SH5 player review thread - post your opinions about the game here

[SabreHawk]

Right now the biggest software issue I have is this site, and the forum. I've had to make three attempts to post each time cause it's running so sloooow. Yes, this forum is the slowest I've ever used, and im on some pretty large ones too, RCG comes to mind and it loads up in less tnat two seconds.
This subsim foum is lucky to load at all without giving me a broken link screen.
Ok, nuff on that we'll see how many attempts it take to post this time.

OK so im still on that first training mission in the baltic sea, and am on my way back to Kiel. Having a great time just exploring the boat, even though apparently not everything is active on this mission.
No TC panel, no crew mgmt, and some other things I cant think of right away. But boy I just love that SEA! Man, it knocks my slickers off. (hehe, if I had slickers that is LOL!)

Now I know there are things missing, and I expected that cause like I said there's no game ever that launched completely finished.
What I wish is that folks would stop crying and whinning about it all and calmly state what they see missing, and then maybe the devs could find it all and fix it. Im sure they wish to, and really it's not thier fault that their boss's deadline's are unrealistic. Which is common accross the software industry.

[FIREWALL]

Originally Posted by Eldritch

I payed around $100 for SH5 (bought 2 copies, the LE from amazon and the ordinary version from gamersgate) and I still think it was worth every penny. Sure, there are some bugs but other than the morale bug there's nothing that breaks the game completely. I haven't had this much fun since SH3 came out.

Above all else, this game SHOULD be bought because if Ubisoft doesn't get a high rate of sales, they're going to quit making SH games. I rather have half-finished submarine games that we can fix later on than no submarine games at all.

Originally Posted by 141st_Alper

You right!

How do you both feel about it now ?

[TheBeast]

Originally Posted by shmall

A good read, however if one is going to review a game/sim, then one should maybe take a bit time to llearnmore how it works?

quote from you " I have as yet to be able to find a way to actually order my men to the deck gun and then order them to actually fire on an enemy vessel"

its easy.....just ask the deck officer and he will order men to the deck gun or flak gun or both, then as in the other SH titles, get your binocs out, line up on the target and press the space bar....they will open fire...simple

I encounter these smae issue's as well. Also, I could not communicate with any of the crew other then to tell them to keep up the good work. I spent hours trying to figure out to man the deck/aa guns. Even after RTFM.
I read his review as well. I am pretty sure he had some of the same problems I did.
I thought SHV was so bad that the game wouldnt even get cracked thinking they wouldn't even want to waste thier time but was very surprised to discover it was cracked within 24hrs.

-TheBeast

[Task Force]

Lol... I guess sh5s ok... only ok tho...

I got it the other day because I was in walmart... and they had one...

My main complaint is the *******ing drm, but thats already known... The interface sucks (gotta get those mods, ya know how many times Ive pressed the arrow keys and messed myself up) and that I cant even play because the retarted server is down...

So I wouldnt say dont buy it, Id say, make sure you have something else to do while the servers are down...

[sav112]

Originally Posted by DarkFish

Then why do you do? as you said if you haven't got the game you aren't really in a position to complain about the game since you haven't played it yet.
.

OP "Your thoughts?"

I’m responding to the very real and well documented issues on here and as I’m a fan or have been since the very first game and it’s a forum I can air my view. Simple that really not that hard.I’m responding to the facts on here, I too was looking forward to the game as I too last played only SHIII.

I’m disappointed as most are on here in the community about the game, its nothing close to what I expected and if the best thing said is “the water looks great” then to me that tells a sorry story, nowadays that’s a given in most games. Nut and bolts I might appreciate the water but not a destroyer passing me on the surface or doing sod all if I attack.

Go on read the posts were is the “ I had a fantastic game last night” “This game challenges me with that Ai” “ Wow the atmosphere this game creates” “Have you tried this on an attack I’m blown away about how real this game is”

I’d love to come in here and read that its what we expected and is giving us the playing experience we crave.

[rkk01]

Hi, new to these forums (as a poster anyway)....

I've not yet had much chance to get familiar with SH5 - friends visitng over the w/e, but did get to install, update drivers and get it working.

The game looks fabulous, but one of the problems with more detail, is that it then has to be right. A quick flick through the "museum" first had my jaw on the desk, quickly followed by disappointment. No disrespect to the USN, but the dateline for this needs far greater emphasis on RN escorts.

Not nearly enough variety of British escorts (esp. in contrast to the variety of capital ships), and a long time favourite RN fleet destroyer ruined. The Tribals seem to be modelled with twin 4" HA mounts, rather than the twin 4.7s that were also fitted to the Js and Ks. Mid war updates added a 4" twin in the X position, and I believe the late war RCN tribals were given the 4" twins on A and B - but that would have been after the 1943 game end date...

Where are the work horses of the RN escort fleet - the inter war fleet destroyers pressed into DE service? (one of my relatives served on Echo, Fame and Hotspur and had some stories to tell about those boats), or the graceful War Emergency classes (R excepted...thats in, but the bridge structure is totally wrong for a war emergency). More frigates (DEs) also required at some stage... Town class cruiser missing (was it previously included or am I just remembering GWX??)


Spoiled by GWX attention to detail I guess. More modding potential definately (unfortunately) built in as standard

[TwistedFemur]

In my opinion its a steaming pile of horse hockey

seriously...health bars?

SH for IPhone could X-box and PS3 be far behind?

[Safe-Keeper]

Hav'nt purchased sh5 yet? Well don't!! I've read review after review at places like amazom and its pretty much the same... unfinished..DRM...Bugs
weather modders or ubi decide to fix and/or finish sh5 it is not worth..
47$ .. Maybe to some 50$ isn't a lot of cash.. To me I'ts not about how much it's about treating people FAIRLY instead of being GREEDY!!
This sim should not be purchased because of fairness and greed...We all know we would play 3 times as much for a GOOD subsim This is just a greedy play and should be avoided at all cost..Lining the pokets of these people just creates more unfinished products...I feel sorry for people who payed these people for this unfinished sim and now have to depend on others to fix it..........................sad just that ....sad

Originally Posted by TwistedFemur

In my opinion its a steaming pile of horse hockey

seriously...health bars?

SH for IPhone could X-box and PS3 be far behind?

Thank you for your feedback. We will now hear from someone who has actually played the game.

[codmander]

Conspiracy theory for you all: developers are moving to consoles because of piracy, right? Well, their big plot is to use these DRM schemes to make it so terrible for PC gamers that we move to consoles as well. Mua ha ha ha! :P........yawn yea not for 50-40-30-20-10 9$ umm ok

[Sub Marauder]

I don't know what my brother would think about this game, but out of the box, I don't like it at all. I've been playing SH4 for months and when switching to SH5, I just couldn't stand the arcade transformation. Good thing is that I've been playing it on a friends PC so I have yet to buy a cop for myself. The only gaming PC in my apartment belonged to my brother and it's not connected to the internet which will be a problem. I'll probably pass on this title.

Ron.

Well I'm still loving this subsim after 4 days of play
I do hope someone makes a mod to get rid of the damn health bars above ships though? and do something about the crappy escorts not wanting to fight, and planes have only bombed me twice???
so yeah, some things need sorting out, but i expect that a new patch will be here soon with all this moaning going on?
and new mods appear all the time

in fact i feel the same amount of excitment paying SH5 that I did with SH3, but sadly never had for SH4?
loving the FP aspect, makes the sim so more immersive, althuogh I do miss some aspects of SH3

only had one real big bug so far (sub thought I was submerged even when surfaced, so we all died of CO2 poisoning ), and of course the DRM ****

I am using a few mods to make it better, but overall, I just can't stop playing it and it can only get better with mods

hope ubi lose the DRM rubbish though??

[tsotha]

I thought the DRM would annoy me, but it's really not *that* bad. You can turn off the autosaves if you want.

I was getting a little discouraged with the game out of the box (or, out of Steam, in my case). I found the tutorial kind of irritating and confusing - don't tell me to go off and sink ships without putting the entire interface there. You can go through everything an instrument at a time, but between the things that aren't there anymore and the things they hadn't enabled yet it was pretty frustrating.

Never played SH!V, but coming from a pretty up-to-date mod version of SHIII, these are my impressions:

The Good:

• The graphics, as everyone else notes, especially outside the sub. Water, snow, the lights at port... it all looks gorgeous.
• I like the campaign. While I think SHII is great as a sim, it suffers a bit as a game because every mission is "go to this grid, hang out for 24 hours, then wander around trying to sink whatever you find". The ports were done poorly, even after modding, so there really wasn't much to do outside aimlessly wandering around trying to find ships to attack. I like the idea of having my actions influence the campaign. Success opens up new possibilities, named ships stay sunk. Kudos. This is the feature that will make the game worth modding. Otherwise SHIII is just a better game, IMO.

The Bad:

• As everyone else noted, it's not finished. I completed my first mission and wasn't allowed to dock, no matter what I did. Reloaded, still no dice. Reloaded again. This time it takes me to the sub pen.. Huh? Exit your game and everyone's morale gets set to zero and they stop following orders. Dive and your deck crew will sometimes stay on deck - you can look out the periscope and see them scanning the ocean depths with their binoculars. That last one is kind of Twilight Zone-y.
• British aircraft are flown by tourists. I was all set to try out the flak gun, but pretty much no matter what happens the planes ignore me. I've gotten in the habit of tapping the time compression back up when aircraft are sighted. What would be the point of diving?
• Enemy destroyer captains give up easily. Even if you don't change your heading at all after a few minutes they'll go away. Get caught by a destroyer in shallow water in SHIII and you're in a lot of trouble. You can pretty much dive to periscope depth and ignore them in SHV.
• The first person thing was great for about ten minutes. After a few hours play it's just annoying. Why didn't they equip my boat with speaking tubes? I can tell I'm going to really, really hate going up and down those damn ladders if I play for any length of time. This really needs hotkeys. Really, really.
• Realism. I really got a thrill plotting my own solutions and using the TDC, with all its period knobs and dials and buttons. The new system pulls me back to the present every time I look at it. And there are other things like loading external reserves without surfacing. The bow doesn't go down when you dive or up when you surface.
• Bad UI design. It's annoying to use the mouse all the time to move the periscope - my arm is getting tired. No compass. The tactical map seems to come and go at it's own whim. Same with the clock, which should have been 24 hour (It's five o'clock and light out. Is the sun rising or setting?). Some controls, like the deck-gun sights, are non-intuitive and not explained anywhere. The periscopes always go up when you man them, so you have to be quick if you don't want your scope too high above the water line. Not sure if it matters. It should.
• The indicators in SHIII were distinctive - well rendered needle gauges and bubble gauges and dials for things like CO2 and fuel level. Here we have straight percentages, so it's like playing a spreadsheet. Doesn't really hurt playability, but the immersion suffers.
• The merchant ships are made out of adamantium. I mean, seriously, it takes three or four torpedoes to sink a freighter, no matter where you hit it or what pistol you use. A clean shot a meter under mid keel should break that sucker in half. As is, If you want to sink two ships you're going to be waiting around while the tubes are reloaded, and you'll do a lot of refitting. If you don't get quite enough damage for a sinking sometimes they're aflame from bow to stern but they don't slow down unless they actually sink.

Questionable:

1. The game only goes to 1943 and only sub you can play is the type VII. I'm actually okay with the time frame. By 1944 any realistic simulation just isn't that much fun - anything worth shooting is in a convoy, and attacking convoys solo has by then become suicidal. Have to admit I miss the type II a bit, but really only because I miss the ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh when I get into the type VII.

[Safe-Keeper]

Thank you very much for your review, keep 'em coming!

[TwistedFemur]

Originally Posted by Safe-Keeper

Thank you for your feedback. We will now hear from someone who has actually played the game.

I have played the "GAME" and it's been un-installed and am now using the disc to clean out my cat's litterbox

Or is this a fan-boi thread?

[Bubblehead1980]

so health bars can not be disabled? wtf were they thinking?