[Kpt. Lehmann]

Just to slam on the brakes a little here because I feel that the WRONG picture may be being painted in regards to GW's overall intent.

GW is not just a "sound and graphics mod." What we have done is approach the entire package. Gameplay or simulator content advances alone are pretty dull IMHO without efforts to make "realistic" sounds and graphics to match. I think that however you choose to go about doing it... "immersion" cannot be achieved without these three elements.

It took more than a bit of courage for the GW team to take the road it has chosen.

Myself and the GW mod-team have spent much time and energy on "Realism." You can find a GREAT DEAL of represented realism in GW. There have also been long discussions and little wars on this forum regarding what constitutes "realism." I submit that what defines "realism" must be decided on by the individual based on the information he or she absorbs... and adding a dash or two of life experience and common sense. In the same vein one individuals or group's definition of "realism" should not be forced on another. Suggestion should be enough. The player will decide for themselves anyway... and this is why the creators of GW will never claim to offer the "highest possible level of realism." Though we will state that we do attempt to offer a well advanced representation of it.
For example:
.... U-boats that sink by flooding on occasion as opposed to simply popping out of existence via the "Instant Screen-O-death." GW's U-Boat damage model is an amalgamation of the Hollywood Advanced U-Boat damage mod and the Die-Hard mod. This was mixed by Marhkimov. So far I am very happy with it.
.... In GW, Depth charges are no longer laser-guided and are more inaccurate... but still lethal. (Remember the pin-point DC drop thread?) This is probably one of the most intensively tested and apparently successful elements in GW and was adjusted numerous times by myself and Marhkimov. If adjusted further one way or the other, IMHO negative effects overcome the intent of the fix.
.... In GW, DD's are more aggressive for the most part and the "uber sonar lock" can now be broken by an intelligent commander.
.... The deck gun and AA weapon uber inertial stability/laser guidance is effectively dealt with in GW. (On flat sea states, it will appear otherwise somewhat the same as stock though)
... Many mods like "decks awash," map contact tracking alterations, and snorkel detection by radar etc. are becoming commonly accepted I think primarily because they should have been included in the stock game to begin with and we all recognize these things. So it is perfectly reasonable to say there are similarities between the different big mods in many ways at least in intent to reach effect "X." The impression I get from reviewing the different mod-packs is that it appears we were possibly all working along the same lines with different approaches... sometimes at the same time whitout realizing it. We've tweaked existing mods and offered some cool new stuff all at the same time. All of this was done with the intent to make some things better in one way or another.

When I return Monday I will continue with this post and be able to speak in much more detail. Hopefully, this thread will assist players in making their choices. I do not intend for it to be a sales platform for GW, nor do I intend to use it as a vehicle to attack the efforts of others. Furthermore it is my intention only to delineate some fundamental differences....

.... because one choice is not a choice at all.