Two years ago, Ubisoft renewed our faith in the simulation genre with an absolutely first-class submarine sim called Silent Hunter III. Focusing on the North Atlantic-based shenanigans of Germany's U-boats, it managed to balance a high level of realism with a surprisingly high level of accessibility. Better yet, it did all this within the context of brilliant graphics and a phenomenally engaging campaign. Now the designers have taken the same ideas and used them to treat submarine warfare in the Pacific. The resulting title, Silent Hunter: Wolves of the Pacific, is every bit as good as the previous game. Though it's not without its problems, it's a sure bet for fans of undersea action.
The submarine commander has a number of tasks before him. Not only is he in charge of setting the overall route of patrol, but he also has to consider how and where to attack the enemy and how to get out of danger once before he's discovered. Maintaining the element of surprise and using your weapons to their greatest effectiveness constitute the most thrilling portions of the game. Lengthy journeys between targets is a considerably less dramatic but no less important part of the job.
