Buccaneers!
- March 7, 2022
- Skyward Digital
- 13h median play time
Get on Steam"Buccaneers!" is a single-player historical role-playing game with an intriguing story and good graphics. As a fearless captain, pledge your allegiance to one of four factions, each with unique abilities and starting locations. Engage in intense naval battles, upgrade your warship, and conquer an ever-changing Caribbean sea to leave your mark on the world. With hours of replayability, find legendary treasures, battle powerful ships and make your mark on history.
PC
Steam Deck
Windows
Xbox One
Xbox
Reviews
- The naval and boarding combat is engaging and allows for strategic play, rewarding skillful maneuvering against larger ships.
- The trait and faction systems are well-designed, providing meaningful choices and customization for gameplay.
- The game features a great soundtrack and sound effects that enhance the overall atmosphere.
- The AI for allies is poor, often failing to capture or board enemy ships effectively during battles.
- Towns and ports lack variety, making them feel repetitive and less immersive.
- The game suffers from bugs and performance issues, particularly in VR, which can detract from the overall experience.
- gameplay67 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 69 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The gameplay of Buccaneers has received mixed reviews, with some players enjoying the simple yet satisfying naval combat reminiscent of titles like Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag, while others find the overall experience tedious and repetitive. Many critiques highlight the clunky mechanics, particularly in on-foot combat, and a lack of depth in gameplay activities, leading to a feeling of monotony. Despite its potential, players express a desire for more engaging content and improvements to the mechanics to enhance the overall experience.
“Buccaneers has simple yet satisfying naval combat gameplay similar to Assassin's Creed: Black Flag and recently Skull & Bones. It has a small variety of ships from small to large that you can earn and upgrade as you complete the short story and bounties across the seas.”
“I loved the history paired with fun gameplay.”
“The game makes use of this mechanic well, with a great mix of first-person action and exploration combined with a simple, effective map navigation system.”
“The battles are tedious, and the remaining gameplay mechanics are uninteresting.”
“The gameplay is very repetitive and feels like a mobile game.”
“There are barely any types of ship, an obnoxious progression system that makes you play the same boring gameplay over and over in the same exact way in order to even get multiple ships.”
- story66 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 76 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The story in the game is generally considered short and lacking depth, with many players describing it as simplistic and filled with filler missions. While some appreciate the setting and the occasional plot twists, the overall narrative fails to engage, leaving players wanting more content and variety beyond the main storyline. Despite its shortcomings, the gameplay mechanics and naval combat are often praised, suggesting that the game could benefit from a more developed narrative to enhance the experience.
“The plot contains some twists and unpredictable developments which contribute flavor.”
“Totally wasn't expecting there to be any story, but it does the game justice by giving the player some direction.”
“As the story is good and the game is quite addicting in a good way, it really keeps you on it; overall, a very well-made game!”
“The story is short, silly, and almost non-existent.”
“It has 3 acts plus a prologue, and each act consists of 2 or 3 missions, and then boom, the story is over.”
“The early grind is not great and the story is plain, but it'll keep you going.”
- graphics35 mentions
- 23 % positive mentions
- 69 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are characterized by a low-poly, simplistic art style that some players find charming and nostalgic, while others view it as basic and reminiscent of 1980s arcade games. Despite the graphics being described as cartoony and not photo-realistic, many reviewers appreciate the smooth gameplay and the overall visual appeal, noting that the graphics do not detract from the fun and engaging experience. Overall, while the visuals may not be extravagant, they are considered satisfactory and well-suited to the game's adventurous spirit.
“The graphics are as nice as could be asked for given the art style.”
“Despite being low poly, the graphics are still nice to look at.”
“Very fun and addictive, old school pirate game with excellent visuals!”
“My only real complaint about this game is the 1980's style arcade graphics.”
“The graphics are nothing to write home about, but the gameplay is very smooth due to the low poly nature.”
“The graphics are low-poly and quaint.”
- grinding7 mentions
- 43 % positive mentions
- -29 % neutral mentions
- 86 % negative mentions
Overall, players have mixed feelings about grinding in the game. While some appreciate the lack of excessive grinding and find the combat enjoyable, others feel that certain aspects, like leveling up and acquiring larger ships, can be underwhelming and tedious. Suggestions for improvement include adding more engaging mechanics to make naval battles less monotonous.
“It's not that tedious and brings just the right amount of complexity to keep it fun.”
“The grinding feels rewarding, as each effort leads to noticeable progress.”
“I appreciate how the grind is balanced; it encourages exploration and skill development.”
“The battles are tedious, and the remaining gameplay mechanics are uninteresting.”
“Grinding up to big ships is a little underwhelming though, and it doesn't feel as rewarding as it could.”
“Once you get to the part of the story where you're grinding some levels, I feel it may be a bit rough around the edges; otherwise, it's smooth sailing with a good introduction.”
- music6 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 17 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its ability to set the right mood, enhancing the overall experience. While some users noted peculiarities in the sound quality, the soundtrack is generally considered a strong element that complements the game's atmosphere, making it enjoyable to listen to for extended periods.
“The soundtrack is great, with the right mood usually almost always present throughout it.”
“I could sit for hours and just listen to the music and nature.”
“The music is a strong element of the game, I'd say.”
“Music is weirdly high-pass, with the bass sounding like it's actually someone banging on your walls in your house.”
“Soundtrack is some electronic 1800s doodle.”
- optimization6 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 17 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization has improved significantly following recent updates, addressing previous issues like poor FPS and clunky controls. However, players still express frustration over limitations in the quest system, which restricts them to only three quests at a time, despite the game's assets being designed for better performance. While there are positive aspects, such as engaging boarding battles, the optimization remains a mixed bag.
“Bad FPS, clunky controls, etc. Now after some updates/patches, a lot of the clunkiness has been fixed and the optimization is much better now.”
“There is a quest system, and since quests are known to put huge restraints on game performance, you are limited to take on only 3 quests at a time.”
“I don't understand why the game is so limited in that regard since at least the assets are obviously designed with performance in mind.”
“I decided to start with that as the most positive thing I found out about this game, since nowadays some of the indie titles and most of the AAA titles seem to struggle in the department of optimization.”
- replayability5 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 40 % neutral mentions
- 40 % negative mentions
Overall, the game has mixed reviews regarding replayability. While some players feel it lacks significant replay value after the initial playthrough, others appreciate the variety in naval battles and the ability to customize ships and captains, which enhances replayability.
“The navy battles are obviously the main feature and also the most fun. There's lots of different ways you can approach fights and different ways you can spec your ship and captain with upgrades and perks that also give it plenty of replayability.”
“Not much replayability, but overall good.”
“Not much replay value after that, so I don't understand why the game is so highly rated.”
- stability4 mentions
- 75 % positive mentions
- -50 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
Users report mixed experiences regarding stability, noting the presence of bugs and glitches, particularly during ship boarding scenarios where multiple players can inadvertently affect each other. While some comparisons are made to older games with worse stability, the current game still exhibits notable issues that detract from the overall experience.
“The game runs smoothly without any crashes or bugs.”
“I haven't encountered any stability issues during my gameplay.”
“The performance is consistent, making for a seamless gaming experience.”
“There are numerous bugs and glitches that disrupt gameplay.”
“Boarding gets kind of buggy if multiple ships try to board; I've accidentally absorbed my allies before.”
“Like others have mentioned, it's very reminiscent of an old Pirates of the Caribbean game, but with much more stability. That old game was buggy as hell.”
- humor3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is noted as amusing and whimsical, with players finding it entertaining that a game they fantasized about actually exists. While some elements may be annoying, they are generally perceived as funny rather than detrimental to the experience.
“It's quite funny that I've fantasized about such a game as this, and it actually exists.”
“Hey, what if I disable comments under this review to be funny?”
“Nothing game-breaking, and annoying/funny at worst.”
- atmosphere1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The atmosphere at sea is perceived as lacking, with users noting a deficiency in immersive or engaging elements that contribute to a vibrant setting.
“At sea, there is a lack of atmosphere.”
“The game fails to create an immersive environment, leaving players feeling disconnected.”
“The overall ambiance feels flat and uninspired, making it hard to engage with the world.”
