific. Let's have great sub sims each unto it's own. Maybe a senerio could be made to have a US boat go from Groton to Pearl as a start of the sim and incounter a U-Boat along the way. Or, as was the case, encounter a U-Boat in the South West Pacific area. But the main focus of SH4 must be the Pacific.

Hope I did not tread on some toes - just my thoughts on the subject.

Happy Hunting :ping:

[STEED]

Well I am looking forward to SH4 next year it will be interesting to fight for the Allies in a new sphere of operations. And we all know one thing, it is going to be a great game. :up:

[Safe-Keeper]

I agree 100%:up:.

I'm looking forward to the Pacific simply for the change of theatre.

As for it becoming more boring the longer you play, I doubt it, simply because I don't see why Ubisoft should implement it that way.

[DS]

I for one am seriously looking forward to the Pacific. I suspect many of those who want to go Atlantic again (Round 3, Ding, Ding...) have not played a Pacific WWII sub sim yet. I've played both, an the Pacific offers things the Atalantic U-boat war simply can not. I can't wait...

[Onkel Neal]

Agreed. It's a new subsim, why would anyone pass on it just because it is not U-boats? :ping: True submarine enthusiasts will love it.

[bookworm_020]

I'm looking forward to SHIV as I haven't played a PTO Subsim in years and can't wait to sink my teeth into it.

Can't wait to see what the modders can do with it as well.:rock:

[Wilko]

LOL, I can't wait for it and am looking foward to any type of news that comes out... bring it ON :arrgh!:

[The General]

I remember the first time I saw video footage of Silent Hunnter III, I was gobsmacked! I've loved sub sims since I saw The Hunt for Red October and playing Red Storm Rising on the C64 was bliss (even with the loading times spread over three cassettes!). In fact I bought a powerful PC with the express intention of being able to play SH3 and that was made by the same company who built the torpedo contol computer on the U-boats, Siemens. If by the time SH4 comes out my computer is no longer up to the task I'll just have to upgrade again.

I regress. You asked what theater we'd prefer? I say, let's have it all. Improve upon what's been established and intergrate. If you have to have the Atlantic on one DVD and the Pacific on another, so be it. The game could ask you to swap DVD's (Insert Side B and press play on tape) as you cross the International Date Line or something. Silent Hunter IV should be Epic!

[TDK1044]

I think I'll enjoy the differences between the Atlantic and Pacific campaigns. SH111 was a very enjoyable sim set in the Atlantic, and I'm hoping for the same level of enjoyment in the Pacific with SH1V.

[Patboot]

SHIII is my first sub sim. I myself look forward to a Pacific campaign with updated engine, features and graphics.

Now, when do I get my I-boat?

[Godalmighty83]

i may pass on it as i simply have little interest in us subs.

[Driftwood]

i may pass on it as i simply have little interest in us subs.

What a shame. That will be your loss. I'm not all that much into U-boats but I do consider myself a virtual bubblehead and have enjoyed SHIII even though I have a hard time sinking my own "side."

[Pants]

I'll give it a go..kinda fed up with sinking allied shipping :up:

[Wilko]

It is sooooo far away but....

LOL I want it soon :sunny:

[Sailor Steve]

SH4 Yes or No?
SH4 YES!

I'm such a fan of SHI (the original), and I love SHIII's look and feel so much that I can't wait to see the two combined.
S-Boats forever (and Narwhal, Nautilus and the fleet boats, too)!

[Wulfmann]

There is little doubt the war in the Atlantic makes for a better game progression.
That said SH4 could never have been an Atlantic game because it is built with the same engine. It will be an improved SH3 so would have much less commercial success possibility unless it is a new theater.
If this was a major tech advance where say the game would be cinematic instead of animated and we all had 100G Video cards with CPUs of 100 Terabytes and 100GIGs of RM then certainly the Atlantic.
But, I am excited about a whole new area with improved aspects and will enjoy being in the navy my father served in. He served on an S-Boat but before the war so I have no line to that.
There would have been no way they would have made an updated SH3 for the Atlantic. We would have called it the patch they should have given us.
I do hope they include an upgrade patch for SH3 with SH4 for us as well.

What ever they do I just ask one thing.
Finish it right the first time.
Do not make us paying customers be beta testers and start fixing it with our frustrations.
We will wait, please, for the finished product and appreciate it if you do not release prematurely

Wulfmann

[don1reed]

Like many of you, I am totally fascinated with submarines. It doesn't amount to a hill of beans which nationality I simulate; although, I prefer WWII Subs/Uboats. When it comes to submarines, I am a cosmopolitan.

I'm really excited about the upcoming WWI simulation and what Deamon and his gang of WWI experts are putting together for us too. As subsimmers, we are most fortunate indeed, to have all this on our plate in the next couple of months.

The more 3D they become, through modern technologies, the better for all of us.

Best regards,

[Hylander_1314]

Just let us hang the "meatball" flags off the rigging while heading into base.

Personally been waiting for this since the old Silent Service game, on my Packard Bell 486DX2.

And I thought that was great!

[Steeltrap]

I think the real point is that the most important issue is not "which theatre?" but "how well is it simulated?".

In a simulation realism should be king (in so far as a simulation can be 'real'). That means.....
- performance of subs (dive time, max depth, performance on surface/submerged, endurance, armament, radar, radio and encryption, crew, engines - which, for USA subs, is quite complicated, as they have 4 diesels driving via electric engines and/or charging, and there are many variations they used in terms of different power settings while cruising etc).
- performance of targets (speed, turn radii, rates of acceleration, ability of crews to spot subs/torps, station-keeping ability, effects of weather)
- performance of escorts (as per targets above + weapons systems, detection devices, deployment in convoys, doctrinal behaviours)
- convoys (composition, routes, speed, course changes - not crazy fishtailing but not entirely constant, positioning of escorts, realistic numbers/types of escorts)
- physics (performance of systems such as sound/radar, various effects of different light conditions, weather effects on ships' motions/performance, effects of thermal layers/DC explosions on sonar detection)
- weather (variable, realistic for area and time of year)
- aircraft (realistic types, armaments, numbers, performance, detection ability - quite hard to spot a surface vessel from the air unless it is leaving a distinct wake as that's actually what is typically seen, and weather has a BIG effect on this)

Thos are the 'basics'!! Makes you wonder why anyone takes it on!!! Anyway, get those right and I don't care where it is or which 'side'. All the mods done are generally to address failures in those areas, so even SHIII came up short. There's no reason for the developers NOT to know what is needed - the question for me is how well they achieve 'realism' across those areas.

Cheers

[WilhelmSchulz.]

I think the real point is that the most important issue is not "which theatre?" but "how well is it simulated?".

In a simulation realism should be king (in so far as a simulation can be 'real'). That means.....
- performance of subs (dive time, max depth, performance on surface/submerged, endurance, armament, radar, radio and encryption, crew, engines - which, for USA subs, is quite complicated, as they have 4 diesels driving via electric engines and/or charging, and there are many variations they used in terms of different power settings while cruising etc).
- performance of targets (speed, turn radii, rates of acceleration, ability of crews to spot subs/torps, station-keeping ability, effects of weather)
- performance of escorts (as per targets above + weapons systems, detection devices, deployment in convoys, doctrinal behaviours)
- convoys (composition, routes, speed, course changes - not crazy fishtailing but not entirely constant, positioning of escorts, realistic numbers/types of escorts)
- physics (performance of systems such as sound/radar, various effects of different light conditions, weather effects on ships' motions/performance, effects of thermal layers/DC explosions on sonar detection)
- weather (variable, realistic for area and time of year)
- aircraft (realistic types, armaments, numbers, performance, detection ability - quite hard to spot a surface vessel from the air unless it is leaving a distinct wake as that's actually what is typically seen, and weather has a BIG effect on this)

Thos are the 'basics'!! Makes you wonder why anyone takes it on!!! Anyway, get those right and I don't care where it is or which 'side'. All the mods done are generally to address failures in those areas, so even SHIII came up short. There's no reason for the developers NOT to know what is needed - the question for me is how well they achieve 'realism' across those areas.

Cheers
I agrie 100% There should be no Zeros as ASW planes. But I am looking foward to the SubPac.:ping:

[Fat Bhoy Tim]

I've been playing subsims as far back as Brøderbund's 1990 release, Wolf Pack, on my families old Acer XT. But I'm seriously having trouble thinking of the last time I played a WWII PTO theatre game. Think they always came out at times I was unable to buy, and just slipped me buy. So definitely looking forward to it.

As it is, the closer you get to the Japanese home islands the more aircraft you'd have to contend with - even if they're not radar equipped.

[The General]

I just figured if they simply improved upon SHIII, they'd have to spend less time doing the donkey work and spend there whole time doing the fun stuff like; implementing some of the improvements we've all come up with.

I guess they could use the same engine as SH3 for the Pacific campaign (like the Pacific Mod that already exisits) but now they have to create all those lush interiors from scratch.

[Ping Jockey]

Has UBISOFT announced SH4 yet?If they have where is it posted? I just hope it's as good as SH1 was. Had to luv the Radar in SH1.

[Gizzmoe]

Has UBISOFT announced SH4 yet?

No, there is no official annoucement yet.

[WilhelmSchulz.]

Has UBISOFT announced SH4 yet?

No, there is no official annoucement yet.

Yes there has.

05 April 2006

Silent Hunter IV: Underway

THIS IS NOT A DRILL!

The big buzz on the web is that Ubisoft has begun planning and work on Silent Hunter IV. Now Subsim can confirm this is not wishful thinking or rumor. The new dev team has been assembled, returning many of the SH3 vets from programming, graphics, and design, under the direction of a new producer (Florin Boitor has left Ubisoft in 2005). The team is currently in the planning phase with work to begin at once.

Silent Hunter IV will return the series to the Pacific, with American submarines taking the starring role. SH4 will use the same game engine and dynamic campaign as SH3 with some improvements.

Discuss Silent Hunter IV here (http://www.subsim.com/phpBB/viewforum.php?f=49)
http://www.subsim.com/nucleus/media/1/20060405-silent_hunter4.jpeg


16 December 2005

Silent Hunter IV - Pacific Campaign

Silent Hunter IV - Pacific Campaign is slated to begin early 2006. Ubi is assembling a dev team from the SH3 group and new programmers. More details to come.

[Gizzmoe]

Yes there has.

That wasn´t an official Ubisoft announcement.

[fredbass]

Of course yes

One important thing to me is giving me the option to have enough enemy boats to keep me interested. It might not be realistic, but if it's going to be Pacific Theater only, then lets have options.

[rcs929]

Personally I'm looking forward to playing the Allies in the Pacific after numerous campaigns in SH2 & SH3. I hope there is more varied missions than just 'patrol grid x'

[Payoff]

SH4 Yes. Cant wait to see all the new interiors and compartments. . hint ..hint. :lol:

[Highbury]

I am looking forward to the new game engine and new features it will bring but I am definitly in the "none too happy about it being the the PTO" camp.

I am a sub enthusiast and a sim enthusiast so I will try it of course, but the PTO holds very, very little interest for me.

[Yak]

I for one have always had a soft spot for the pacific spending a lot of time growing up in Papua New Guinea, so i say bring it on, it will mean i can finally shelve SH1 :)

I love u-boots, but for me, the pacific is the better option, i don't believe for a minute the argument that the war will get easier, as japanese sonar improves and the japanese begin evolving to the threat, if nowhere near as effectively as the allies.

Plus the option of playing the japanese submarines is something i can only hope against a lucky star for, but i'm not holding my breath. To command the long range cruiser subs, or try fight the war in an RO-35... Too awesome to think of

[Webchessie]

I love the U-Boats in SH III, but if SH 4 improves the quality of sub simulation, I'll be in the Pacific with many of you. :up:

The two-disc idea with both Atlantic and Pacific campaigns is also very interesting, provided that there is new and improved "stuff" for the Atlantic side.

[ReM]

Publisher: Ubisoft
Platform: PC · Genre: Simulation
Release Date: 12/31/06 · Origin: Europe

So I guess this information is false?

[Nightmare]

I've been playing submarine games and simulators since I was 5 years old on a home built Zenith computer. With my fathers help we’d play USS Fast Attack for hours. The following year we purchased our first PC and played Sub Battle. Always had a special place in my heart for WW2 Pacific Theater, and since the last game in this theater was the original Silent Hunter, I’m really excited for it.

[Kptlt_Lynch]

Well, I guess I'm the odd one out... as usual.

After reading the new interview and seeing the screen shots of SH4, as impressed as I am with the improvements, my heart lies with the U-Boats and the Atlantic. It's just my particular intrest and in no way ignores the efforts of the American and Japanese crews.

Since SHIII was released I have been running most of my partols realtime on a dedicated machine, so, as most of you have run through the game probly 4-10 times, I'm still in 1943. Which really works out as I don't have to speed up my exsisting experience to make way for a new release.

However, as I will probly pass on SH4, I look forward to the improvements that SH4 will offer future releases of Silent Hunter if/when UBI returns to the Atlantic. Hopefully I'll be done with SHIII by then.... just make sure we get some resupply out here dammit!!!:ping:

Lynch

[Frenssen]

It will be interesting to try new boats and equipment. I played SH1 in it`s day and in the early war years it was quite difficult because the boats I had then couldn`t dive very deep to evade deptch charges. It was something like 250 ft/80m if I remember correctly. Later in the war it became easier, but I loved sailing out of Manila in my little boat:)
As you may have noticed I like being the underdog and the epic struggle in the Atlantic interests me more on a historical level since it`s closer geographically. One thing I never will get used to is the lame "dive dive dive" sequence. I prefer the more dramatic AAAALLLLAAARRRMMM!!!!!!:lol:
Anyway, I think it is the right decision to go Pacific this time.

[Greentimbers]

Any new sub sim is a good thing:cool:
Started with the pacific, it will be good to go back there.

[JustinReg]

at the end of the day i am just pleased to have a new SH/sub game. Silent Service 2 in the PTO on the commodore 64 was my first sub game, and i really liked it.

[cappy70]

Well,,as a big fan of the "orginal" SH , I'm really looking forward to SH4:D

SH3 will always stay on my harddrive.:arrgh!:

[scrapser]

My very first computer game back in 1985 was "Silent Service" for the Commodore 64. I became addicted to playing it and actually did dream of realism such that we have today. Later, I bought the Amiga version which was a pretty good leap in that direction.

With the PC came Silent Hunter and I was again playing a sim that was very much like Silent Service but with a lot more realism.

Now Silent Hunter IV is coming and my dream is being realized finally after 21 years!

Good things come to those who wait.

scrapser

[cappy70]

Yup same for me,,went through Amiga 500/600/1200 and played SH all the time,,many,many late nights.:D :D

[Syxx_Killer]

I've never played a Pacific subsim other than Silent Service for NES. I am very much looking forward to SH4 so I give it a resounding YES! I am so bloody sick of the North Atlantic. Why does a subsim always have to be about U-boats anyway? How boring it gets. I think it would have been suicide for the devs if they based SH4 on U-boats yet again.

[scrapser]

Yup same for me,,went through Amiga 500/600/1200 and played SH all the time,,many,many late nights.:D :D

In case you're interested, you can get the WINUAE Amiga emulator and most of the original Amiga games for free on the Internet. Then you would have an Amiga 4000 to go back and experience those games all over again.

I use WINUAE and AIOB (Amiga in a Box). I'm not sure what will happen once the new Window's Vista is released and becomes mainstream. You can also get a Commodore 64 emulator and there's another emulator out there called MAME that plays just about every Arcade game (the actual games) that were every produced.

scrapser