Sid...What did you do??????

[CatalinaThePirate]

<!--`QuoteBegin-Capn_Enigma`+--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Capn_Enigma)</div><div class='quotemain'><!--QuoteEBegin-->as an ex- sailor and hobby historian for piracy, I am a stickler for authenticity in all things nautical. Guess that makes me <b>not</b> the average Pirates! buyer that betatesting is aimed at.[/quote]But they were looking for an `all-around` sampling, Enigma. Perhaps a historian might not appreciate the points of this game (after all, it is a game and not a sim), but they wanted all opinions, good or bad.

Since you are interested in history, have you hit our "Blind Parrot" forum here? We've got a small but good group of people who are `historically-minded` and the postings there are more for those of us who love to curl up with a good history book <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/bookish.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":mm" border="0" alt="bookish.gif" /> when we're not gaming. <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/type_1.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":nk" border="0" alt="type_1.gif" />

Some good articles about famous pirates pass through there, and discussions on great books, movies, and other things not necessarily `game-related`.

Come on over <a href="http://forum.piratesahoy.net/forum23.php" target="_blank">http://forum.piratesahoy.net/forum23.php</a> and start up a good discussion on something that interests you from history - I'll bet you'll find some willing and nimble minds to participate! <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/onya.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="onya.gif" />

<b>Cyberops, </b>sounds intriguing, I'm going to have to take a look <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/keith.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="keith.gif" /> at that! <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/par-ty.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="par-ty.gif" />

 

[Raion]

Well, if one uses the chase view of the ship and zooms in all the way (plus or minus key on keypad) then sailing all over the place to look around will still make your head whoosey, and all of that. Plus the funny compass to sail around with will still help. So, it is up to the player to still feel like a whoosey drunken Pirate! by sailing that way, and looking for the ships and land, and not using any help.

Then if still too easy, use 640 x 480 mode and zoom in all the way in chase view. And zig and zag all over the ocean.

I play to give the game twiddles -- place your left thumb on ye nose, and twiddle ye fingers at the game, and anything that you thought that you should do, is probably not what you should be doing, perhaps!

Help kick out the New Colonists by helping the Indians.

They made slaves out of your family, they done that to other families, and they make slaves out of the Indians. Pounce on them, and down their cities and ships, and get the Indians to Attack, and seek condolence at the Missionary Settlements, and all of that.

I need 10 ruby rings, plus a few more, for the honeys, so I can get the info, and them dump 'em. Romance them a little with the dances, and all, to get the info.

The game can still make you feel like a drunken sailor though!
And use those twiddles at the game!
Circle ships first several times before attacking them.

It is up to the player, how you play the game, and do not forget ye hat, and clothing and all of that also!
<img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/hi.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":gday" border="0" alt="hi.gif" />

 

[CatalinaThePirate]

<img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":" border="0" alt="laugh.gif" /> And the extra conversation you can add in. <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":" border="0" alt="laugh.gif" />

<img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/unsure.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":?" border="0" alt="unsure.gif" /> I've been meaning to make a pirate smiley doing a `two-handed` raspberry, now I think it'll have to be a twiddle! <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/onya.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="onya.gif" />

 

[edgarblack]

Sid Meier's Pirates, goes down with the ship

As with many of you, I feel the original Pirates rates as one the best games ever made. However, this "modernized" version if that's what you call this, is a horrible to say the least. For years now I have been saying Sid (The Great) Meier's needs to upgrade "Pirates" to take advantage of the todays technology, but what we got here does nothing to take advantage of new technology. Sid I truely hope that todays up and coming generation of gamers do not remember you for this remake.

1. No in game way of changing your key mappings. Ok I can live with that (lazy developers), I just edit the KeyMap.ini, luckily I am not some average computer user, in fact I write software, so this does not scare me. Guess waht, editing this file does not make any difference, the controls are not affected.
The default suck.

2. No support for game pads(yes, they exist for PC's) or joy sticks. I personally play most games with the key board, but the side scrolling nature of the dueling lends its self to a game pad. In the soon to be release console version of the game this will not be a issue.

3. Graphics play very small roll in game of this style, but still if you make a game today you need to put a little effort into them. How about at least a little variety in the appearances of characters in the game, Governor's daughter characters as far as I have seen use of 3 character skins, and the same is true for most other characters. In the old C64 version this was a necessity, but is just a sigin of a rushed development in todays gaming world (LETS GET IT OUT FOR CHRISTMAS).

4. Why take "Ship versus land combat" see manual page 7. In the original it was hard, but it was fun.

5. The sneak into town feature though a good idea, stealth games are fun, is so poorly implemented that it is painful to play the sequence.

6. The dancing is easy, annoying, boring, stupid addition to the game.

7. More character interaction now that technology does not put strict limits on disk space. How about a "Choose your own statement" style conversation with Governors and their daughters. You know a list of 4 or 5 things to say, I seem to remember a little bit of this in the original but that was about 17 years ago and I could be wrong.

8. Minor one. Make it an option to only show my flag ship on the sailing screen, showing the fleet causes a cluttered apperance.


7. This one is a minor complaint, due to the control complexity it would add. The one thing missing in the original was fleet battles. In an new version, this should of been an obvious addition. I should be able to manage my fleet at least to level of how many men and canon to assign to a ship. Ok this would of may controlling the battel difficult. Well ok then, let me use two ships I can control one with each hand.

 

[Raion]

I don kno -- I just felt like playing a game of Pirates only to sack Cartagena every year for the last 20 or so years. Don't kno why, just felt compelled, to gather up some men, and upgrades to me ships by attacking some ships, but then, just sack Cartagena and leave it back the same way, except poorer. I made enough gold to retire on, and partied the rest of the time. Just never liked that city for some reason, so I made a life out of sacking that city. Never got thrown in jail or landed on a deserted island.

(That's crazy!)

AY! But during that time, it seem to be the only option, for me sailing ship, and me crew. Not much else to do during that time, except put up with the Govenors that all like the same to a Pirate like me, and all the Daughters that look the same to a Pirate like me, and still being a Fencing Master, or a Shipwright, or ending up as a Governor, was just not me. I decided that the culture needed a little shakeup, and then there was me -- just a Pirate, I wanted to be.

<img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":" border="0" alt="laugh.gif" />

I fought the Captain of the Guard, and they all looked the same. I used the Indians a couple of times, and had me land battles with the city. I saw the Governor once in that city, and decided, I might as well, just sack that city every year for the last 20 or so years. Just felt right to do that to that city. Just me hardy crew and me, sailing around the Caribbean, making that city poor again, and again, and again, and again.

Just never got me tired of doing that!