I was fortunate enough to get in on the final technical alpha for Sea of Thieves, just before Christmas. Being such an early build, we were under a non-disclosure agreement, and couldn’t share anything about the experience.
The new (and now slightly extended) closed beta is a different story though! Being encouraged to play and stream it, seems to be the order of the day, so aside from dipping in and out of it when I can. I’ll be streaming it over on my Mixer channel.
Straight off the bat
I’ve been immediately impressed with how Sea of Thieves looks, it has this great cartoony/unique art style, but it has this really amazing looking water. The stars at night, as you’re sailing along, are a sight to behold, too.
The wind-direction is obvious enough for you to pick up on it, to angle your sails, but not a nuisance or even noticeable outside of that specific context, which is really good.
Everything handles pretty well. I’ve only played solo on a one-man ship so far, and well……I am not a good captain. Some serious, seemingly out of nowhere hull-damage has sunk my ship twice. I’ve tried to board it up, but as the water comes in, and there are more holes, it got too much, I abandoned ship……..
The depth I’ve seen so far is pretty cool. A bucket to throw water overboard, wooden planks to fix holes in your ship, carry cannon balls and loading them in to your cannons. Choosing sail length and direction to catch the wind. It’s all there, and really accessible.
One thing that does bother me, is facing some of my own genuine fears. Namely that of swimming in open water, and of course…..sharks. Turns out, I’m going to need to get used to it really quick!
The music is great, particularly that menu/loading music, really cool.
Rare
I, like many many others have a really strong bond with Rare, and I’ve got really high hopes for Sea of Thieves. These are the people that gave us Goldeneye, Perfect Dark and Banjo Kazooie for crying out loud!
Rare are memory makers, creating games filled with character and excellent, memorable soundtracks. Once the #VasDown boys all get on board (pardon the pun), I can see us having some great adventures together.
Here’s hoping they knock out out of the park. If the past couple of Sea of Thieves sessions are anything to go by, they’re looking good!
Next up…..
My screenshots don’t seem to be available to add to this post, so I’ll try and get some more.
In the meantime, I’m hoping to give Sea of Thieves another couple of hours at least. Sharing it on-stream, and finding others to set sail with.
More thoughts coming soon, after I’ve had some proper play-time.
Ninja Refinery is on the case!