Why do you play Silent Hunter?

Rockin Robbins · 03-02-08, 12:35 PM

As a teenager, I read Edward Beach's "Run Silent Run Deep" trilogy, was fascinated and just put them down. I got a glimpse into a world I would never get to inhabit.

Ten years later I was married, and my wife's grandfather was a crewmember aboard the USS Kraken. He never talked about his own personal role on the sub except that he was almost ten years older than all his crew except for the officers. But he made up for his reluctance to talk about himself by his enthusiasm for the US submarine program in WWII.

He was an active member of the US Submarine Veterans of WWII and always sent me their newsletters, from which I learned much of what I know. That explains why my viewpoint is often in conflict with history books. The newsletters gave me a taste for primary sources. When Warren Watkins passed, he willed me his entire library of submarine books, most of them signed by the authors, predominately books written by the sub sailors who fought in the war.

An important part of his library was a collection of books on German U-Boats, the character of which made it crystal clear that the American submariner looked at U-Boat sailors as brothers worthy of respect and admiration. "Iron Coffins" began my fascination with the U-Boats and "U-505" by Daniel Gallery was saturated with the respect and admiration of American seamen toward the U-Boat organization.

So I had no resistance to picking up Silent Hunter 3 last October, especially since it was on sale. I learned more about U-Boats from the game than I had learned about in the books just in the limited time I played SH3.

But then SH4 hit the market and stuck the chord: maybe I could command the USS Kraken and maybe she could have a career a bit more in keeping with the spirit of the sailors aboard her than the lackluster career begging for targets that Kraken actually had by virtue of joining the war too late.

SH4 delivered that and more. Thanks to a collection of bits and bytes, I've been able to experience some of the choices, face some of the hardships and feel some of the frustration and joy that the real heroes of WWII faced. Although my life didn't depend on the outcome, I've experienced the frustration of dud after dud, circle running torpedoes, perfect solutions that miss, perfect approaches ruined by a too-alert airplane, great explosions, ships that refused to sink with four hits, fuel leaks and hull damage. I've had both periscope heads turned into scrap metal during a depth charge attack and had to return 3700 miles back to Pearl Harbor blind, depending only on my radar to keep me safe.

It is only a game, but it remains the best way to experience some commonality with the men who fought. As such the purpose of playing SH4 is to honor these heroes by experiencing their lives in as realistic a way as possible.

Down scope!

silentrunner · 03-02-08, 12:52 PM

I would say beacause I usually like games where you can build a career. Silent Hunter does that veary well. I also dig anything about subs so Silent Hunter is the best game out there.

FIREWALL · 03-02-08, 12:53 PM

I'm not bright enough to play any of the more complicated games. It's that simple.

I was told anyone with the IQ of a shoelace can play SilentHunter.

And I think UBI knows that too!

stabiz · 03-02-08, 02:34 PM

I like the pace of subsims. I have time to do other things, I have time to micromanage the crew, look at stuff and just whistle away. I also like the fact that I never know what is going to happen, and without dynamic campaigns I guess I would play less.

But most off all I like the free roaming camera.

kylesplanet · 03-02-08, 02:35 PM

Honestly, I'm really not a gamer, I only had a couple of flight sim games and thought that was all I would ever need. Got bored one night and downloaded SH4 and have just been deeply involved in it and the history of the US sub war ever since. I keep coming back, day after day, because it really puts you in that submarine. Like RR was saying, you experience the frustrations, fears and jubulation of these heros . When I sit down at my computer and fire up SH4, it 1942 again. When I turn on the in-game radio and hear the Andrews Sisters, Jack Benny, cigarette commercials and the newscast of the day, it's like I'm there and in my mind I am.

I love SH4 because it focuses on an area of WW2 that is so often looked over or just recieves a passing mention, though I imagine part of that is because of the cloak of secrecy the Silent Service has always operated under. I guess in the end, in some fabricated way, I get to participate in a time that has past that truly facinates me and reminds me daily of what these great men did not only for themselves and their shipmates but the entire world. I'm not one of them but for a few hours a day, I feel like I am.

Wild_skipper · 03-02-08, 02:42 PM

I started playing with silent hunter 3 becuase i'm a big uboat fan

after that i was playing sh4 i loved to change from a uboat to a american sub but when i first played it i hoped that they would make a game with the same graphics and with the german side again wich they did

but know i hope that they are going to upgrade that again to an atlantic campain because sh4 grapichs + uboats =

GeoffBelding · 03-02-08, 02:46 PM

I have always enjoyed the stalking element of the game, a similar feeling to a sniper, or a suadron of tanks hidden in the trees, I imagine.

I can take great care to approach ships that can fight back, and come from the deep to periscope depth just in time to fire off a series of torpedos that can do great strategic damage to te enemy.

Then to disappear back into the deep without being sunk is very tense but
ultimately very satisfying!

I have about 3,500 hours in my flight simulator log, but nothing tries to shoot you down in that world.

Hope that helps.

Geoff

me262 · 03-02-08, 05:06 PM

I like to play the german uboat kapitan. its inevitable that I will get my *ss kicked, but that is part of the fasination, I get a lot of pleasure trying to do the almost impossible sink the allies and survive. No one would bother climbing mount everest it it was 60 metres high.

ReallyDedPoet · 03-02-08, 05:45 PM

Nice thread

Posted this in SH3 Forums as well

- History.
- Immersion.
- Customization: mods & game settings.
- The great community here.
- Made me aware of SUBSIM.

RDP

swampa · 03-02-08, 06:58 PM

I like playing Subsims. Submarines I like every thing about them love them

clayp · 03-03-08, 04:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FIREWALL

I'm not bright enough to play any of the more complicated games. It's that simple.

I was told anyone with the IQ of a shoelace can play SilentHunter.

And I think UBI knows that too!

Is that why I play it....

longam · 03-03-08, 06:28 PM

22 years after the first round with flight simulator 1, I’ve been on the never ending quest to find the ultimate simulation game with eye candy along with strategy and game play. The last 5 years have delivered this with many platforms, and only get better with each evolution and equipment upgrade.

03-02-08, 12:35 PM	#1
Rockin Robbins Navy Seal Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: DeLand, FL Posts: 8,900 Downloads: 135 Uploads: 52	Motivation As a teenager, I read Edward Beach's "Run Silent Run Deep" trilogy, was fascinated and just put them down. I got a glimpse into a world I would never get to inhabit. Ten years later I was married, and my wife's grandfather was a crewmember aboard the USS Kraken. He never talked about his own personal role on the sub except that he was almost ten years older than all his crew except for the officers. But he made up for his reluctance to talk about himself by his enthusiasm for the US submarine program in WWII. He was an active member of the US Submarine Veterans of WWII and always sent me their newsletters, from which I learned much of what I know. That explains why my viewpoint is often in conflict with history books. The newsletters gave me a taste for primary sources. When Warren Watkins passed, he willed me his entire library of submarine books, most of them signed by the authors, predominately books written by the sub sailors who fought in the war. An important part of his library was a collection of books on German U-Boats, the character of which made it crystal clear that the American submariner looked at U-Boat sailors as brothers worthy of respect and admiration. "Iron Coffins" began my fascination with the U-Boats and "U-505" by Daniel Gallery was saturated with the respect and admiration of American seamen toward the U-Boat organization. So I had no resistance to picking up Silent Hunter 3 last October, especially since it was on sale. I learned more about U-Boats from the game than I had learned about in the books just in the limited time I played SH3. But then SH4 hit the market and stuck the chord: maybe I could command the USS Kraken and maybe she could have a career a bit more in keeping with the spirit of the sailors aboard her than the lackluster career begging for targets that Kraken actually had by virtue of joining the war too late. SH4 delivered that and more. Thanks to a collection of bits and bytes, I've been able to experience some of the choices, face some of the hardships and feel some of the frustration and joy that the real heroes of WWII faced. Although my life didn't depend on the outcome, I've experienced the frustration of dud after dud, circle running torpedoes, perfect solutions that miss, perfect approaches ruined by a too-alert airplane, great explosions, ships that refused to sink with four hits, fuel leaks and hull damage. I've had both periscope heads turned into scrap metal during a depth charge attack and had to return 3700 miles back to Pearl Harbor blind, depending only on my radar to keep me safe. It is only a game, but it remains the best way to experience some commonality with the men who fought. As such the purpose of playing SH4 is to honor these heroes by experiencing their lives in as realistic a way as possible. Down scope! __________________ Sub Skipper's Bag of Tricks, Slightly Subnuclear Mk 14 & Cutie, Slightly Subnuclear Deck Gun, EZPlot 2.0, TMOPlot, TMOKeys, SH4CMS

03-02-08, 12:52 PM	#2
silentrunner Watch Officer Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Mind your own business English Types Posts: 334 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	I would say beacause I usually like games where you can build a career. Silent Hunter does that veary well. I also dig anything about subs so Silent Hunter is the best game out there. __________________

03-02-08, 12:53 PM	#3
FIREWALL Eternal Patrol Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: CATALINA IS. SO . CAL USA Posts: 10,108 Downloads: 511 Uploads: 0	I'm not bright enough to play any of the more complicated games. It's that simple. I was told anyone with the IQ of a shoelace can play SilentHunter. And I think UBI knows that too! __________________ RIP FIREWALL I Play GWX. Silent Hunter Who ??? Last edited by FIREWALL; 03-02-08 at 09:50 PM.

03-02-08, 02:34 PM	#4
stabiz Silent Hunter Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Norway Posts: 4,224 Downloads: 14 Uploads: 0	I like the pace of subsims. I have time to do other things, I have time to micromanage the crew, look at stuff and just whistle away. I also like the fact that I never know what is going to happen, and without dynamic campaigns I guess I would play less. But most off all I like the free roaming camera. __________________

03-02-08, 02:35 PM	#5
kylesplanet Commodore Join Date: May 2007 Posts: 629 Downloads: 39 Uploads: 0	Honestly, I'm really not a gamer, I only had a couple of flight sim games and thought that was all I would ever need. Got bored one night and downloaded SH4 and have just been deeply involved in it and the history of the US sub war ever since. I keep coming back, day after day, because it really puts you in that submarine. Like RR was saying, you experience the frustrations, fears and jubulation of these heros . When I sit down at my computer and fire up SH4, it 1942 again. When I turn on the in-game radio and hear the Andrews Sisters, Jack Benny, cigarette commercials and the newscast of the day, it's like I'm there and in my mind I am. I love SH4 because it focuses on an area of WW2 that is so often looked over or just recieves a passing mention, though I imagine part of that is because of the cloak of secrecy the Silent Service has always operated under. I guess in the end, in some fabricated way, I get to participate in a time that has past that truly facinates me and reminds me daily of what these great men did not only for themselves and their shipmates but the entire world. I'm not one of them but for a few hours a day, I feel like I am. __________________

03-02-08, 02:42 PM	#6
Wild_skipper Electrician's Mate Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: belgium Posts: 140 Downloads: 96 Uploads: 0	I started playing with silent hunter 3 becuase i'm a big uboat fan after that i was playing sh4 i loved to change from a uboat to a american sub but when i first played it i hoped that they would make a game with the same graphics and with the german side again wich they did but know i hope that they are going to upgrade that again to an atlantic campain because sh4 grapichs + uboats = __________________ GWX 3.0 gold

03-02-08, 02:46 PM	#7
GeoffBelding Seaman Join Date: May 2007 Location: Hampshire, England Posts: 41 Downloads: 5 Uploads: 0	My enjoyment I have always enjoyed the stalking element of the game, a similar feeling to a sniper, or a suadron of tanks hidden in the trees, I imagine. I can take great care to approach ships that can fight back, and come from the deep to periscope depth just in time to fire off a series of torpedos that can do great strategic damage to te enemy. Then to disappear back into the deep without being sunk is very tense but ultimately very satisfying! I have about 3,500 hours in my flight simulator log, but nothing tries to shoot you down in that world. Hope that helps. Geoff

03-02-08, 05:06 PM	#8
me262 Seaman Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: UK Posts: 32 Downloads: 0 Uploads: 0	I like to play the german uboat kapitan. its inevitable that I will get my *ss kicked, but that is part of the fasination, I get a lot of pleasure trying to do the almost impossible sink the allies and survive. No one would bother climbing mount everest it it was 60 metres high. __________________ Uboats to the bitter end

03-02-08, 05:45 PM	#9
ReallyDedPoet Canadian Wolf Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Canada. The one and only, East Coast Posts: 10,888 Downloads: 946 Uploads: 5	Nice thread Posted this in SH3 Forums as well - History. - Immersion. - Customization: mods & game settings. - The great community here. - Made me aware of SUBSIM. RDP __________________ Back in the Day Last edited by ReallyDedPoet; 03-02-08 at 06:04 PM.

03-02-08, 06:58 PM	#10
swampa Mate Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: UK Posts: 55 Downloads: 104 Uploads: 0	I like playing Subsims. Submarines I like every thing about them love them

03-03-08, 06:28 PM	#12
longam Admiral Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 2,014 Downloads: 26 Uploads: 0	22 years after the first round with flight simulator 1, I’ve been on the never ending quest to find the ultimate simulation game with eye candy along with strategy and game play. The last 5 years have delivered this with many platforms, and only get better with each evolution and equipment upgrade.