Review: Sea of Thieves on PlayStation 5 – Prepare to laugh, set sail and indulge in grog until you’re sea-sick! | Games

W
Sea of Thieves originally launched on Xbox in 2018, promising a shared adventure-filled journey, but it fell a bit short on supplies. Early sailors found vast oceans to explore in multiplayer, but gathering a reliable crew was difficult, and even when they did, quests were limited in scope, and islands provided little emergent entertainment. It wasn’t. You came in, dug up something you were told by one of the game’s quest givers, and returned to the outpost to cash in the treasure, perhaps even fighting other players’ crews along the way.

But developer Rare has added layers of additional content over the past five years, from pets to fireworks to a long themed quest titled Tall Tales. These are effectively games in their own right, and even include a tie-in with “The Secret of Monkey.” The Island and Pirates of the Caribbean. You can now discover different tasks and adventures wherever you go, including shipwrecks, caves, and other scenic locations. So it’s possible to sail around on a boat, find interesting things, and get lost in side quests, like a pirate-themed version of Legends. Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.

PlayStation 5 features this rich version of Sea of Thieves. This is the latest in his series of Microsoft first-party titles to arrive on Sony machines. And what the uninitiated will see is a perfect translation of the current Xbox version, retaining its well-mannered visual splendor, including stunningly authentic water physics, sparkling sunsets, and enchanting tropical islands. Masu. Experienced players can quickly and seamlessly link to their Xbox account, while cross-playing between consoles and his PC is equally easy. At the start of the game, you choose a boat (sloop, brigantine, or galleon) and either invite friends from a list or choose an open crew to play with
strangers (Rare is a boat where players get together We run our own message board to help you plan your voyage together), and that’s it.

Sure, it’s still basically collecting loot while looting other players and gaining reputation with the game’s various guilds, but there’s a lot of extra detail and fun in the world. My sons and I spent an embarrassing amount of time chasing around Daggertooth Outpost and throwing sick buckets at each other. We took countless screenshots in photo mode, especially when I crashed a galleon into a pier and they insisted on taking a photo of the character pointing at the damage. This is a game where stupidity is its own currency and its own reward.

If you don’t want to be a sociable pirate, you can also play solo on a sloop. You can also participate in Safe Waters mode, which takes place on private servers where there are no other players trying to steal your loot. If you’re new to the PlayStation 5 and might feel a little overwhelmed by the sheer amount of items on offer at the start, Rare offers an intuitive Maiden Voyage tutorial mode to introduce you to the basics. In fact, the UI and on-screen messaging has been improved throughout the game, particularly on the quest selection
screen, which now displays more information such as how long a mission will take. This is useful if you have limited time to play with your friends. Soon, the PS5 pirate will be joining his Xbox-owning enthusiasts in their reckless escapades.

Although Sea of ​​Thieves doesn’t have the system complexity of traditional role-playing games or massively multiplayer adventures (for example, you can’t upgrade your weapons or boats; everyone gets the same kit), but what it offers is a very different kind of role. – A play experience that exists somewhere between acting and childlike pretend play. You’re pirates who ride ocean waves, fight sea monsters, and dig for treasure, but you’re also into playing instruments and shooting cannons at each other. Whether you’re playing on PS5, Xbox, or PC, 2024’s Sea of ​​Thieves offers its own imaginative
fantasy, free from the tyranny of skill trees and level-up systems. You laugh, you sail, you drink glo until you feel sick. What a luxurious and unique sandbox experience. What a real, genuine treasure.