"There be gold on the sea!"

Pirates.

The scourge of the seas. Found in tales of legend. And now, thanks to Sid Meier's, reinvented for the 20th century.

I was never able to purchase a copy of the original Pirates but I can remember playing it on a friend's PC. Compared to today's games with fancy graphics and wild action, it would not fare too well. But for the time, it was a very addictive game that I never grew tired of playing when I got the chance.

So now we have the new Pirates and I am still as giddy about playing this new version as I was the original. Let's break it down:

*Graphics*

While there is no need for a 128 meg graphics card, the graphics are still pretty good. They are sharp, fluid, and colorful. There is always the option to turn down or off the various graphic features if your system does not have enough memory. The waves in the water flow about. The crews of the ships wave their native banners from the decks. The Jolly Roger moves with the wind. The character's faces are cartoonish but that's ok. They are drawn well and in proportion. There have been a few complaints that the governor's beautiful daughters are not that beautiful. I can only say that it is a game. Use your imagination! Besides, we can't all dance with Tara Reid!

*Sound*

Good sound. You can hear the wind roar whether it is a calm breeze or a rampaging roar as you sail through a storm. The sails of your ship whip about and your crew will cry out when another ship approaches. Mostly, the characters all talk in Sim-gibberish (think Swedish Chef) but the crew member in the crow's nest does appear to say "Land hooo!" as you near landfall. The music does not last that long but what there is of it is true to the genre.

*Game play*

Game play is easy enough. The creators made the interface simple to use. You can steer your ship, move your pirate captain, choose which sword attack to use, or which dance maneuver to engage in with your number pad (the game automatically turns off the number lock for you.) You can also use your mouse to steer the ship port or starboard. While sneaking about town, you hold down your shift key to run. But your pirate does not really appear to run. Oh, the graphics make it look like he is running but the speed at which he moves makes you think he is at a light crawl.

The more frustrating part may be mastering your timing when trying to dance. It matters not that you are charming master of the seas. If you want to impress the governor's daughter, you must learn to dance! By paying attention to the young lady's hand gestures and the timing of the music, you can woo her off her feet on the dance floor. By matching the music's timing (which is in three-time or four-time depending on the tune), you can do a flourish. A flourish is a more fanciful dance step. The more of these you do, the better she will like you! It takes practice but then, what doesn't?

The main story of the game is a greedy landowner and pirate has enslaved your family. During the melee, you managed to escape and vow revenge. Ten years later, you are off to rescue and restore your family name. Do you have to follow that path? No. In fact, you can ignore your family altogether and instead become one of the most black-hearted and cutthroat scallywags to ever sail the seven seas. Attack the Spanish, English, or Dutch ships and colonies or align with one of the countries and attack their enemies. The countries are always at war with somebody. By doing things that are in your country's favor like attacking the enemy ships or guiding new governor's to their settlements, you increase your rank and favor with that country. Increasing your rank will earn you special favors like reduced prices on ship repairs or markets offering you goods at less cost. But if you are a true pirate and plunder their ships anyway, you will lose that favor and may have to buy it back. And if they really hate you, you may need a friendly Jesuit priest to intervene on your behalf. Your pirate also ages. The older he gets, the more difficult it will be to parry that sword or hit the precise dance movement so you must decide when it is time to retire...if you live that long. You can also be captured by the enemy and thrown in jail. Fortunately for you, you can get out after a period of time or escape if you have found a set of lock pick tools. Double fortune for you is that you do not face the traditional pirate sentence: a short drop and a sudden stop.

The point is that you can pretty much play in any manner you wish. This does make the replay ability good but it can sag down as time goes by. But it is a great game to come back to after some time away. The difficulty levels can add a bit more to it but even at swashbuckler level, the game is not extremely difficult.

*Overall*

10 out of 10. For the original game players, this is a refreshing change and even new players will appreciate it. It can get old after many hours of playing but it has a quality that will always bring you back.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 12/10/04