The Curious Case of the Pirate Overload

By Zac Cameron ·

With so many Pirate themed games to choose from, how do you know which one to jump in and play?

The Curious Case of the Pirate Overload

Over time, you start to notice trends in gaming. We’ve had the Zombie trend, we’ve gone through the great MOBA wars, and heck, now we’re looking at the start of the Battle Royale age of domination. We’ve already seen the launch of one pirate themed game so far, and we’re expecting another one later this year, so how do you know which set of oceans and ships to call your home-away-from-home?

Sea of Thieves

Sea of Thieves is fun, if a little shallow right now (picture courtesy of Sea of Thieves Facebook)
Sea of Thieves is fun, if a little shallow right now (picture courtesy of Sea of Thieves Facebook)

Sea of Thieves was a pretty highly anticipated game, with its cartoony style from developer Rare hitting a lot of points with long-time fans. The gameplay itself is very fun, with its multiplayer PvP proving a very big winner with the way it portrays ship-to-ship combat. Unfortunately, it does suffer from something of a shallowness problem, with most of its rewards just being cosmetic upgrades of items already in the game. It also suffers from several problems relating to some of the enemies in the game, such as the Kraken not really having much substance to it when you look beneath the surface. Regardless of the issues, Sea of Thieves can be found here.

Skull and Bones

Skull and Bones should be a bit more of a serious take on the genre (picture courtesy of Ubisoft)
Skull and Bones should be a bit more of a serious take on the genre (picture courtesy of Ubisoft)

Ubisoft’s answer to the growing demand for a sequel to Assassins Creed: Black Flag, Skull and Bones promises to be a much more serious take on the multiplayer pirate crew theme. With a system that focuses on making sure the players follow and understand concepts such as wind direction and sail settings, as well as how weather can affect the open ocean, Skull and Bones looks to be the answer to many a Black Flag fans prayers. You can sign up for beta access from their Official Website, here.

Blackwake

Blackwake has already been around for a while, and promises much more to come (picture courtesy of blackwake.com)
Blackwake has already been around for a while, and promises much more to come (picture courtesy of blackwake.com)

Having been out for a while already, Blackwake is yet another multiplayer pirate themed FPS that features strong co-operation between members of the crew as they seek to find and eliminate their enemies. Promising multiple game modes and large scale battles, Blackwake is a much larger, if slightly less polished version of the games we’re seeing come out this year. Blackwake may have started out as an early access project, but after hitting its full release in early 2017, it’s quickly garnered a dedicated fan base willing to sail the seven seas with their friends. Blackwake is already on Steam, here.

At the end of the day, whichever pirate themed game you decide on will come with a small but important caveat. Pirate games are best played with friends, so assemble your crew and dive right in as you loot and plunder your way across the wide ocean.