Sid Meiers' Pirates!

[Redbirdy]

According to EBGames, Sid's sequel to his original "Pirates!" game is shipping today. One day earlier than what I'd been hearing. Having played the original for more hours than I can count I had to order this one as well. It looks to be based on the same open-ended theme as the original which, to me, was one of its greatest selling points.

-J

[Keith Heitmann]

Generally, the theme of "pirates" doesn't appeal to me. I never tried the original game for this reason.

However, a naval war game based in that period of time would probably interest me a great deal if it had decent graphics and tactics. Sort of like a "Great Naval Battles" but for the 1700s instead of the 1940s.

[Phil Walker]

Well Redbirdy,

Tell me more! I never played the original either, but I do like Medieval and the "Swashbuckling" period. Any clue where I could check out the original, as I am somewhat of a newbie in many ways?! AND do let me know your impressions after "testing" out the new one! Sid did do well with the Civilization series so can't hurt to check it out at least.

Sincerely,
Phil

[Redbirdy]

Well Phil, I'm not sure the original is even available anymore...it came out a LONG time ago. You might try the EBgames site. Even if you found it I wouldn't guarantee that it would run on the newer Windows OS.

The major appeal of the original (to me) was the fact that it was completely open-ended. The object was to amass a fortune, gain a title (you could get various titles from every nation portrayed in the game), and retire to luxury at the end of your career. You had the entire Caribbean as your hunting ground...from the Northern coast of South America, Central America and Mexico, up into Florida, Bermuda, and everything in between. There were 4 (I think) different time periods to choose from and you could play as either English, Dutch, French, or Spanish. The path you took to achieve your objective was entirely up to you...you could even try getting there honestly, by simply trading between the many ports. You could control more than one ship and crew but the more you lead the more often you'd have to "split the treasure" and recruit a new crew, as their morale fell rapidly if you didn't keep them happy...and the more of them there are the more it takes to make them smile. There were various quests within the game as well: treasure maps that made you scour the coastlines until you found a match, and of course you never got the ENTIRE map in one piece but had to go around collecting parts of it from various people in the different ports. Often you'd have to duel the other person and if you lost you'd end up in a dungeon for several years. Dueling became more frequent as the game went along because your reputation would grow and more and more people would recognize you when you came to port. All in all a GREAT game and I'm really looking forward to this sequel. My order said it shipped yesterday and should be here on Thursday. Thursday?? Thanksgiving? Not likely, LOL, but it might slip in on Friday.

-J

[Redbirdy]

Keith,

As I recall there have been a few naval war games based on sail... I had "Wooden Ships & Iron Men" which was based on the board game of the same name. It was pretty good as I recall but I never really got into it too deeply. There was another that came out around the same time but I never tried it and have forgotten the title.

-J

[Phil Walker]

VERY interesting! I'll have to look into it for sure, but will try the online shooping sites first as they tend to be less expensive IF even available. Thanks! But do keep me posted to your actual review once you try it out!

Sincerely,
Phil

[Phil Walker]

Well, I have done a little research on this new game. It does turn out it is not really a sequel but a rewrite of the original that came out in 1987. Sid and a co-writer went in and rewrote it to work for even the newest Windows versions. So, put all that Redbirdy said and add updated video/graphics and maybe sound and put it in a 98/ME/2000/XP format and you have it. NOW, I COULD be wrong, but what I have seen in the write-ups and such on many of the shopping sites.

Sincerely,
Phil

[Redbirdy]

Well you could be right Phil but I'm sure a few additions must have been added along the way. When I ordered from EBGames I read the blurb and there appeared to be a lot of new ships to choose from, at the very least, and some of the quests they detailed certainly weren't in the original. Even if it was a strict rewrite with nothing done but updates to present tech levels I'd still buy it...it was that great a game.

-J

[Phil Walker]

I tend to agree. Would be kind of ridiculous to do a rewrite without SOME additions as well. In any event, does look appealing to me as well. I personally am looking into the "Limited Edition" version as there also seem to be some additional tools as well that are specific to THAT version. So, just me, but an extra 5 bucks may be worth it as well. Afterall, I do have the Civ. Games as I said and even though much the same 3 has some new things that make it even better than 2, which at the time I thought would be hard to "beat".

Sincerely,
Phil

[Redbirdy]

At the risk of getting slightly off-topic, I still have Civ 3 on the hard-drive...did you get the "Play the World" expansion? Although I don't play online it has some nice additions. If you like Civ you might also want to look into a game titled "Call to Power 2." It's an older game but has the same premise as Civ. I still have that on the hard drive as well, as it has some very nice options that Civ doesn't.

-J

[Phil Walker]

Well, to continue the "off-topic" a bit. No, I don't have ANY expensions for any of my games. My financial resources are a bit limited for the time being, so I have yet to buy one (and I do have plenty of games that do have expansions). So, although the online option is available with the expansion, it can wait. I have things kind of "tied up" right now, and getting the Pirates game will, shall I say, strecth things.

Call to Action 2 does sound interesting if it is as you say, but again, one thing at a time. Right now, Pirates is on the top of my priorities for the cash I put aside. THEN we'll see.

Sincerely,
Phil

[Keith Heitmann]

Redbirdy said:

Keith,

As I recall there have been a few naval war games based on sail... I had "Wooden Ships & Iron Men" which was based on the board game of the same name. It was pretty good as I recall but I never really got into it too deeply. There was another that came out around the same time but I never tried it and have forgotten the title.

-J

Sorry I didn't reply sooner. I was having a vision problem that forced me to rely on one eye and I couldn't see very well for a couple of days.

I have WSIM in boardgame format, unfortunately, like my 60+ other AH games I could never find anyone that would play it with me. I haven't played those boardgames in almost 14 years now. They're all just sitting up on a shelf. No time now, not with computer games getting so good.

[Phil Walker]

I feel for you Keith! And I think you know it isn't just to say as I AM in the "same boat". Having only one is bad enough, but when the "good" one is compromised can't get much worse. So, my condolances!

Sincerely,
Phil

[Keith Heitmann]

It's a recurring problem I get now and then. It's like something is caught in my eye and I can't get it out. Very painful. I think it may be due to lack of tears or a infection. It makes even moderately bright light painful, because I want to squint and that irritates the problem.

[Redbirdy]

Sorry to hear about the eye problems Keith! All better now I hope.

WSIM was a great little boardgame and I got a lot of play out of it. Long before it came out I'd been playing age of sail combat with miniatures. There was a very nice little rules set for it thought the name eludes me. I'm sure I still have it, stowed away in some corner of the closet. Speaking of names, the other computer game that I couldn't think of before was "Age of Sail," which, I think, had at least 2 expansions (or additions or sequels...not sure which). I never tried it.

-J