Reviewed: November 19, 2007
Reviewed by: John DeWeese
Publisher
Strategy First
Developer
h2f Informationssysteme GmbH
Released: August 20, 2007
Genre: Simulation
Players: 1
5
5
4
4
4.9
System Requirements:
Screenshots (Click Image for Gallery)
Mention the word "U-boat" and most history buffs will immediately think of The Battle of the Atlantic during World War II. But the Germans first started their submarine reign of terror during the First World War, when German subs sank nearly 5,000 allied ships.
1914 Shells of Fury bills itself as the first sub simulation set in World War One. In theory, this game should offer the unique chance to captain a submarine before the age of sonar, electronic countermeasures, or ship-to-ship missiles. But Shells of Fury turns out to be a mediocre strategy game, suffering from lackluster graphics, a few glaring bugs, and a simply frustrating combat system.
Shells of Fury allows you to choose from one of the four main classes of German U-boats that appeared during the war. Early models will lack any armaments except a handful of torpedoes, while more advanced subs like the UC-II come equipped with fore and aft torpedo tubes, deck guns, and mines.
In campaign mode, you go on extended patrols which may take several in-game days to complete. Fortunately, time can be sped up significantly while traveling or slowed down to a crawl when combat starts. The mission editor allows players to create shorter battles and also set such variables as convoy size, weather, and location.
Like most sub sims, the game controls are accessed from various "room" menus. Visit the engine room to set speed and depth, the map room to plot out long-range patrols, and the radio room to receive new orders from the German admiralty. You'll probably be spending most of your time in periscope mode since this is where can watch enemy ships and aim torpedoes. The arrow keys further allow you to control the speed and direction of your sub, and hotkeys are supposed to make it a snap to switch views. Which brings me to glaring bug number one: on several occasions the hot keys would stick at the worst possible moments.
Even more frustrating is the lack of vital info the game provides. Sonar hasn't been invented yet, so you have to watch your targets by periscope if you want to track their speed and direction. The game doesn't offer any way to gauge ocean depth, so it's way too easy to run aground during a dive. I understand some of these limitations are "historically accurate," but in my mind it's the equivalent of making a WW I shooter where after every shot you have to painstakingly pull back the bolt and load another cartridge.
The WW I setting also requires strategy veterans to significantly change their usual tactics. Since you can't track targets while submerged and you carry only a handful of torpedoes, it pays to get really close to your target. Unfortunately, the computer cheats its ass off when it comes to detecting and sinking your U-boat. Leave your periscope up for any length of time and you're going to be spotted, even in heavy seas from three kilometers away. This requires a tedious game of "peek-a-boo" as you poke the periscope up every few seconds to get a bearing.
Adding to the frustration is the fact that enemy destroyers seem to uncannily hit your sub with perfect precision. On one mission, I was blown out of the water just as I had gotten one lousy torpedo off. A particularly annoying bug would occasionally sink my sub even when I was way out of range of enemy warships.
The good news is sometimes combat is ridiculously easy. Dive down to medium depth and depth charges will explode harmlessly overhead. Freighters and trawlers are slow and often unarmed, which means they pose no challenge to sink if you can first make it past the destroyers. Late in the war your sub may be attacked by bi-planes, but your machine gun often makes short work of slow moving fliers. Torpedoes are relatively easy to aim and fire, although you'll never be able to fire more than two at a time without leaving yourself open to a deadly counterattack.
Nobody expects the latest graphics from a hardcore historic sim, but the visuals in Shells of Fury seem several years out of date. The various gauges and levers aboard ship have an authentic feel, and the ocean waves are decently rendered. The same cannot be said of the various subs and ships, which look blocky and lack enough detail. Fire effects suffer from what I like to call the "Crayola effect," where bright red flames blot out underlying ship models in a messy and unrealistic jumble. After all the trouble it takes to actually blow up an enemy warship, you'd think there would be a better visual pay-off.
The sound effects are even more minimal than the graphics. I can deal with the canned musical score, barely audible explosions, or the stock "whoosh" of torpedoes and shells hitting the water. What I can't take is the lack of sound clues that help me actually play the game. For example, it would be nice to have voiceovers from my crew alerting me when an enemy ship has been spotted, or some kind of warning signal that an enemy torpedo is about to impact.
The good news is Shells of Fury retails at $20, making it a bargain title. The bad news is the campaign missions are mostly forgettable, you can only play as the Germans, and the game does not offer multiplayer. The developers get credit for a robust mission editor that allows you to choose the location, weather conditions, and size of convoy you want to fight. However, I can still only recommend this game to the most hardcore naval sim fans who value authenticity over gameplay.
In summary, I'd say the biggest weakness with 1914 Shells of Fury is the feeling that you have little control over what happens. The torpedo combat system is not as streamlined as arcade-style naval games, but it also is far too easy for hardcore sub players who prefer to plot out their own firing solutions. The deck gun can be aimed but it's just as effective simply to use the auto-firing command. Too often I felt either tedium or frustration when attacking convoys instead of the cat-and-mouse excitement I wanted to experience.