I would be perfectly happy with something along the lines of Seawolf or Red Storm Rising being given a graphics and interface overhaul, like what Xenonauts have done with X-Com. For WW2 subs model it on Silent Service gameplay with a touch of Pirates!
The thing is, any indie sub game that can stand any chance of getting through development and actually ship some copies will have to go back to where we began and build from there because the budget to match even SH3 graphics, amount of content or systems fidelity is not going to happen.
The only reason there are 3rd party devs developing hi-fidelity modules for FSX and DCS is because both those engines have evolved over decades of shipped iterations and even then noone knows if the hi-fidelity DCS modules will actually turn a profit with the magnitude more work they require compared to those in FSX. And this is considering these guys do not have to develop physics, campaign or other gameplay-critical systems from scratch because it's all there.
No such engine framework exists for the sub community so anything would have to be made from scratch. Even if middleware like Unity were used, all those systems would have to be developed from scratch. There's simply more to developing a sim than platform fidelity alone. So IMO it is not realistic to match or exceed what has been done with SH4/5 unless you have a budget like UBI.
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