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Port Royale
Posted: Sun May 02, 2004 6:45 am
by NefariousKoel
Ya know.. I've been missing something in my pasttime for quite awhile. It was a decent pirate game that actually had a lot of thinking involved. I just happened upon the last copy of Port Royale at Gamestop (after hearing snippets about it recently) and picked it up. I got more than my money's worth for $19.99 IMHO.
Let me start by saying that I was an insane addict with Pirates on the C64, and this is the closest thing I've experienced which drew me in so much. That's quite a compliment considering how much of a flighty gamer I am. I couldn't stop playing since I loaded it up and my eyes are bleeding.
It's been ages since I've seen something so open-ended yet very complicated. I wish I'd found this last year when it came out. It didn't seem to get much air time, but that's to be expected (here in the states) considering it's a CDV published game.
Note: I played Patrician II and thought it was a good concept but lacked a number of things. This instance went far beyond what I would've requested. Not to mention being in the Caribbean.
Nef rating of....
Two Thumbs Up!

also..I didn't realize,after fetching the update, that they have Port Royale 2 due by the end of this quarter.[X(] I guess it did well in Euroland.
http://www.ascaron.com/gb/gb_portroyale/index.html
RE: Port Royale
Posted: Sun May 02, 2004 9:11 am
by Hertston
Hmmm.. saw that for a tenner during my pay-day game shop browse on Friday. I may well pick it up now.
BTW, have you tried Seado..... erm, "Pirates of the Caribbean" ? The box release was flawed in many ways, but "the Build" user mod, now at version 11 is superb. You can now do just about anything you could in Pirates!, only with what are truly excellent graphics, and an awful lot more as well.
RE: Port Royale
Posted: Sun May 02, 2004 10:07 am
by NefariousKoel
I'm a little more pre-disposed towards something like Port Royale myself. Don't get me wrong, Pirates of the Caribbean is a nice adventure, but when it comes to us strategy oriented types, Port Royale gets it. I'm thinking wargaming types Herts.

This isn't some graphical romp through never never land in numerous mini-games. It has a
ton of strategy to it and it's completely open-ended. It's pirate management at it's best, and you can likely get it cheap these days.
Just realize, it's gotta learning curve. I'm sure you'll not have a problem with that knowing you. It makes it... creamier!
You may miss the flashy movie interludes and first person view ship battles (nobody uses) but, IMO, this has replayability out the a$$. Check out the link I provided earlier. I always said the screenshots tell best if ya know what to look for. [;)]
Ya can't go wrong for 10 quid or whatever ya call those euros these days. [:'(]
RE: Port Royale
Posted: Sun May 02, 2004 2:38 pm
by Belisarius
I'm waiting for the remade Sid Meier's Pirates!, scheduled for this fall.
Looks promising, and all the classic ingredients from the original game seems to have made it in, along with a new RTS-style interface for waging land battles. [:D]
RE: Port Royale
Posted: Mon May 03, 2004 4:08 am
by Makoto
just you wait, Pimps at Sea is gonna own Pirates!
RE: Port Royale
Posted: Mon May 03, 2004 4:20 am
by Fallschirmjager
ORIGINAL: Makoto
just you wait, Pimps at Sea is gonna own Pirates!
Wasnt that an Aprils fools joke in PC gaming magazine?
RE: Port Royale
Posted: Mon May 03, 2004 8:26 pm
by Makoto
Wasnt that an Aprils fools joke in PC gaming magazine?
kinda, I heard it ended up being released for XBox.
RE: Port Royale
Posted: Mon May 03, 2004 10:25 pm
by Frank W.
Neither Port Royale nor P. Of The Carribean can reach the old Pirates game.
Sorry.
RE: Port Royale
Posted: Wed May 05, 2004 5:28 pm
by NefariousKoel
ORIGINAL: Frank W.
Neither Port Royale nor P. Of The Carribean can reach the old Pirates game.
Sorry.
I guess inflated nostalgia will do this to ya. If you compared them right now, it would be no contest.[:'(]
RE: Port Royale
Posted: Wed May 05, 2004 7:02 pm
by Hertston
Hmm.. thanks Nef. Port Royale is rather good isn't it ? [:)]
Very slick presentation for a strat/trading game without losing any depth. Wonder what they have planned for the sequel (September) ?
RE: Port Royale
Posted: Wed May 05, 2004 8:20 pm
by runes
i played it, i enjoyed it, but i couldn't play it for too long. everything about it was pretty cool, but combat really lacked. few options, and you could only control 1 ship! and even then i didnt like the way the combat was held (too much point click, turn, point click, repeat) but if they improved the combat engine and made it more in depth, then i would really be looking forward to a sequel
RE: Port Royale
Posted: Wed May 05, 2004 10:53 pm
by Frank W.
ORIGINAL: NefariousKoel
ORIGINAL: Frank W.
Neither Port Royale nor P. Of The Carribean can reach the old Pirates game.
Sorry.
I guess inflated nostalgia will do this to ya. If you compared them right now, it would be no contest.[:'(]
i played both, but luckily i don´t bought them ( only rent at the video-store). port royale isn´t that bad at all, but fit´s not my tastes ( even if it get´s a little patriot bonus - it´s a german game )... for a cool german game look for "far cry" btw.
RE: Port Royale
Posted: Wed May 05, 2004 11:20 pm
by von Murrin
Pirates of the Burning Sea ('tis a link)
Subscription-based MMORPG. It will probably be a first for me. I plan on playing as a naval captain, so it's looking more like a giant Age of Sail tactical sim to me. [:D]
Read the devlogs. These folks are really innovating the genre...
RE: Port Royale
Posted: Thu May 06, 2004 8:14 am
by NefariousKoel
ORIGINAL: Hertston
Hmm.. thanks Nef. Port Royale is rather good isn't it ? [:)]
Very slick presentation for a strat/trading game without losing any depth. Wonder what they have planned for the sequel (September) ?
The second one looks very similar - the only difference in the screenshots I noticed was that they're putting in sword fighting. [&o]
ORIGINAL: runes
i played it, i enjoyed it, but i couldn't play it for too long. everything about it was pretty cool, but combat really lacked. few options, and you could only control 1 ship! and even then i didnt like the way the combat was held (too much point click, turn, point click, repeat) but if they improved the combat engine and made it more in depth, then i would really be looking forward to a sequel
What do you mean only 1 ship runes? In combat? Sure, you can only control one but you can give orders to the others in your fleet what to attack and what kind of shot to use or just switch between them at your liking. Are we talking about the same game you and I? My first full-on game and I have 4 Barques in my fleet thus far - all captured in battle of course and I can have up to 3 different fleets considering my rank at the moment. [&:]