Boy you guys are rough. I had exactly two days with the game to do something with this preview. To be honest I replayed the campaign about four times but continuous crashes and odd bugs that will be fixed on release meant that I had to give up on trying to get any further in the campaign and just look at the single missions.
I am working with Beta code and to be honest, the game tended to crash whenever something really exciting started happening. Exterior views were almost impossible with this build simply because the game would cause horrific monitor difficulties whenever I went outside the boat. Likewise torpedo shots on ships created a slideshow effect. Part of the problem is my video card (Radeon 3850) and the other problem is beta code. The two convoys I did manage to maneuver close to turned into slideshows the moment I launced torpedoes. I do admit I should have taken more shots there but I was too busy cursing at the slideshow. Do not view this as a critique of the game. Almost every beta that I have worked with or have previewed has had similar problems. The game is more polished than a lot of previews I have seen and pretty darned complete but it is still beta and what it does with my Radeon gives me fits.
You guys have to understand the audience for the game at SimHq. It isn't Subsim. This is a direct entheusist site for Submarine fanatics. It should be a more detailed preview because it is designed for guys who are big time sub and naval boat guys. SimHq is a much more generalized site with a much wider fanbase. Any preview over 3 pages is nixed by management because it is too long for a preview.
As for Rah Rah, that is exactly what a preview is. Previews, IMHO, are not reviews. I don't mention bugs precisely because they may negatively impact the game. Bugs I find in beta code, to include crash bugs, bugs that cause weird graphical problems and just plain things not implemented yet but in the works are not in a preview. I put in what is planned, not what actually I see. IL2's preview was about 70% of the final game, I felt I had to report what was planned. This is a short, 3 page preview of a game that is coming out for a generalized readership that plays flight, fighting, and driving simulations. If I tried to make it an in depth preview it would take four times longer and the readership at SimHq would be turned off.
I expect the game to ship in a much more polished condition. If I have problems then I will give it some more critiques. There are some things that frankly concern me but they probably will be fixed. If not then I will point them out. I don't think I would ever write a review that would be as in depth as a Subsim review but that isn't our focus. That is the focus of your writers. I am a flight sim guy doing some naval stuff because the subject matter is interesting. I am also trying to not write 15 page previews, it ticks off the boss.
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