Sid Meier’s Pirates! is an action-adventure computer game developed by Fireaxis Games and published by Atari’s. The PC strategy game first appeared in 1987 and an Xbox version was released in 2005. The latter had newer features such as 3D game format, with a similar game play to the original. And recently, Pirates has made its way into the portable gaming console with its 2007 PSP version.
A series of mini-games are packed in Pirates to keep the portable gamer satisfied. There are land and sea battles, where player can engage in ship-to-ship battles, gliding down sails to the enemy ship and making his way to the pirate captain. Then player can engage in one-on-one swordplay duels with the enemy captain, while avoiding cannonballs shot to and from the sailing vessels.
If such pirate combats get too violent, player may also go on a wild treasure hunt, which is a new feature of the game. More than 20 unique locations are available for the player to navigate for pirate treasures and to discover ancient cities. Player also gets to meet a familiar mix of characters along the way, from pirates to island natives, in this role-playing game.
Strategy-wise, Pirates! also offers decisions for the player to make regarding pirate missions to undertake. As pirate captain, player is tasked to balance the crew morale while also playing politics on a larger scale, choosing a country to serve and then playing one nation against another.
The handheld version has modified gameplay actions, making navigation smooth with a user interface suitable for a portable gaming device. The widescreen display of the PSP is also well-utilized and so are the controls on the unit. Also, with the PSP’s WiFi capabilities, up to four players can enjoy playing a round of Pirates! all at the same time. The mechanics of the game are not too complex as it may seem and are just right to keep the player in total control of the pirate ship.
