So what's next to mod?

[Farside]

Originally Posted by Axlwolf

I like what i see here,a good bunch of modders can keep a game alive for years...

take a look at operation flashpoint, 5 years (roughly) and its still running strong.

I Think SH3 could turn out like this, if (and its a big IF) we get athe SDK, but i feel tht they wont bring out the SDK till after the release of SH4 so as they dont loose money, for instance because if it IS pacific theatre, and someone else makes a pacific theatre which turns out better then people would rather use the mod than pay x amount of money for something which is not as good as a mod.

[squeak]

I Think SH3 could turn out like this, if (and its a big IF) we get athe SDK

One qiuck question , what is a SDK ?

[Farside]

Software design kit

its like the tools that the game makers use, so we can create new models etc

[AG124]

Even if someone here figures out how to import completely new objects, isn't there a chance that Ubisoft would sent a "cease and desist" letter to eradicate a possible threat to a new product? After all, SHIV is coming out in less than a year, and is using the same game engine (and possibly the same SDK?). Although, if this was the case, I hope they improve it somewhat - i.e. better torpedo damage, etc..

Assuming Ubisoft doesn't care though, I think that we are witnessing the process of a huge breakthrough, especially in adding new ships. :up:

[Type941]

Originally Posted by AG124

isn't there a chance that Ubisoft would sent a "cease and desist" letter to eradicate a possible threat to a new product?

They can do that, but after doing this they can forget enjoying the support of modding community and those who buy their game. Example - FIRST Racing who own the rights to NASCAR engine by Papy and are suing a modder who edited the game and distrubted it with modded exe file (for free). Once they did that, everyone hates them in the community, and they are releasing PR statements every week trying to tell people how much right they are.

If I were Ubi, i'd be very careful with persuing strongly against modders, because stuff like that will come back and bit on the arse. Much better if they see something REALLY good is to hire the person.

And being outside of US really makes their problems bigger because of legal differences etc, bUt if you are in in US they'll sue the socks out of you given a chance, so one must be very careful i guess on that side, and of course get a lawyer consultation. They'll stop modding, but that will be very bad for them.

However, this game doesn't involve thingsl like Tobacco and Alcohol sponsorship and other brand names being distrubute without copyright - so I think that's why it's much less stict in this game. Try modding a motorsport game - with the car with thousands of stickers on it. That's different ball game all together. I know and saw letters the companies send to modders threatening law suits and asking for fines (about 5-10,000 USD).

[stljeffbb1]

CRAP!! I could get sued....great!

Much better if they see something REALLY good is to hire the person.

That would be kinda cool...but I'm guessing it would still be less expensive to use the Romanians :|\

However, this game doesn't involve thingsl like Tobacco and Alcohol sponsorship and other brand names being distrubute without copyright - so I think that's why it's much less stict in this game. Try modding a motorsport game - with the car with thousands of stickers on it. That's different ball game all together. I know and saw letters the companies send to modders threatening law suits and asking for fines (about 5-10,000 USD).

Greed always clouds things....also, might makes right....if these companies think they can get away with things and pick on those they perceive as weak, they do, similar to RIAA vs P2P.

-Jeff

[LukeFF]

The textures for the interior of the conning towers really need some work. I've not seen any mods out there that get rid of all that rust that makes it look like the boat was just pulled off the sea floor after sitting there for 50 years. Not to meniton the wall and ceiling textures in the radio and sonar rooms need work as well.

[gdogghenrikson]

thermal layers

[oRGy]

Thermal layers are modelled ingame already.

The most useful mods as said go in the direction of a living, dynamic and historically accurate world in terms of ships, units and operations as the war progresses. This has the progressive potential of making you feel as part of a large, inhuman war machine and teaches the ignorant something of real naval operations in WW2, i.e. it has pedagogic potential.

[rant]
Though to be honest, even with all the mods at the moment I'm rapidly losing interest in the game. From a design perspective, you spend a lot of time sitting around doing nothing and what is there is rather thin, for example the ridiculous "crew management".

People will of course argue that in real life patrols were boring, and just look at Das Boot etc. However in Das Boot, the viewer was never bored even when nothing was "happening" - lots was actually happening in terms of characters and story and so on. But in SH3, you watch an icon crawl across a map for 15 minutes... not a very productive use of ones time, in this day and age. Not wanting to waste my time does not make me an evil "arcade" player.

And any interactions with your crew just highlight their stilted artificality.

Ideally I'd have that skipped and I'd put the focus on your crew and your boat, making them of far, far greater importance and detail, even to a sort of "black and white" level where your crew adapts their behaviour to what you're doing, what you do has moral importance, and you do all this in a complex gameworld where the AI is first rate and appropriate - no running aground and so forth.

Fancy graphics would come last - the moniker of "eye candy" is appropriate - as candy in the end gives you no nutritional value and just makes you feel bad if there's too much of it. What is important is something that makes you realise something about history and about people, which is what 'Das Boot' does very well, and SH3 does not, instead catering to the usual war abstractions beloved of the impotent.

[/rant off]

[martes86]

If we had full crew and sub interiors modeled, maybe you would feel that SH3 represents better all those things you say it currently doesn't.
At the present moment, you aren't in a sub. You are just in a half sub. And maybe that situation of not being able to see the whole picture is what makes some people feel like the game doesn't represent what Das Boot does.
Personally, if we had fully modeled crew (all of the 50 guys) and interiors, I would feel more like in Das Boot. One wouldn't feel alone at all. A full viewable crew and a fully walkable interior. Then you would really feel that's your sub and your crew, and not only a portion of them.

Cheers

[gdogghenrikson]

how do you figure thermal layers are modelled in the game?

[CWorth]

Originally Posted by gdogghenrikson

how do you figure thermal layers are modelled in the game?

You should already know the answer to that as you were involved in this discussion already..
http://www.subsim.com/phpBB/viewtopi...layers&start=0

One of Catfish's posts in that thread...
"Hello,
" ... thermal layers are simulated in the game according to the devs, but we have no way of knowing when we are passing one, as there are no temp gauges simulated ... "

So yes according to the developers thermal layers are modelled..you just wont know where they are.

[Kpt. Lehmann]

Wow!