You don't get many submarine simulations these days - and for a large proportion of the gaming population that's probably no bad thing at all. Games like Silent Hunter 4 are the game industry's equivalent of Marmite: some will love its painstaking recreation of life as a submarine commander, they'll appreciate the attention to realism that means even the most simple of manoeuvres takes an age and they'll rejoice in the ultra slow hit and run nature of its combat. The rest of the world will miss the beauty of all that and instead find a game that alienates all but the more experienced right from the off and who's snail-like pace and lack of more conventional gaming thrills make it feel like something of a lumbering dinosaur amidst the fast paced they're more used to. Make no mistake about it, Silent Hunter 4 is a game for those who are willing to truly live it, to learn all of its intricacies and most of all love the fact that when it says it's a simulation it means it in the same way that games like Flight Sim mean it. If you're thinking any of this sounds just a teensy wincey bit dull then you're probably not in the market for a game like this.

Silent Hunter 4 is set in the Pacific Ocean during and offers up a number of different ways to play, from single missions dropping you right into the heart of battle and war patrols that see you heading out on your own spoiling for a fight but it's at its most immersive in the impressive career mode. Once safely on board it soon becomes apparent that despite the frankly beautiful graphics to be found outside, both above and below the waves, a large majority of your time will be spent at the various stations inside the submarine checking instruments, plotting courses, assigning crew rotas and generally deciding how best to approach the mission in hand. Almost everything you can think of onboard can be inspected, used, micromanaged and controlled, in fact such is the reliance on largely static screens and instruments it could be a little disappointing or even daunting for those not expecting it, but it soon starts to feels perfectly in keeping with the enclosed nature of submarine warfare and even adds a tension-building air of claustrophobia to proceedings which in turn means any views into the outside world are that much more of a pleasure and a relief when they do happen.

Once you've mastered the basics of your command it's time to get down to work, while you'll generally have a main objective on each mission be it a routine patrol, a spot of recon or a daring pilot rescue there's a pleasing degree of freedom to be found within the operational goals and there's often time for a bit of exploring. Such freedom along with the sheer size of the operational area means that simply getting from A to B can take a serious amount of time; thankfully the game allows you to compress time making such traveling far more manageable, something you'll be eternally thankful for as you speed up the long trek to the next shipping lane.

Of course taking the sub from point to point is only half the job and before long you're bound to come across the enemy. SH4 offers wide ranging customisable realism settings so anyone not wanting to worry about things like realistic reload times, dud torpedoes and fuel limits can turn them off. But, however you choose to play it, with submarines not being the most maneuverable or robust of vessels combat tend to be very much a case of sneaking up on your prey unnoticed, ensuring you're at the optimum angle, (side on obviously offering a much wider target) entering the targeting data and hitting launch before crossing your fingers while the torpedo makes its way through the sea towards its target - then running away once it's hit home. Make a mistake in your targeting or get spotted too soon and your target will avoid the torpedo leaving your already limited weapons supply needlessly depleted and at worst a whole enemy fleet now aware of your location. Even a successful attack still leaves you with the problem of having blown your cover and needing to escape the attentions of whatever bits of the convoy you failed to sink. This is very much a game where and planning wins out over gung-ho heroism. The more successful kills you rack up the more popular you'll become with the Navy top brass, this'll lead to you being able to improve the quality of your crew and even fit your sub out with some important upgrades if you're lucky.

Of course having put all this effort into such complex naval warfare it's nice to see the results of your labours and in that respect SH4 is stunning to look at with some of the most impressive water effects ever seen in a game going a long way to add to the realism. In fact the level of graphical detail throughout is top notch, the way vessels buckle and sink when your torpedo hits them is breathtaking at times, and they look just as good fully intact too (although you're rarely close enough to them to see properly for long). Special note should be given to the game's introduction which goes down as one of the most emotive in gaming history with its stirring mix of gameplay clips and poetry.

Despite the overwhelming number of positives for those willing to put in the effort, SH4 isn't without a few small flaws. Most damaging for anyone new to the genre is the realisation that the supplied manual and in-game training missions are next to useless unless you know what you're doing in the first place. A distinct lack of fundamental 'how to' details seem to leave beginners who are used to the accelerate/brake/left/right controls of your less complex games somewhat 'at sea' (oh yes, very good - Ed). Thank God for the wonders of the internet, then, where a wealth of unofficial information can be found to help the bewildered gain a foothold on the learning curve, although it's a definite black mark that SH4 takes such a blinkered approach to the potential for broadening its market. The game also has a frustrating number of bugs in the version reviewed, and although some of these have been patched already there is still more work to be done and the practice of releasing buggy code only to patch it so soon after release isn't one that should be encouraged.

If you've read this largely positive review and still think that despite the glowing nature of it all you can't really see yourself enjoying this title then the chances are you're right, this isn't the kind of game you can stumble into blind and enjoy for a bit before moving on to something else and as such you can happily cut the final score in half and move on. For those that are left, for those who's hearts quicken at the thought of hours spent mastering the art of submarine command, the chances are you've already decided you want it before you've seen what score I've awarded it, and in that case what are you waiting for? Go and buy it!

87%

By Paul Newcombe