Dangerous Waters is, without doubt, the BEST naval/submarine sim I've ever played, and I've played more than a few in my day. The fine folks at Sonalysts really did their homework when they were creating this game, since nearly every aspect of it oozes a level of realism that you're hard-pressed to find in most other games these days. I truly believe that the gameplay you experience in Dangerous Waters is a very accurate portrayal of actual naval operations and procedures in practice today; every vessel and weapon you will encounter has been meticulously reproduced according to real-life records. Hell, I could probably operate my own Los Angeles or Seawolf-class sub singlehandedly thanks to what I've learned from this game regarding their operation. Let it never be said that videogames don't teach you anything.

This tremendous level of immersion comes at a cost, however. Dangerous Waters is not so much a "game" as it is a genuine training siumlator, and as such has an extraordinarily steep learning curve that simply can't be overcome without first reading the manual and running a few practice missions as tutorials. However, even that won't fully prepare you for what you'll have to deal with once you finally take to the open seas, where even a single torpedo is usually fatal, and a compromise in stealth can ruin an entire mission. Dangerous Waters demands patience, dilligence, and a certain enthusiasm for submarines from its players if they hope to develop any real skill for it.

Dangerous Waters is not for the faint of heart, but it can be a very rewarding experience if you take the time to learn the finer points of its gameplay. You may have to lose a boat or two or a dozen before that finally happens, but that's merely half the fun!

1. it does work with Win8 and 10 if you install this tiny wrapper http://www.jiri-dvorak.cz/dangw/
2. this is the best and most realistic modern sub sim out there to this day, no contest
3. you will need to read a lot to learn, but it's worth it
4. there is a sh**load of custom missions and campaigns available for it on http://www.subguru.com/
5. ...not to forget the most awesome and helpful community on www.subsim.com
6. good hunting! ;)

Simply put: This is the greatest modern submarine simulator ever. This game is not for most people, because it is pretty hardcore realistic. The playable submarines are: Akula and Akula Improved, 688(i) Los Angeles Class, Kilo and Kilo Improved. (They also make a MH-60 Seahawk, P-3c patrol plane, and Oliver-Hazard Perry frigate playable, but those aren't nearly as fun or polished) The level of depth they went through to make this as realistic as they could is breathtaking. Going through Sonar to find and classify vessels feels very rewarding. Once classified, you determine the speed through the Demon waterfall. After that, you go to the TMA (Target Motion Analysis) station to put in all the info to fire a weapon at it. All this takes time and a lot of effort, as you have to remain silent yourself because the AI is doing the same thing. If you feel overwhelmed by all this, you can put on auto crew on almost every station, so you don't need to do everything yourself, especially if you're bad at it. (Like me at TMA.) The campaign is very hard, at least for me. But you can train up on quick missions which involve you sinking 1-3 vessels depending on the difficulty you choose. And there is a ten-digit seed generator which makes quick missions infinitely re-playable. Overall, I would give this game a great thumbs up and 10/10 rating. [At the time of this review, I have 37 hours on record.]

Easily one of the best naval combat games available. If you own Jane's Fleet Command, C:MANO or NW:AC and have always wanted to have more direct control over your units, this game is for you. It may not be the best looking game now, 8 years post release, but it allows the player to fully appreciate the dificulties of Anti-Submarine Warfare. It will make you sweat, your brain hurt, and it will be exceptionally frustrating at times. It is very rewarding to finally put weapons on a target. Ant-Air and Anti-Surface warfare is also modeled beyond most other games, but neither of them feel as nuanced as ASW.

There are several great mods available improving the fidelity of various areas, or adding many platforms. There's even a user made campaign to recreate Red Storm Rising!

The learning curve is likely to be exceptionally steep for newcomers, mostly because the tutorial that was present for 688i Hunter-Killer seems to have been removed. Sometimes there are annoying UI and AI glitches, and the lack of a global map is a bit of an annoyance sometimes. However, given that DW does what no other game does, I'm more than willing to look past these issues.

with over 600hrs of actual playtime, I would like to recommend this game for everyone who is intrested in real military/naval simulations.

this can not compared to silent hunter.

this is completley something on a higher level.

you totally should get a good crew to play with, then this game will fill your life with tonnes of fun and thrills.
expect a steep learning curve, read a lot, learn real naval tactics and sonar systems. (remember the developers actually produce sonar software for u.s. navy! I used this game to show my former physics class how sound propagation in water works. I did this two times in my life and gain both times A-grade.) DAMN NOTHING BEATS A SUBMARINE!

dw will always have a place in my heart. 07

Awesome simulation for modern naval warfare geeks.
Technical and immersive, endlessly replayable with the random quick missions and many player made scenarios.
Best with Reinforce Alert (RA) mod.

Graphically, it's dated as hell, but it's still hands-down the best modern submarine/naval combat simulation I've ever played. If you have any interest whatsoever in the genre, this should be your first and last stop.

EDIT: Everyone giving it a negative review about it not working with Win 8 should check out this community-made fix: http://www.jiri-dvorak.cz/dangw/index.html

I'll come back and review the game once i'm done reading through the 560 pages manual.

Despite having developped several videogames, Sonalysts is originaly a provider of professionnal softwares and simulators, aimed at training US Navy officers. This is clearly visible, as the gaming experience in Dangerous Waters feels a bit outdated, even for its time of release (2006). The graphics, sound effects, and gameplay possibilities are quite limited, at least compared to Silent Hunter 3, which was released a year before. On these aspects, the game is closer to Silent Hunter 2 (released 6 years prior to Dangerous Waters !), and we feel like commanding a submarine from a distance, rather than fill the shoes of a real navy officer.
That being said, the simulation part is meticulous, and has a great level of depth. We are able to command submarines (and a few other vehicles) with a high degree of realism. The game gives access to many weaponry, instrumentation (namely sonars), and takes into account a lot of physical parameters (force instance, thermal layers in the ocean having an effect on sound speed).
It takes a bit of time to fully master the operating of ships/planes/submarines, but the gaming experience is worth the effort.

Nota : apparently, DW is NOT Windows 8 compatible, and Sonalysts have stopped supporting the game. Therefore no official compatibility patch will be provided. Yet, some unoffical patches found on the subsim website may help resolve theses issue.

as any sub warfare sim, this one, although ancient, is almost immortal, because it does not rely on graphics

steep learning curve if you want to go the long way of realism, yet there are also all the "shortcuts" to have the AI crew render easier the underwater combat