But it's not perfect, and there are quirks. Instead, it has the illusion of a dynamic campaign as it places enemy vessels in logical places, such as shipping lanes or coming in and out of major ports. But this isn't a fully dynamic campaign because the game doesn't model a full-scale war all the time. It's a fairly elegant system, one that hearkens back to the patrol system in Silent Service and lets you conduct a months-long patrol in a fraction of the time. When your ship encounters unknown or hostile contacts, time automatically reverts to normal, so you can investigate or take action. You can chart a course on the Pacific and then compress time so that you don't have to spend hours or days getting from one point to another. However, most of your attention will be taken up with the task of navigating your sub around the Pacific and taking part in battle. You can go wherever you want while on patrol, though the best hunting can be found in shipping lanes. For example, when under attack, you can assign crewmen from a nonvital compartment to a damage control party and then reassign them once that's done. This way, you can optimize the performance of your crew, though it can add a cumbersome amount of micromanagement for common tasks. Each sailor on your submarine is tracked and accounted for, so you can assign your sailors to different compartments and watches. The amount of control that you're given over your boat (submariner slang for vessels) is impressive and in line with the features found in Silent Hunter III. There are numerous stations that you can go to, such as the conning tower when the submarine is running on the surface, the periscope, the navigation chart, the antiaircraft gun, the deck gun, and more. Like Silent Hunter III, Wolves of the Pacific puts you in a 3D submarine, surrounded by virtual crewmembers that follow your commands. A career can easily occupy days, if not weeks, of evening play time.
The lengthiest of all the gameplay modes is the career mode, which lets you begin in any year of the war and go out on numerous war patrols. Then there are war patrols that let you cruise around looking for trouble. There are stand-alone missions that put you in the middle of battles if you just want to dive into the action. In Silent Hunter 4, you can experience the war in the Pacific a number of ways. What followed was unrestricted submarine warfare as the US sank more than 5 million tons of Japanese shipping, though at a loss of almost 50 submarines and their crews. Japan, being an island nation, imported much of its food, fuel, and resources from abroad, and US submarines were tasked with cutting that lifeline off.
Though it doesn't get as much coverage or attention in the popular media as the German U-boat campaign in World War II, the US submarine campaign against Japan was extensive and devastating. In many ways, Silent Hunter 4 doesn't veer too far from the formula found in Silent Service and is a faithful successor to that seminal game.Īccording to submariners, there are only two types of vessels: submarines and targets. Now with Silent Hunter 4: Wolves of the Pacific, you play as an American submarine skipper battling against Japan.
2005's Silent Hunter III was the last release in the series and let you captain a German U-boat in the Atlantic during World War II. Although the genre has seen better days, it continues to plug along thanks to Ubisoft's solid Silent Hunter series. Glad you're enjoying it.Famed designer Sid Meier established and defined the submarine simulation 22 years ago with the classic Silent Service. And of course there are the times you spend testing your hull's crush depth because you took a little damage but you still have to avoid destroyers in the deep sea. There were also recon missions that sometimes provided more excitement than combat engagement because I got discovered on my way back to the open sea. However, the kills I did get where very rewarding because I had to work hard for them (atypical for me since I get bored fast). On the other hand, I didn't get a buttload of kills either because I was very, very cautious. You are somewhat aware of my drinking habit so this is doubly amazing. As far as getting killed, not in that carreer.
I think I had to use a mod that avoided getting me retired so I could start at 1941 and last until 1945. How long did it take you to finish it LB? Did you ever die and have to reload or did you survive the entire campaign? I finally started and completed a carreer)