Silent Hunter 3

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wfalcon

[H]ard|Gawd
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Sep 7, 2000
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Has anyone here picked this up? My pre-order just arrived today, and while I would normally be excited and open it up right away, I heard a nasty rumor that said it had StarForce CD protection on it. Now, while I'm ok with a CD copy protection being in place, what I'm not ok with is that while researching it, folks are saying that you can only install and activate this (similar to the Windows XP activation) 5 times. That's a bit low for my tastes. While I have no intention of reformatting and reinstalling that many times, stranger things have happened, I may upgrade my system or something necessitating extra installs. Does that mean that 2 years from now when I hit my 6th time, that I'd have to repurchase the game?

I'm sort of holding on to it until I can get further info from official sources, but if this is true, I'm very tempted to take it back.
 
A game that can only be installed 5 times? Can anyone confirm this, I was thinking about buy'n this game as well. Now I might just wait a bit. I like to reformat every 6 months or so.

Mongoose
 
I found this on the Silent Hunter III forums.

posted Thu March 17 2005 09:02
The limited number of installs is only from digitally distributed version of Silent Hunter III - not the DVD install.

i.e. if you download Silent Hunter III from a retailer, you'll be able to install it five times. If you buy the DVD you can install it as many times as you want
 
Phew - ok thanks!!!! I was SO looking forward to this game and would've hated to see that happen.
 
Sounds like there are a few bugs. I see there is all ready a patch out though. And Please Let us know if you like the game after a bit of play'n...

thanks,
Mongoose
 
LOL do not waste your money on this game guys. I did and now i have a game that is bugged to hell and makes my comp restart within 2 mins of playing a mission. My comp can play hl2 at full settings with ease yet with this game it restarts my computer WTF? I think ubi pulled a fast one on us. So do yourself a favor and dont buy it.
 
"Fun facts" about Silent Hunter 3:

* You can't run it from the Windows shortcut, you need to let the DVD autoplay run, then select 'run' from there, or half the sky is filled with a 'white blob' (texturing problem)

* Game doesn't run properly on nVidia cards. You need to disable all the pixel shader effects in order to be able to use the binoculars on the bridge (IE., in order to engage in any surface action - which is what 90% of U-Boat actions were early war)

* US version ships with Starforce 3.4.71.19. This version of Starforce ALSO re-inits your IDE drivers on startup. So...watchout if you've got nForce2 or nForce3 SW IDE drivers installed from your motherboard chipset package, it may cause a corrupted OS install making your computer unbootable! (The downloadable version is confirmed to have a version of Starforce that limits you to 5 installs total - it's counted as a new install on the same PC if you change 40% of your hardware.)

* The game will not play on PCs with certain Pioneer DVD drives

* For a game about WW2 submarines...isn't it a little weird there are no ships in any port anywhere in the world? Not even the port you LEAVE from? It's all you, all alone.

* No Wolf-Packs

* Limited to 1024x768 resolution (no higher options, no lower options)

-----

As excited as I *was* about this title, I just can't find it in my heart to buy a product from a developer who BEGINS our relationship by assuming I'm a thief and a liar, then doesn't bother to support the most widepsread graphics chipsets, anyway.
 
wtf? I coulda swore on the official forums they said it was indeed NOT using starforce for the US release.

wtf, I was REALLY REALLY looking forward to this game and planned to buy it in a few weeks.

If it's indeed true about all of that, with my new computer with an NF3 based motherboard and stuff i'm not going to let it fuck it up.
 
Yeah it has some bugs. Yeah starforce sucks. But still this is the best submarine sim out.
I haven't played it yet but have been following the development. It might not have everything you'd want (cough wolfpacks) but it looks to be a very detailed game. The graphics look phenomenal. Gamespot user reviews are pegged at 9.6 and the majority of people on the official forums seem pleased. And best yet, Fry's has it on sale this weekend for 27.99
I'm definitely picking this game up.
 
well I thank you all for the information.. think Ill pass this one by for the same reasons Im passing by steam... if its a pain.. why bother.

do like saving money thats for sure.


a 562 page manual for Dangerous Waters? ah.. hummm
 
dderidex said:
*cough*
Dangerous Waters
*cough*
Click to expand...

While I haven't played Dangerous Waters, the review you linked gave it a 97. Silent Hunter 3 got a perfect 100 from the same website. That is evidence they think SH3 is a better game.
Gamespot user reviews for DW are very tepid - 7.5 average, SH3 is getting a 9.6 average.

But Dangeous Waters sims modern submarines, Silent Hunter 3 is WW2 era German U-boats, so I guess whatever is more appealing to you. Since I'm qualified on nuclear submarines, I think even the best nuclear sub sim would seem phony to me so I'm going with SH3. ;)

For a game, I'd like the best balance between realism, graphics, and fun. A 500+ page manual sounds like overkill, although it covers more than just subs, but a destroyer and helicopter. So it's more of a naval sim than strick sub sim.
 
Stereophile said:
While I haven't played Dangerous Waters, the review you linked gave it a 97. Silent Hunter 3 got a perfect 100 from the same website. That is evidence they think SH3 is a better game.
Gamespot user reviews for DW are very tepid - 7.5 average, SH3 is getting a 9.6 average.

But Dangeous Waters sims modern submarines, Silent Hunter 3 is WW2 era German U-boats, so I guess whatever is more appealing to you. Since I'm qualified on nuclear submarines, I think even the best nuclear sub sim would seem phony to me so I'm going with SH3. ;)
Click to expand...
Indeed? USN? Officer or enlisted? Active service?

Problem I have with SH3 is that even the 'manual' method of creating a firing solution involves several 'magical' steps (IE., the speed the target is travelling at is calculated by the game if you just leave your scope locked on it), the in-game plotting board has no protractor for measuring angles, etc. You pretty much have to do the solution on paper if you actually want to do a manual solution yourself. Which is really too bad, given how much the game DOES give you towards that goal. It's like they got 3/4 of the way there and decided "that's close enough".
 
I was an enlisted electronics technician on a nuclear powered Los Angeles class. I can't thoughtfully discuss the game yet, I'm getting it tommorow first thing. Oh the joys of target motion analysis, at least on modern boats the sonar and fire control computers are networked and do all the hard work for you. I used to man the TAC-3 computer sometimes. It was a stand alone Sun Spark workstation for tma independent of the installed combat suites. I remember the OOD would always compare my solution with Fire Control's, usually it was close but I was far from the best at it. Part of this cross training thing they push on subs. Most of my watches were spent as Radioman of the Watch and Electronic Surveillance Measures. But I also managed to qualify Chief of the Watch, one of only 2 E-5s who were.
Not that I got on the rotation for it. You see COW gets one 6 hour shift a day, whereas most watches are 6 on 12 off. I would get racked out sometimes to give the midwatch a piss break.
But it was all chiefs sitting COW and DOOW. You get served a lot on submarines. :p
 
dderidex said:
"Fun facts" about Silent Hunter 3:

* US version ships with Starforce 3.4.71.19. This version of Starforce ALSO re-inits your IDE drivers on startup. So...watchout if you've got nForce2 or nForce3 SW IDE drivers installed from your motherboard chipset package, it may cause a corrupted OS install making your computer unbootable! (The downloadable version is confirmed to have a version of Starforce that limits you to 5 installs total - it's counted as a new install on the same PC if you change 40% of your hardware.)
Click to expand...

That's crazy. Unless this is specifically mentioned in the EULA everyone who purchased this game should get in on a class action lawsuit against the publisher.
 
Stereophile said:
I was an enlisted electronics technician on a nuclear powered Los Angeles class. I can't thoughtfully discuss the game yet, I'm getting it tommorow first thing. Oh the joys of target motion analysis, at least on modern boats the sonar and fire control computers are networked and do all the hard work for you. I used to man the TAC-3 computer sometimes. It was a stand alone Sun Spark workstation for tma independent of the installed combat suites. I remember the OOD would always compare my solution with Fire Control's, usually it was close but I was far from the best at it.
Click to expand...
Well, the TMA in 'Sub Command'/'Dangerous Waters' is....uhhh.....challenging. Getting all those dots to line up on the computer is a real PITA.
Stereophile said:
Part of this cross training thing they push on subs. Most of my watches were spent as Radioman of the Watch and Electronic Surveillance Measures. But I also managed to qualify Chief of the Watch, one of only 2 E-5s who were.
Not that I got on the rotation for it. You see COW gets one 6 hour shift a day, whereas most watches are 6 on 12 off. I would get racked out sometimes to give the midwatch a piss break.
But it was all chiefs sitting COW and DOOW. You get served a lot on submarines. :p
Click to expand...
So, what does an eletronics technician usually *do* on the boat when not cross-training?

Just curiosity speaking, although I've frequently WANTED to join, wife would have none of it. LOL. (Besides, it'd take an officers pay to cover what I'm making right now in the tedious IT world, and I don't have the education for that.)
 
dderidex said:
Well, the TMA in 'Sub Command'/'Dangerous Waters' is....uhhh.....challenging. Getting all those dots to line up on the computer is a real PITA.
Click to expand...

Yeah well that's no surprise considering that company designs a lot of real sonar/fire control equipment onboard submarines.
 
<sarcasm>
After seeing Furhead's well thought-out post about why nobody should buy this game,
</sarcasm>
I decided to open mine up last night, install it, patch it, and give it a whirl. Here are my experiences and impressions thus far:

* I have not had my system reboot while playing a mission.

* I can run the game from the Windows shortcut without having sky texture problems

* As my laptop is running an ATI video card, I can't comment on it not working with Nvidia's cards yet. Once my knee is better and I can sit at my desktop (with a GeForce 6800), I'll install it there and find out.

* Fun factor - So far so good. If you like sub sims, you'll definately love this. There's nothing as satisfying as using stealth to approach a convoy and nailing the transport ships. Then, there's nothing as intense as trying to convince the pissed off destroyer that you've either slipped away or he's destroyed you. I want to get more time under my belt before I try any multiplayer coop online.

* Graphics - Excellent. The detail inside the sub is amazing. It made me really feel as though I were in a cramped World War 2 U-boat. The water effects as your sub surfaces or dives was impressive. When you use the deck gun to hit a ship, you actually see the damage caused - masts collapse, pieces go flying into the water, fire spreads, etc.

* Learning Curve - Not very difficult. The game includes a Naval Academy that teaches you the basics. It includes videos that show you exactly what to click on, etc. The one thing that I would like to pass on is M is the shortcut to see your messages in the radio room. (During naval training, I was wondering what I was doing wrong until I finally opened up the manual and discovered that.)

* A good chunk of dderidex's post is true. The game does use StarForce CD protection. However, as many folks will likely purchase this off-the-shelf as opposed to downloading it from the internet, I don't think the majority of folks will get tied down to the 5-install limit. (That has to be one DOOZY of a download.) Wolfpacks are not in the game, but from what I read, they weren't too common during the war anyway. This would be a cool feature, but is not a gamestopper in my book. There are no ships in ports - I'll agree this is a bit strange. Anyway, there may be some bugs, but if one person posts about it in a forum, that doesn't mean that everyone has/will have that problem. If anything, the presence of a patch already indicates to me that the developers are working on correcting things.

I'll post some screenshots a bit later on, but overall, I'd definately recommend the game.
 
Wolfpacks i think were more common during the middle-later years of the war as allied anti-submarine measures started taking their toll. I got mine today and it had something called gameforce (that starforce?) on mine. I've had no problems at all yet.
Hope they add wolfpacks later on tho....
 
No - you are referring to GameShadow. That appears to be some sort of application for automatically downloading updates for your game. I just figured I'd download my updates manually and uninstalled it. I don't need some bloatware added to my system.

Starforce is the type of copy protection Silent Hunter III uses. Most folks won't be able to notice a difference anyway though.
 
Ah thanks. :) Never even saw anything named starware while installing, and i looked..hehe
I was playing last night and i had a blast. Still getting used to the controls, but i'm learning. I love the torpedo cam tho. (follows the torpedo to the target and shows it hitting, or missing..whatever it is) Had more than a few torpedos hit at an extreme angle and not explode (my fault for the angle i fired it at).
With a little bit of mods/expansion packs, i think this game will only get better.
Can watch your targets sink if your not getting depth charged also. It's a good game, has a few flaws but it's not usually game breaking for most people.
 
It appears (from reading the forums) that you will not see starforce installed until after you have played the game once. (Also remember to have hidden folders and things viewable).
 
My laptop videocard (Haven't tried it on my desktop yet) doesn't even meet the minium VRAM specs, but it runs like a charm anyway.

 
kamxam said:
Ah thanks. :) Never even saw anything named starware while installing, and i looked..hehe
I was playing last night and i had a blast. Still getting used to the controls, but i'm learning. I love the torpedo cam tho. (follows the torpedo to the target and shows it hitting, or missing..whatever it is) Had more than a few torpedos hit at an extreme angle and not explode (my fault for the angle i fired it at).
With a little bit of mods/expansion packs, i think this game will only get better.
Can watch your targets sink if your not getting depth charged also. It's a good game, has a few flaws but it's not usually game breaking for most people.
Click to expand...

I'm having a blast myself. Once I finished the Naval Academy exercises, I went straight into career mode. I believe you start off with extra renown when you finish the Academy first. Anyway, at one point, I was dodging 5 warships in the English Channel that were trying to protect 1 merchant ship. Needless to say, I was stubborn and dropped the merchant ship, but man was that intense playing hide-and-seek with the warships!
 
I do hope they bring out a pacific theater version expansion or mod of this game. I remember spending 2-3 hours creeping into tokyo bay, firing at a carrier that was in the harbor and dodging destroyers and other craft getting out in SH1/SH2. (got out but had alot of damage...hehe)
 
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