New subsim, OpenSSN, in its early stages
 

Hi everyone. I'm currently working on a new subsim. It's called OpenSSN and can be found over at http://openssn.sf.net. My work isn't entirely new, it's actually a continuation of the work done by the LinuxSSN team several years ago. It appears they abandoned the project after getting some basics working. Since it's open source I've been able to take what they started and run with it.

At the moment OpenSSN is in the early stages. Players can move about a map, detect AI-controlled ships and subs and use radar and sonar. So far there's no combat and no missions, but I hope to get those features added soon. I'm using the commercial game "Seawolf" as inspiration for the look and feel of the game.

Right now I'm targeting the Linux and FreeBSD platforms, but if anyone wants to take the code and put together a package for Windows, I'm more than happy to work with you to make that happen. The code is pretty portable.

Right now there isn't much to see (sea), but I will be posting updates here as the project improves and I hope you'll chime in with suggestions or send me some patches (if you're a coder).

Cheers!

Great news!!
I'd love to see a modern subsim linux-native... :up:

Please, please, don't give up :yep:

My programming skills are close to zero, but I can offer myself for a Spanish translation. I know Italian also, but I'm Spanish; if no Italian offers I'll do.

Let me know if you need help and, if so, what could I do.

Thank you, I'll try to stick with it. It's something I do "after hours", but I'm hoping to get missions included soon.

Your language skills could indeed be handy. I've written a first-draft of a manual in English. If you could translate it to Spanish, that would help me reach a wider audience. I'd also love to have the website translated into Spanish too, if you have time. Any translated documents can be e-mailed to me at jessefrgsmith@yahoo.ca

Thanks!

Best of luck redtyphoon.

If those screens from your webpage are in-game shots and fully functional, it's coming along really nicely :up:

Screen shots
 

Thank you! Those screen shots are from in-game. I'd say they are "functional" though perhaps not yet "fully functional". There is still a lot of work to do to get combat and AI in place.

Would you like a hand with the graphical side of things? Making some nice GUI screens and stuff.

Graphics
 

Right now, with the game in early development, I'm trying to keep the graphics simple. Once things are more stable I'll be open to improving them...

What I would appreciate a hand with is making the website look nicer. What I've got there is pretty much just some simple text. If someone wants to take a stab at making a nicer website, that would be great.

Also, for the Linux & BSD users out there, please file a request with your distribution and ask them to package OpenSSN. That would help me get more exposure and fix distro-specific bugs.

Work in progress. I'm also doing it "after hours", but I think I'll have the manual ready soon.

Will this remain a pure Linux thingy ?

Linux and stuff
 

Well, I'm doing all of my development on Linux, so I suppose it is primarily a "Linux thingy". However, I am trying to keep the code cross-platform-friendly and I plan to get it ported to FreeBSD once some more features are in place.

OpenSSN is built using C++ and the SDL graphics library which runs on Windows and OS X, so I suspect it should be easy to get running on other systems.

Bottom line: I personally won't be making builds for other operating systems, but if someone else is willing to step forward and make packages for Windows, OS X, etc then I will host those packages on the OpenSSN website and work with the packagers to make the process as easy as possible.

Tell me, have you ever played Red Storm Rising ?

Red Storm Rising
 

I haven't played Red Storm Rising, but I've read the Tom Clancy book by that name three times. :)

You should try playing it. It would probably give you some good ideas as to setting up gameplay.

You, missed the best subsim ever! This is the best damn cold war subsim ever created! I find it even better than the whole sonalysts serie, particularly because of its campaign system and the amount of choices.

If you are going to creat your own sim then you definetely have to take Red Storm Rising as an example( and NOT Hunter Killer or Sub Command) particularly the campaign system that provides ENDLESS replayability.

I am still playing it on my Amiga emulator once in a while. It makes you addicted every time you play it immediately and it is one of the most immersive games ever! This is a stone age game that appeared the first time on the C64 but in my view overall it still beats all the other sims including sonalysts! The game is nearly perfect. There are maybe only a couple of things that needs to be improved.

I would suggest you give it a shot. Give us Red Storm Rising in 3D!

I took a look at some video captures of the game and while it has elements I like, that's not really what I'm aiming for. I'm trying to get something closer to Seawolf SSN-21 (https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikiped...SSN-21_Seawolf)

Sir, video capture is NOT good enough in order to get a taste of the potential of this game! You definetelly need to give it a spin. Having missed this sim is unforgivable. The obsolete appearance of RSR is way missleading. The tactical potential of this ole sim is incredeble and can not be experienced from videos. You HAVE to try the game! I garantee you, you will not be disappointed and it will surely have a major influence on your endaveour! RSR has qualities that definetelly need to know. It is particularly how the different game elements are integrated into a blasting experience. RSR shows how the different aspects of the game are properly balanced. RSR is exceptionally well ballanced,as i feel. RSR is also to the point. I still would suggest to get it and spend a weekend with it.

Closer in what sense ?

Seawolf is definetelly the way to go. For that i apploud to you. But for an even better experience you need to inject a good portion of RSR into it. Basically take RSR slap Seawolf like station and weapon simulation into it and you have the best cold war sim ever.

Again, i urge you to play RSR for a weekend or so. Then you will understand what i mean. RSR is almost perfect as such. What it needs now is a modernization and this is where you could come in with your Seewolf approach. I really loved Seawolf. A magnificent approach. A Seawolf with a RSR campaign, that would be it!

But the bottom line is you need to play RSR first and this is not negotionable.:salute:

Since I don't have a C64 kicking around, maybe you could tell me what it is about Red Storm Rising you liked so much? What specifics made it stand out as a good subsim?

Off the top of my head:

It has a really nice integrated design that lets you effortlessly jump between stations yet maintain perfect situational awareness all the time. For instance you always have access to weapon/contact/damage info regardless of if you're at the tactical display or at the sonar station identifying a contact.

Also RSR has a well thought out TMA system where your simulated firecontrol crew constantly update the solution for you but what you do directly affects it. Unlike other (training) sims it doesn't require you to manually stack the dots or lay out plotting rulers. Your crew does that and your sonar team will also plot enemy torpedoes for you so you have a much better idea what an enemy weapon is doing than in certain other sims that pretty much require you to man every single station. In RSR you are the skipper and is tasked with command decisions only.

Also it doesn't feature any dedicated sonar screen at all. Basically your crew listens for contacts for you and do a good job of it. I personally prefer that to other games that pretty much require you to sit glued to a waterfall display for no good reason. RSR gameplay is built around commanding a submarine, not monitoring a sonar display.

Also the campaign is simple and dynamic. Depending on which side has the advantage, certain types of missions are generated and transit takes place on a strategic map that of course features sonar detection so it is possible to do sprint/drift etc to get into a favourable firing position. A typical engagement can last anywhere from 15 minutes to hours depending on the enemy and your skill.

Oh, and it simulates blue/brown water ops as well as arctic conditions with floe and pack ice. Different areas of ocean have different sound propagation properties and map overlays are available that allow you to use this to your advantage. Also when you fire a weapon, you set a waypoint and click to fire. Mk48's can be programmed with different search patterns, given multiple waypoints and controlled directly.

I'm sure Daemon can fill you in on whatever I forgot.

I think what you're describing is pretty close to my Grand Design for OpenSSN. It is my intention to allow the player to spend most of their time on the tactical/map screen and have most of the little details automated.

For example, the sonar crew will automatically detect and plot ships and torpedoes on the tactical map. The player _can_ go to the sonar console and watch the waterfall display if he/she chooses, but targets are plotted automatically. The same will apply to firing torpedoes, radar and esm functions. The player will be able to control these things from the map screen using short-cut keys and "let the crew handle it". Or, for those who like to get involved, the player can click over to the appropriate console and click a button to do it manually.

It is my plan to allow the player to focus on tactics and give helm/weapon orders. But also give the player the ability to get into more detail if they want.

At the moment it's too early for me to think about a campaign mode. I want to get the basics done and pre-planned missions first. However, I'm open to the campaign mode concept once the foundation is laid.

That sounds excellent. Are you planning on including a 3d engine or using prerendered cutscenes?