Silent Hunter III tracks down gold

Ubisoft today announced that Silent Hunter III is off to factory and will float on to store shelves March 15. The PC game is the third entry in the Silent Hunter series, which debuted on the PC back in 1996, and it's the first entry in the franchise to be developed internally by a Ubisoft studio, Ubisoft Romania.

Silent Hunter III puts gamers at the helm of a German U-boat, one of the many feared submersibles that stalked naval vessels during WWII. The game features a dynamic campaign, meaning no two single-player sessions will be identical, provided gamers don't choose the exact same path.

Captains will start their careers between 1939 and 1943, but the history campaign will always end in 1945, as the game is not rewriting history. Depending on the year chosen as a starting point, various submarines will be available. The gamer's accompanying fleet can be selected, which will determine the areas to be patrolled.

The game features an event camera, which follows such notable instances as launched torpedoes. Online play lets four players cooperatively battle computer artificial intelligence, or eight players can fight it out on the high seas.

Silent Hunter III is rated "T" for Teen and will carry an SRP of $39.99. For more information on Silent Hunter III, periscope down to GameSpot's previous coverage, which includes a recent hands-on preview.