Caribbean Legend
- February 15, 2024
- BlackMark Studio
- 35h median play time
Get on Steam"Caribbean Legend" is a Metroidvania action-adventure game set in the Caribbean during 1654 AD, inspired by Sid Meier's Pirates! and based on the Sea Dogs series. As Charles de Maure, you'll navigate a 200-hour journey, complete hundreds of quests, and experience a lifelong adventure filled with riches, power, and romance. The game allows for freeplay, story-focused, or a mix of both, ensuring an engaging and personalized experience.
Reviews
- The game captures the nostalgic feel of classic pirate games, reminiscent of the original Sea Dogs and Pirates of the Caribbean.
- Offers a vast open-world experience with a variety of gameplay options, including trading, piracy, and exploration.
- The developers are actively working on updates and improvements, showing commitment to enhancing the game experience.
- The graphics and controls feel outdated, reminiscent of early 2000s games, which may deter new players.
- Many players report frustrating bugs and glitches that can hinder gameplay, including issues with quests and crashes.
- The tutorial is minimal and often unclear, leaving players to figure out mechanics and objectives on their own.
- story162 mentions
- 11 % positive mentions
- 82 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The game's story is a mixed bag, with some players praising its depth and engaging quests, while others criticize its convoluted design, poor translation, and lack of clear guidance. Many reviews highlight the extensive content available, with hundreds of hours of gameplay, but also note frustrating bugs and a confusing quest log that can lead to missed opportunities. Overall, while the narrative has potential and offers a unique blend of sandbox and structured gameplay, it suffers from execution issues that detract from the experience.
“The story of Charles de Maure is really engaging, and I liked it even more than the sandbox mode.”
“The storyline is also quite engaging.”
“The story is well-written and keeps players hooked from the time they begin as a newcomer to a sea wolf.”
“The story is brutal to follow and you have no idea where anything is for quests or just general shopping as your world map is useless.”
“The story is a total broken joke.”
“Quests are not explained, no world map to find where you need to go to complete the quests so quests fail.”
- gameplay83 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 70 % neutral mentions
- 10 % negative mentions
The gameplay of this title is a mixed bag, with many players noting its outdated mechanics, clunky controls, and poor graphics reminiscent of early 2000s games. Despite these drawbacks, the game offers a deep and immersive pirate experience with extensive freedom, a lengthy campaign, and a variety of gameplay elements that can be enjoyable for those willing to invest time in learning its quirks. While some appreciate the nostalgic value and potential for fun, others find the overall execution frustrating and in need of significant modernization.
“It's addicting to play and fun despite the jank in the gameplay like the movement, dodging, and fighting.”
“The gameplay is very fun and very in-depth with lots of things to do from piracy to working for nations and everything in between. If you are a pirate fan, then I would 100% recommend picking this up and giving it a go!”
“Behind the quirks lies a hidden treasure trove of immersive gameplay and high-seas adventures that make it a standout in the open-world genre.”
“Unfortunately, the gameplay is still dull, and the game files are still tightly locked, leaving no room for customization or tweaks.”
“The gameplay is unforgiving (you can be easily killed in one hit) and I agree, sometimes it can be rather frustrating, even for experienced players.”
“Well, even going into this game with low expectations, I'm blown away by how outdated the gameplay is.”
- graphics78 mentions
- 5 % positive mentions
- 67 % neutral mentions
- 28 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely criticized for being outdated, often likened to those from the early 2000s, with many users noting significant jank and bugs. While some appreciate the nostalgic charm and improvements made to textures and ship models, the overall consensus is that the visuals are poor by modern standards, detracting from the experience for new players. Despite these shortcomings, a few reviewers suggest that if players can overlook the dated graphics, they may find a rich and engaging gameplay experience.
“Graphically, the game is basically a 100% remaster with all new higher fidelity textures and more graphics options.”
“The graphics, music, and voices are very high quality, so it's really taking the best out of old and new.”
“Nice old-school graphics, improved controls, a bunch of different gameplay improvements - now I'm ready to immerse myself in the pirate world as in childhood and youth.”
“Like others said: the graphics, controls, UI, and game mechanics are all from the early 2000s.”
“Graphics are hilariously outdated.”
“The graphics look like this game came out in 2001 - in case you didn't know, it's 2024.”
- stability19 mentions
- 5 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 95 % negative mentions
The game's stability is widely criticized, with users reporting numerous bugs, glitches, and crashes that detract from the overall experience. Many players note that it feels outdated and clunky, often comparing it unfavorably to modern titles. While some appreciate its nostalgic charm, the persistent technical issues make it difficult to recommend, especially for newcomers to the series.
“It's not buggy for me at least, but it's very difficult and old-school hard, and I love it.”
“Very nice game, a bit buggy and a bunch of crashes.”
“Horribly buggy and missing countless quality of life features thanks to running on an ancient engine.”
“It is janky, buggy, inaccessible, dated, niche, hardcore and everything that people generally don't like about games they pay money for.”
- grinding7 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively tedious and frustrating, particularly in naval combat and navigation, which often leads to boredom after repeated encounters. The lack of a clear map and convoluted quest requirements contribute to a sense of aimlessness, while the need for repetitive actions, such as searching for specific officers or ships, further detracts from the experience. Overall, the grinding mechanics are viewed as outdated and overly burdensome, making it difficult for players to enjoy the game.
“Naval combat is tedious, long, and becomes boring after a few encounters.”
“Can't recommend this game, sadly it's one of the few pirate RPGs around, but man this thing is frustrating... buggy, pricey, and unbelievably grindy for a single-player game.”
“I also find looking for a specific officer or ship extremely grindy as well, since the most efficient way is to save scum.”
- optimization6 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The game's optimization is generally criticized, with players reporting significant performance issues, including frame drops, crashes, and bugs, particularly in the main menu and during loading. While some improvements over previous titles are noted, the control scheme is described as unintuitive and difficult to master, leading to a frustrating experience. Overall, the game may appeal to those willing to overlook these rough edges for its sandbox pirate gameplay.
“Compared to the older Sea Dogs games, it has definitely become more comfortable and optimized.”
“Not for the impatient, this game is optimized for the insane reward for growth in the game; you start out weak, but you can grow to command an unstoppable armada.”
“If you're willing to ignore its rough edges, its weird performance issues, unique takes on voice acting, its delightfully byzantine skill system, and very confusing pricing scheme, you'll get one of the best sandbox pirate games available on the open market.”
“In the game, control is quite specific, not intuitive, difficult to master, and there are quite a lot of bugs, especially in the main menu with game loading. A couple of times there were crashes and infinite black screens during loading, as well as strange performance issues, with frame drops from 120 to 40 just standing in place. Additionally, the ambient sounds, depending on the location, can be quite distracting, such as constant sighs and groans in the captain's cabin or any shop, which can be overwhelming.”
“Bugs and optimization: 6/10.”
“Combat is much more nuanced, but it's also not fun or rewarding, and the optimization here is abysmal. You need three hands to play comfortably; what was the thought process here?!”
- music3 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 67 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews; while some praise its quality and integration with the overall experience, others find it grating and feel it falls short compared to the orchestral compositions of previous titles in the series.
“Looks nice, the music is great, the writing is phenomenal.”
“The music is grating.”
“The creators of this game failed to realize the value of Yuri Poteyenko's orchestral music and its indispensable contribution to the older titles in the series.”
- atmosphere3 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 67 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is highly praised, with users consistently rating it as exceptional, often highlighting it as a standout feature despite other gameplay issues like clunky combat. Overall, it contributes significantly to the game's appeal, with some reviewers giving it a perfect score of 10/10.
“Atmosphere 10/10”
“The combat is still clunky, but the atmosphere is unmatched.”
“The other advantage of it is the atmosphere.”
- humor3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is derived from its outdated graphics and poorly executed translation, which users find amusing. Additionally, the absurdity of a ban without a valid reason adds to the comedic elements, highlighting the game's shortcomings in a lighthearted way.
“The graphics are hilariously outdated.”
“I find it funny that he couldn't even give a 'reason' for the ban, because his feelings got hurt that someone dared to complain in a thread where people were praising him for more model and texture changes.”
“The translation is hilariously awful, and there are barely any tutorials.”
- monetization2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy of the game has been criticized as a cash grab, with users highlighting issues such as numerous bugs and limited options at launch. Additionally, while expansion missions are available for purchase at a more reasonable price, the initial pricing and execution have left players feeling deceived.
“If you like that, then you can get the expansion missions piecemeal at a much more reasonable price than this deceptive cash grab.”
“Refunded - another cash grab remake introducing another slew of bugs. Right from the start, I was completely unable to change dialog options and could only proceed using the first one.”
- replayability2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Reviewers note that the developers have successfully enhanced the replayability of the game despite limited resources, and they are planning further improvements to increase replay value in the future.
“The developers have done a great job at making an old game replayable with the limited resources they've had.”
“The game is designed with replayability in mind, and there are plans to enhance it even further in the near future.”
- emotional1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is polarizing, with some players feeling overwhelmed or nauseated by its intensity, likening the experience to a chaotic and frenzied state.
