Pirates - Captain's Quest
Reviewed by Ty Brewer
Published by Discovery Channel Interactive

Age Group: Age 8 and Up Type: More Fun Price: $ 40

PC version requires:
486-66 8 MB RAM, 14 MB HD Space, 2x CD-ROM, Windows 95, also on Windows 3.1, 640x480x256, keyboard, joystick (undocumented),Up to 2 via modem/serial.

Mac version requires:
Version is available.

Description:

Have you ever wanted to be a pirate of the Caribbean? Remember the swashbuckling Errol Flynn movies? In Pirates: Captain's Quest you assume the role of a seafaring adventurer out to make a fortune or a name in the islands of the Caribbean. As captain of a merchant, privateer, or pirate ship, you must navigate across the high seas trading goods, prey on weaker vessels, and stay one step ahead of the law. Along the way you will keep a journal of you exploits and attempt to complete a quest to uncover historical information.

Aaaaarrrrrhhhh

As you set sail across the sea you must maintain supplies of food, water, rum, and medicine to keep the crew in top shape. Because your ship can also carry cargo, you may wish to stock up on products such as tobacco, indigo, cannon balls, and luxury items. You trade these items for silver or other goods at the local supply store, located in every major city across the Caribbean. A typical journey finds you patrolling the waters off the coast of a Caribbean island, looking for those fat merchant vessels on which to prey. After boarding the vessel and a brief sword fight, you get the booty of the plundered vessel. You'll need seek shelter to repair the damage to your vessel during the melee. Trading stolen goods works fine, but the game is deeper than that. Each island paradise produces certain goods and needs others. By skillfully buying cheap goods at one port and selling them for a profit at another, you increase your supply of silver and ability to buy more goods.

Swab the Deck, Mates!

The ship is beautifully drawn with plenty of detail. Piloting the ship is as simple as pointing in the direction you wish to travel. If you want to go upwind, you must tack and progress is slowed. The game goes into a "speed" mode when you are traveling on the open seas and no ships are nearby. When a ship is spotted, time slows back to normal, easing the transition into a "fight or flight" decision. If you wish to battle a ship, just steer your vessel close to the victim and prepare to battle. If you wish to ignore the other ship, simply press the "I" key to resume fast mode.

All Hands on Deck!

Combat is viewed from above, and each ship is visible and clearly labeled. Make certain you know the wind direction, as your ship's speed and direction are largely determined by your ability to use the wind. If you wish to sink the opposing vessel, merely come alongside and fire cannon. If you wish to board the vessel to plunder the booty, you must ram the opposing ship before they sink you with their cannon. No, this is not a simulation of actual maritime battles. The ships can pivot in one spot with amazing (and unrealistic) ease. Speed is largely determined by the wind and your direction, and turning is a factor of wind speed, but rotation is as easy as spinning in place. With the emphasis on fun, rather than ship turning dynamics, battle sequences are easy to learn and yet must be practiced to master. After ramming the opposing vessel, a short sword fight ensues between you and the captain of the other ship. The loser dies. I found the hand to hand combat phase far too easy, and couldn't manage to get killed without taking my hands off the keyboard. Swordfighting, in this game, is a matter of hitting the space bar several times until the other captain dies. After you take over the other ship, you are rewarded with their cargo.

Yo Ho Ho and a Bottle of Rum

Take the plunder and head for an island port. Sell the goods and go on another conquest. At each port you will find a trading post to replenish supplies and sell goods. You will also find hints about what items are in demand and where. By buying low and selling high, a pirate can become a respectable businessman - well, almost. After you load up your ship with goods, set sail for another port to sell high and buy low. Of course, you may find other targets of opportunity along the way, or you may become one yourself to other marauding pirates.

A Pirate's Life for Me

In all, the game is average. Gameplay is limited to cruising the oceans, selling high, buying low, and killing an occasional passerby. Unfortunately, it seems like they strapped the user interface on at the last moment, as many of the functions are unnecessarily awkward, and very little is intuitive or obvious. With that said, let me emphasize that the game is fun and will provide hours of entertainment for most kids and even some adults. My problem with the game is that it lacked that extra polish that would take it to the next level. I dreaded having to look at the map because that meant I had to move my hands from the keyboard and go to the mouse. If they whole game was controllable from only one device (keyboard, mouse, joystick), the gameplay would be a lot more interesting. Also, just moving around the ship was a chore. For instance: a ship is spotted. If you look at the ship with the telescope, you then have to press "2" 3 times to get back to the deck to steer towards it. Worse, if you go below deck for some reason (I still don't understand why you might want to) by clicking the "2" button, you have to click the "4" button twice, then the "8" button to get back to the deck. Why all the extra key strokes? That's what I'd like to know. And if there are shortcuts, why didn't they let us know?

Good game with plenty of fun for 20-30 hours, but of limited value after that. Oh, occasionally it pops up a message with some historical information about the Caribbean during the 1700's. Why did I mention that fact this way, because there is very little "education" in this title. I think they must have strapped on the educational aspect of the game when they bolted the interface on. Too bad, it had so much more potential.

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