[Sailor Steve]

Originally Posted by tyler4402

After a reinstall of my OP system I reinstalled my copy of SH3, and after trying to enter the patch SH3_DVD_1.4b_emea I got a message saying that the patch could not be added as the game identity was unrecognised.

Any copy released 2008 or later is already fully patched. That is why the patch couldn't recognize it. You almost certainly do NOT need to buy another copy.

As I could only add 4 mods anyway to the JSGME due to always getting messages that the mod I wanted was already overwritten (whatever that means)

Many different mods alter the same files. If you don't use JSGME you run the danger of overwriting previous mods and never knowing why it's not working. JSGME is smart enough to tell you when you're about to overwrite (cover up) another mod you installed with JSGME. It also tells you exactly which file is going to be overwritten, so you can decide which version of that file is more important to you. It also tells you if it's something as simple as a text file, so you can combine the two and have both working.

so I have decided to buy another copy of SH, hopefully genuine one.
Now for this I need some advice before I jump, because coming back to the site after quite some time I see that there is now a SH5 although it looks like some people don't rate it.

Load up your current SH3 copy and start the game. On the loading screen it should say which version it is. If it's 1.4 then you'll be wasting your money if you buy another copy.

Unfortunately I don't know what mods work with which game best and I would like some help in finding a good game and mod combination.

Pretty much every mod made for SH3 works with it. The question is whether that mod works well with other mods. That's what JSGME is for. This list was made for GWX, but many of these work just fine with any supermod.
http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?t=170090

With my last SH3 game I had 4 mods including the convoy mod which made the game much more interesting now I see a GWX and a LSH mod, so can anyone explain what is the difference between the two and which would be best when I get another SH3 dvd, or could I use them both?

There are currently four supermods for SH3:

NYGM (Not Your Grandmother's Mod): Is the most in-depth gameplay supermod. It's oriented toward accurate Enemy AI and is very tough to play. It's also has a host of devoted fans.

LSH3 (Living Silent Hunter 3): Oriented more toward feel an immersion. Lots of cool graphics stuff.

WAC (War Ace Campaign): Great attention to the details of who went where throughout the war. Gives you the chance to take part in major wartime events, with careful attention to detail.

GWX (Grey Wolves eXpanded): A combination of the two concepts, with very good gameplay and also great graphics. Easily the most popular of the SH3 supermods. GWX ended some time ago, but former members have gone out of their way to keep expanding it, with many new graphics details taken from LSH3 (with permission, of course).

While you can't combine supermods without a whole lot of work, MultiSH3 lets you have multiple copies of SH3 on your computer at the same time, so you can try them all out.