PLATFORMS: PC and X-BOX

How many of us remember that great Sid game from the mid to late 80's Pirates? I don't know about you, but I consider that one of the greatest games ever made. The freedom to sail around and live the life of a pirate. I spent countless hours on that one for both NES and Commodore 64, and stiill play Pirates Gold for the Genesis from time to time.

A new game just came out on Wed from Betheseda, makers of Morrowind, that might just remind you of that classic.

Pirates of the Caribbean is the closest thing to Pirates we've seen in years. It's a action and RPG rolled into one. It shares it's name with the Disney movie being released next week (and has a free movie ticket!) but it is only very loosely based on the movie.

You play a young English captain in a fantasy (made up islands) world like the Caribbean in 1630. There is a main quest you can follow, as well as many side quests, but the game is open ended and has no official 'end'. You can attack other ships and forts, trade, smuggle in contraband, be a great guy or a bad pirate. You can be friendly or hostile with Pirates and five European nations (England, France, Spain, Holland, Portugal).

On land you can walk around in either first or third person, talk to characters, explore various houses looking for items, and engage in fighting with people. At sea you can sail around a map or go to a in close view of your ship or fleet.

As you gain experience, you earn skill points you can apply to your skills and abilities, and can also hire officers to work for you. The crew also needs to be kept happy. You have a quest book to kep track of things for you, and can name your ships. There is a arcade mode for sailinga nd battles where you can just control easiler and fire, or you can be a gunner and aim the cannons.

Graphicly the game is jaw dropping, like Morrowind. The in town scenes are very nice, and at sea, when looking down at your ship, you can see the men running around doing their chores, the ripples and sun shining off the water, and the sun setting into a beautiful sunset. Music is fitting for the time and place. Game runs very smoothly on lower systems without a crash or a slowdown. (I have the PC version).

The worst part of the game is the default keyboard and mouse mapping and the instruction book, which is a joke. Once you re-map things to your mouse and better hotkeys, controls are easier. Combat options are limited for land fighting and can be quite hard. Walking speed is slow and you'll find needing to hold down run, and it can be impossible to move around town at night.

Despite these shortcomings, this is a nice game that probaly won't get the press it deserves. If you liked Pirates and/or another great classic of sailing games, Uncharted Waters 1 + 2, check this one out.