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CB.. · 08-31-07, 05:14 PM

Cheers Thermos!

if you get it and it IS in english we'll be begging you to post the translations here i can assure you!!! babel fish doesn't do it justice at all..

i did start translating the campaign patrol briefings last night with babel fish only to find i had for some reason translated the wrong file LOL

so will have to find the correct file and work thru that one instead...it is all doubly hard to work on when you can't read the lanquage so don't know for sure which file is which..

hey just been out on another campaign patrol here's a screen shot ...what's not to like??

tho this is with a set of very low res sky textures which i will have to incorporate into some sort of weather mod in order for them to work properly in game....it stays dark all the time LOL..the stock sky textures have morning noon evening and night textures built into them which change automatically...i'll have to write a mod to do this if this idea is going to work....but the above sky mod certainly gives me a very high FPS rate..(around 30 FPS i'd say..i can go to 16 times excell and the view from the bridge still runs as smooth as silk)

i still have some problems with panning the view from time to time...some times it glides round like a first person shooter....then for no obviuos reason it will stick and judder round very tediuosly for a short time...then back to swishing round easily again...don't know why as yet....

anyhuw..even if i have to play the game with the above sky texture pernamently..(i can improve on it i'm sure) it's still a heck of a atmospheric
subsim....very cool

UPDATE...lol..

well i sorted the weather mod out and now it gets light and dark as per normal using the low res sky textures...i also edited the sea states for each weather type to a more to my mind realistic appearance..the stock waves are too choppy and angular ...
here we are on another campaign patrol..having just emerged from a very dark night into the morning sun and mist...the weather changes now work also using the low res skys..(theye are not any smaller or less well defined than the stock.. they just don't use the normal stock game multiple layered effects)

here's another screenshot to add to the ones above....

this illustrates very well the fact that the game graphics and expecialy the modelling is IMO far superior to both SH3 and SH4..
the sea it self when viewed from the bridge as stock is weak..but it is capable of far more effects and has far more layers of animation and reflection and atmospheric effects than certainly SH3 actualy had...take a look at this screen shot of one of the stock bog standard cargo vessels..and you can see that nothing has been left out...it's stationary because i just rammed it getting the shot ..ouch..i sank lol it just lost power

this image is obviously shown with the in game anti alaising at minmum and indeed EVERTHING set at minmum
tho this again raises the issue regarding the graphics options..i HAD turned the ship reflections off...it doesn't seem to have picked up on this ..

the weather effects are better than SH3....the hi res cloud and sky textures are really significantly well designed..with a very pronounced 3D effect produced by the volume textures ...so the sky is not just a simple texture, it is a 3d entity in itself as stock...i have reduced this a lot to try to squeeze some more FPS out the game..

in fact apart from the fact that the pann view and raise and lower scope functions frequently seem to "freeze up"
leaving you unable to pan the bridge view or raise/lower pan the scope for 20 seconds at a time..it now runs like a dream..it is almost as if the game doesn't like my mouse and keyboard drivers or somthing...because the FPS are now well above what is needed to simply just play the game..
weird stuff really..hope (if it is a game issue and not just my system) they can do something with this..
the fact that the game really doesn't seem to remember all your graphics selections has to be a clue to this perhaps

anyhuw all this goes to show that in spite of the tendency to view this game as a throw away , poorly made affair...
it quite obviously is able to compete on every level with any subsim of this nature currently available..
the 2d sub interior and lack of an exterior view are IMO the only thigs that give the player initially a bad impression
beyond that (and any FPS issue you may have) it is as i say the equal of anything out there right now...highly reccomened for WW1 buffs (like myself)
i can't wait to see what the campaign throws my way...seen screenshots of the player attacking shore targets....there's some mention of resupply...there's even a whale in there some where lol...i've played thru 3 or 4 campaign patrols and it's damn difficult to get kills (for any-one inexperienced with manual target-ing like any huw..there may be an auto targeting option but if there is i haven't found anything like it..and to be honest i kinda hope there isn't one...)

other thought on the style and complexity of the gameplay

1/there is no such thing as periscope depth with this sim..you have to set the depth manualy..and it doesn't always remain stable....the sea state throws you up and down making station keeping far from an one click affair..
2/coming up to say 10 metres depth is dangerous when close to enemy vessels..as the boat often (tho not always you notice..very intrigueing that..) goes two or three meters higher before coming back to your set depth...which leaves you briefly with your bow out of the water...(not seen that as stock in SH3.4)

so what was a one click automatic option in SH3 etc ("comeing to periscope depth" etc) is a completely dynamic process with this sim...with very unpredictable results i can tell you lol!..it doesn't just come up or go down to ten metres...it can be 5 metres either side of that depth meaning it is far from automatic..
anyhuw i'm going on a bit here...needless to say the scope depth attack on shipping is actauly far more in depth due to the above conditons and also because the sea it self plays tricks on you..throwing you scope well out the water for 20 seconds ..(it becoming visable to the enemy during this time) only to plunge it below the surface again leaving you blind for an equal amount of time... and it is quite impossible to predict when this is going to happen lol

NOPE..no such thing as " coming to periscope depth" in this game!!..eat ya heart out SH3/4
periscope depth is an entirely abstract concept here..nothing automatic about it..you have to work it out for your self EACH and EVERY time you want to find the depth at which it is safe to raise the scope...could be 9 meters..could be 11..could be 8 metres then 9 metres then 7 metres then 12 metres all in the space of five miuntes!
it dynamicaly follows the wave pattern exactly..and the wave pattern dynamicaly follows the weather etc..

08-31-07, 05:14 PM	#31
CB.. Ace of the Deep Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: UK Posts: 1,278 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	Cheers Thermos! if you get it and it IS in english we'll be begging you to post the translations here i can assure you!!! babel fish doesn't do it justice at all.. i did start translating the campaign patrol briefings last night with babel fish only to find i had for some reason translated the wrong file LOL so will have to find the correct file and work thru that one instead...it is all doubly hard to work on when you can't read the lanquage so don't know for sure which file is which.. hey just been out on another campaign patrol here's a screen shot ...what's not to like?? tho this is with a set of very low res sky textures which i will have to incorporate into some sort of weather mod in order for them to work properly in game....it stays dark all the time LOL..the stock sky textures have morning noon evening and night textures built into them which change automatically...i'll have to write a mod to do this if this idea is going to work....but the above sky mod certainly gives me a very high FPS rate..(around 30 FPS i'd say..i can go to 16 times excell and the view from the bridge still runs as smooth as silk) i still have some problems with panning the view from time to time...some times it glides round like a first person shooter....then for no obviuos reason it will stick and judder round very tediuosly for a short time...then back to swishing round easily again...don't know why as yet.... anyhuw..even if i have to play the game with the above sky texture pernamently..(i can improve on it i'm sure) it's still a heck of a atmospheric subsim....very cool UPDATE...lol.. well i sorted the weather mod out and now it gets light and dark as per normal using the low res sky textures...i also edited the sea states for each weather type to a more to my mind realistic appearance..the stock waves are too choppy and angular ... here we are on another campaign patrol..having just emerged from a very dark night into the morning sun and mist...the weather changes now work also using the low res skys..(theye are not any smaller or less well defined than the stock.. they just don't use the normal stock game multiple layered effects) here's another screenshot to add to the ones above.... this illustrates very well the fact that the game graphics and expecialy the modelling is IMO far superior to both SH3 and SH4.. the sea it self when viewed from the bridge as stock is weak..but it is capable of far more effects and has far more layers of animation and reflection and atmospheric effects than certainly SH3 actualy had...take a look at this screen shot of one of the stock bog standard cargo vessels..and you can see that nothing has been left out...it's stationary because i just rammed it getting the shot ..ouch..i sank lol it just lost power this image is obviously shown with the in game anti alaising at minmum and indeed EVERTHING set at minmum tho this again raises the issue regarding the graphics options..i HAD turned the ship reflections off...it doesn't seem to have picked up on this .. the weather effects are better than SH3....the hi res cloud and sky textures are really significantly well designed..with a very pronounced 3D effect produced by the volume textures ...so the sky is not just a simple texture, it is a 3d entity in itself as stock...i have reduced this a lot to try to squeeze some more FPS out the game.. in fact apart from the fact that the pann view and raise and lower scope functions frequently seem to "freeze up" leaving you unable to pan the bridge view or raise/lower pan the scope for 20 seconds at a time..it now runs like a dream..it is almost as if the game doesn't like my mouse and keyboard drivers or somthing...because the FPS are now well above what is needed to simply just play the game.. weird stuff really..hope (if it is a game issue and not just my system) they can do something with this.. the fact that the game really doesn't seem to remember all your graphics selections has to be a clue to this perhaps anyhuw all this goes to show that in spite of the tendency to view this game as a throw away , poorly made affair... it quite obviously is able to compete on every level with any subsim of this nature currently available.. the 2d sub interior and lack of an exterior view are IMO the only thigs that give the player initially a bad impression beyond that (and any FPS issue you may have) it is as i say the equal of anything out there right now...highly reccomened for WW1 buffs (like myself) i can't wait to see what the campaign throws my way...seen screenshots of the player attacking shore targets....there's some mention of resupply...there's even a whale in there some where lol...i've played thru 3 or 4 campaign patrols and it's damn difficult to get kills (for any-one inexperienced with manual target-ing like any huw..there may be an auto targeting option but if there is i haven't found anything like it..and to be honest i kinda hope there isn't one...) other thought on the style and complexity of the gameplay 1/there is no such thing as periscope depth with this sim..you have to set the depth manualy..and it doesn't always remain stable....the sea state throws you up and down making station keeping far from an one click affair.. 2/coming up to say 10 metres depth is dangerous when close to enemy vessels..as the boat often (tho not always you notice..very intrigueing that..) goes two or three meters higher before coming back to your set depth...which leaves you briefly with your bow out of the water...(not seen that as stock in SH3.4) so what was a one click automatic option in SH3 etc ("comeing to periscope depth" etc) is a completely dynamic process with this sim...with very unpredictable results i can tell you lol!..it doesn't just come up or go down to ten metres...it can be 5 metres either side of that depth meaning it is far from automatic.. anyhuw i'm going on a bit here...needless to say the scope depth attack on shipping is actauly far more in depth due to the above conditons and also because the sea it self plays tricks on you..throwing you scope well out the water for 20 seconds ..(it becoming visable to the enemy during this time) only to plunge it below the surface again leaving you blind for an equal amount of time... and it is quite impossible to predict when this is going to happen lol NOPE..no such thing as " coming to periscope depth" in this game!!..eat ya heart out SH3/4 periscope depth is an entirely abstract concept here..nothing automatic about it..you have to work it out for your self EACH and EVERY time you want to find the depth at which it is safe to raise the scope...could be 9 meters..could be 11..could be 8 metres then 9 metres then 7 metres then 12 metres all in the space of five miuntes! it dynamicaly follows the wave pattern exactly..and the wave pattern dynamicaly follows the weather etc.. __________________ the world's tinyiest sh3 supermod- and other SH3/SH2 stuff http://www.ebort2.co.uk/ The best lack all conviction, while the worst Are full of passionate intensity. W.B.Yeats Last edited by CB..; 09-01-07 at 07:43 AM.