Sid Meier's Pirates! (also known as Sid Meier's Pirates!: Live the Life, or simply Pirates!) is a 2004 strategy, action and adventure video game developed by Firaxis Games. A remake of Sid Meier's earlier 1987 game of the same name, it was originally published by Atari Interactive, but in May 2005, 2K acquired the rights to the title from Atari's parent company Infogrames and later went on to publish console and handheld ports.
Overall, the gameplay remains very similar to the original game, though it features a 3D game engine (NDL's Gamebryo). Some elements like sun sighting were removed, but other features have been added, such as a ballroom dancing minigame and an improved turn-based land combat system.
The Microsoft Windows version of Pirates! was released on November 22, 2004, and was also available through the online GameTap video game service before it was shut down. The Xbox version was released on July 11, 2005, and includes some multiplayer capabilities. The Xbox version was re-released on the Xbox Live Marketplace for the Xbox 360 as an Xbox Original on February 11, 2008, since the Xbox version is on the Xbox 360 backward compatibility list in North America and Europe. A version for the PlayStation Portable was released on January 23, 2007. This new version features modified gameplay mechanisms and was developed by Full Fat in collaboration with Firaxis Games. The Mac OS X version was released in August 2008 by Feral Interactive. The Wii version was released on September 28, 2010.
A mobile version has been released by Oasys Mobile. The iPad version was released on July 21, 2011. A version for the Apple iPhone and iPod Touch was released in April 2012, published by 2K Games. In addition, the game was ported over to the Windows Phone platform in early April 2012.
Gameplay Pirates is separated into several minigames requiring different skills, as well as a "sailing map" mode where the player navigates around the Caribbean. Sailing technique, evasion (running from guards), naval gunnery, turn-based strategy, dancing with the daughter of a governor, fencing, and strategic planning are all skills needed to succeed in Pirates. The player must choose one of five different skills at the start, which the game will give them an advantage in. During the game, the player can acquire items and special crew members that make some minigames less difficult.
In the PC version, most controls are assigned to the nine keys of the number pad, and the game is completely playable using only the keyboard (numpad keys and enter), excluding the start menu and control screen. This is achieved by a visual representation of the keypad in the lower right corner of the screen, which also shows the function of each key at any given time. For example, during ship-to-ship combat, the "3", "7", and "1" keys on the numpad representation are shown with images of different cannonball types. These buttons are used to select different types of cannonballs to fire. The on-screen keypad can also be clicked with the mouse, performing the same function as the keyboard key. Though the mouse can be used for various commands, the keypad is the preferred input mechanism due to the game's mechanics.
Story Each new game comes with a short backstory, which starts at the time the player character is still a young boy. The player character's family receives a visit from an evil Spanish nobleman, the Marquis de la Montalbán, who proceeds to enslave them all for failing to pay their debt to him. The player character manages to evade capture, vowing to avenge what Montalbán has done to his family. Ten years later, the player character, now a young adult, enters a tavern to start his journey to the Caribbean. At this point, the player must name the character, choose the difficulty level, special trait and starting era, in addition to which nation to sail with at the beginning.
Once the player completes the registration, the scene proceeds to the player character aboard a ship as he takes a voyage to the Caribbean. The voyage is harsh, and the ship captain frequently abuses his crew, causing the player character to incite a mutiny out of ill treatment. The mutiny is successful, with the captain set adrift and the player character named the new captain, making the ship his own. This marks the start of the game, with the ship immediately entering the port of a major city of the player's chosen nationality.
Sailing
The majority of the game is spent sailing from destination to destination around the Caribbean islands. To control the ship(s), the player must use the number pad (or the directional arrows) on the keyboard. Mouse navigation is also possible, where clicking anywhere on the screen will send the ship sailing in that direction. During the sailing segment, the player navigates between areas of interest in the Caribbean, including colonies, cities, missions, pirate havens, and others. Wind conditions have an important effect on sailing, as winds tend to blow westwards (especially on lower difficulty levels) and as such speed up travels to the west while slowing down travel to the east. Clouds passing overhead indicate barometric depressions, and at the center of these depressions are storms which cause powerful winds that usually boosts sailing in any direction, but also poses a threat to ships passing underneath the storm. Unlike earlier versions, the Caribbean is filled with ships represented visually by their three-dimensional models. The player can spot these ships from a distance and even collect information about their mission, port of departure, destination, and nationality. This allows the player to select their targets, as well as actively pursue most ships if an attack is to be attempted. Unlike previous Pirates! games, however, enemy ships cannot force the player to fight, although they can bombard the player's ships en route to a destination and even sink some (but not all) of the player's ships if they bombard them long enough. Fortified cities which hold a particular grudge against the player (or whose controlling nation holds a substantial bounty over the player's head) may also open fire upon the player's fleet as it passes by. The player must also navigate around reefs and shoals, which cause hull damage to any ship that passes over them (but rarely sink ships, unlike in previous versions). Finally, if the player wishes, they may sail the ship onto the shoreline, allowing the crew to disembark and begin to march. This can be used when the player wishes to approach a hostile city without being fired upon, to attack a friendly city, or to travel on land seeking buried treasure, lost cities, or Montalban's hideout.
Trade and economy During the course of the game, the player can acquire large amounts of resources from ships captured, including cannons, food, supplies, and trade goods. These goods have fluctuating values around the Caribbean, though most do not change much at any given time. Areas with many nearby pirate havens will pay more for cannons, isolated settlements will pay more for supplies, and may have very cheap local goods, such as spices, and so forth. This is offset by smaller villages having fewer tradeable goods and less gold than larger cities, which will also trade less under poor economic conditions and small population size. The player can also repair or upgrade ships at particular ports. These repairs depend on the player's rank and reputation in the cities' controlling government. As the player rises in rank, the repairs become cheaper, and eventually are done for free.
Naval battles The player will encounter numerous ships while sailing, all of which can be attacked. The player must decide to start a battle, although enemy ships may open fire and begin a chase on the sailing map. The player also has the option to switch flagships, controlling which ships will engage the enemy. Sailing ships in combat is handled much the same as sailing them on the main map. The player controls a single ship and must navigate it according to the prevailing winds, the ship's specific sailing strengths, and the player's goals during the battle. Several differences do apply, mostly the inability to sail directly into the wind with most ships (which is possible, albeit slowly, on the sailing map), as well as the lack of dynamic weather (no storms, though engaging while in a storm will provide storm conditions during the entire battle). Depending on the player's ship, the enemy's ship, and various other factors, a battle may have one or more desirable outcomes in addition to the sinking of the player's ship. The most common goal in ship-to-ship combat would be the capture of the enemy vessel, either by directly boarding it and carrying the deck, or by subduing the ship by cannon fire. An enemy ship will always surrender if it is dismasted (except escort ships, which never surrender) although it may also choose to surrender if faced with a powerful boarding party compared to its own crew or if very seriously damaged. Smaller ships are suited to the former strategy (quick boarding, with little cannon fire exchanged), though some are nimble enough to evade enemy fire and win by wearing down even the most powerful warships, whose large crew makes early boarding impractical. Larger ships, especially frigates, often are more suited to subduing the enemy ship through cannon fire, due to their powerful broadsides.
Another possible outcome is the sinking of the enemy ship. After the enemy's hull has been hit enough, a shot will end up in the powder magazine, destroying the ship.
Much of the naval combat minigame consists of attempting to outmaneuver the enemy, bringing their vessel into cannon range while trying to stay out of their line of fire. The player may also attempt to board the enemy's ship as quickly as possible to avoid damage to either ship. Wind direction and specific ship capabilities are significant factors. Some ships are adept at sailing at sharp angles to the wind direction, while others can only gain reasonable speed when sailing across or with the wind. Turning speed is also different between ship types, and some ships can actually weave between cannonballs, while others turn very slowly and cannot make swift maneuvers. There is great emphasis on knowing the particular strengths and weaknesses of one's ship, and the ability to gauge wind direction continuously and act accordingly.
Automatic aiming is also applied to the shot, which may (especially in lower difficulties) cause the cannonballs to be fired at a narrower angle to the ship's heading. This automatic aiming attempts to take into account the heading and speed of the enemy ship, and often will cause a more accurate hit, although it can also be detrimental, especially against quick enemies. Cannon facing the enemy are fired in volleys. After firing, the crew begins to reload, a task which takes a certain amount of time depending on the number of cannon, the number of crew, and several other factors. Volleys can be fired even when not all cannon have been loaded, as opposed to a broadside. The largest broadside possible (24 guns) is fired by a fully armed Ship of the Line, which mounts 48 guns in total. Such a volley is often wide enough to hit the enemy regardless of his attempts to maneuver out of the way. The player needs to take into account the enemy's heading and speed when firing, as cannonballs take some time to travel the distance between the two ships and therefore cannot be fired directly at the enemy's position unless the enemy is motionless or at extremely close range.