As usual, John, you hit the nail on the head. BF42, Vietnam, BF2 were all fantastic games. I enjoyed them immensely. I would never argue they were real worlds, realistic, but they were great computer games.


Agreed. And hopefully it will pull in many new guys who really haven't been interested in or exposed to submarine warfare. Who can say, maybe a successful SHO will grow the player base several times over and there could be demand for a Silent Hunter 6: like SH5 but fully engineered to replace SH3. :cool:

One thing we need to remember (we being the guys who have been playing subsims since Gato... our realism skills grew with the games. Wolfpack and Aces of the Deep were pretty simple to learn and play. There was no manual TDC, map plotting, and complexity in those games. We were ready when SH3 came along. It's possible a lot of new players are discouraged by the realism features we enjoy.

Another thing I was thinking about, how many SH3/SH4 players among us do not like TDC work? I have heard many times here, from passionate subsim players, they love realistic games but they feel the Captain does not get his hands dirty with plotting and TMO. He has officers for that. :hmm2: A valid point. I personally prefer the game to depend on my actions for updating the plot map, so I play SH3/SH4 with no map contacts. My maps never show any enemy ships, I plot them all from observations (and it's usually full of errors, but hey! that was real life). That doesn't mean the guy who like real-time moving ship icons (Aces of the Deep style) is any less of a player (or more), just we have different preferences. :salute:

Cheers!
Neal

I can overlook the hardcore simulation aspect, but I am struggling with the presentation and immersion.

I would suggest the SHO developers take a good look at how Piranha is handling MechWarrior Online which is also online F2P. The important thing to note is how they have listened to and got the buy in from their fanbase already with plenty of people paying up to $120 before the game is even released!

SHO does not appear to be what I want, I think you hit the nail on the head. Is it what the wider or majority Subsim community wants I guess is the question...

Regardless of my opinions...thanks for the review Neal, and I look forward to any future updates or developments.

Please remember too that SHO is a free to play game. You have no obligation to pay for anything, and if at the very least, give SHO a chance. F2P games are very number weary, the developers (and much more so the publishers) are watching the number of players, and if there isn't much interest then it's considered a lost cause.

Take for instance Google Fiber. Living in Kansas City, it is very possible I will be able to get Google Fiber at my work. There are three plans, $120 a month which is internet and TV, $70 which is just internet, and free, but free requires a $300 installation charge.

Google is measuring the interest and testing the waters with new technology, much like what Ubi is trying here with SHO. If they're offering free service and nobody seems interested, it's possible that the US of A will stay behind many countries in broadband speed. SHO is offering a free to play model, and if no interest is shown, it's possible Ubi will completely drop the SH line, which we have feared so many times.

Let's not let this happen. Participate in the beta, actual game, post your criticisms. Just give it a shot, who knows, you might just like it! :)

Captnmike
 

OK.... Keep pushing Neal! And I agree with Others who say they love Silent Hunter and are looking forward to this online verson. I've played them all but never tried the SH5 online? Have applied for the "Beta access" also!

Salute', Mike :-)

Thanks for the early info/review Neal!

My 2 cents...Ive got SH3 for the uboats (with the mods that have been made--years of entertainment still ahead (who knows SH5 might take over someday-just ordered it), got SHIV for the pacific (which I havnt really even got to yet...........so now SH online with a chance at a multiplayer online style with BDU incorporations :sunny:----Just gotta accept it wont be SHIII online and with it being f2p--can't complain.



Also......with mmo/online games---development is usually an ongoing standard thing that just doesn't end with a patch or 2 right after release.....2 years after it's start SH online can possibly be a complete differnt animal then how it begins....

(It's good to see Silent Hunter is continuing in at least some kind of form)...

just sayin,

Hm, hm, hm...

I would to know if some information about game are restricted at this moment but...

1. What about available period of war?
2. Wchich region are available for players (Arctic, Middleterrain, Indian Ocean)?
3. Is multiplayer mode available for this game - means some players play together as multiplayer missions at SH3-5?
4. What about weather or weather impact? Will we see snow?
5. What about night surface attack or gun attack?
6. What about damage system and repairs / supply at sea?
7. Airplanes roles? Enemy submarines? HK groups? Heavy units? Allies? Neutral units?

I hope that it isn't a "BdU simulation" with arcade and light-sim mode...

@ Antar: I agree that those are good questions, for a game you're thinking about buying. Since the basic service is free the "gift horse in the mouth" advice is the best advice. If you're not paying for it knowing those things in advance doesn't mean anything. When it is released all your questions will be answered, and if you don't like it, well, it didn't cost you anything, did it?

Hopefully they decide to go the route of online Battlestar Galactica with State of the art 3D graphics directly in your internet browser window.

http://us.battlestar-galactica.bigpoint.com

Check out this vid.
http://youtu.be/9F_kD_hiRYM

Imagine SH Online with this power :yeah:

Thank you for the info! :)

Thanks for the early preview and I agree "Panzer Elite is a wonderful addition to your sim library"

....and you just won the Easter Egg prize!

PM your mailing address my way,

cheers
Neal

There was an easter egg? :doh:

:hmm2: I think it's just an in-joke between Neal and adejb1, something to keep the rest of us on our toes! :o

I think Neal met the developer, or a developer, of Panzer Elite whilst in Germany.

Sorry, but I disagree. Game should be good and playable.
Imagine - why players will choose SHO then SH3/4? Becouse it is a new sub game or F2P game only? Sorry - but SHO doesn't surprise me today.