Pirates of Black Cove

About

In "Pirates of Black Cove," become pirate king and conquer the Caribbean by uniting the Pirates, Corsairs, and Buccaneers factions. Complete faction and storyline missions, and visit the Alchemist for wacky potion ingredients. Sail the open world, engage in battles on land and sea, and defeat the Pirates of Black Cove to earn the title of King of All Pirates.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

+10

69%

Audience ScoreBased on 118 reviews

story8 positive mentions

stability4 negative mentions

Fun and casual gameplay that appeals to fans of pirate themes.
Great atmosphere with colorful graphics and humorous dialogue.
Offers a mix of sea and land battles, providing a light-hearted pirate adventure.

Repetitive gameplay with limited depth and low replay value.
Numerous bugs and glitches, including broken achievements and crashes.
Poor AI and clunky controls, especially during land battles, detracting from the overall experience.

story
50 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
76%
8%
The game's story is largely linear and repetitive, revolving around completing missions for various pirate factions, with a simplistic and cliché narrative that lacks engagement. Players can choose from three characters, but their storylines are essentially the same, leading to a lack of depth and replayability. While the graphics and gameplay mechanics are praised, the voice acting and overall storytelling quality are criticized as bland and poorly executed.
- “The game substantially consists of accepting missions from different pirate factions, land battles, and naval battles, with storylines in between.”
- “Pirates of Black Cove has a lengthy introductory story script and a well-implemented tutorial to ease players into the basics and gameplay mechanics.”
- “I found it fun, about 8-10 hours of story missions.”
- “The story is cliché on purpose but still not very engaging.”
- “The missions and story lines are also bland and awfully voiced.”
- “The storyline is too linear and short.”
gameplay
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
66%
17%
The gameplay is generally described as simple and lacking depth, with a repetitive loop that offers limited replay value. While some players find it enjoyable for casual play, particularly in ship-to-ship battles, others criticize it for being sluggish and overly simplistic, lacking the strategic elements found in similar pirate-themed games. Overall, it provides a few hours of entertainment but falls short of expectations for more engaging gameplay.
- “Pirates of Black Cove has a lengthy introductory story script and a well-implemented tutorial to ease players into the basics and gameplay mechanics.”
- “This is a fairly decent game which is pretty cheap, but it's provided several hours of reasonably entertaining gameplay.”
- “I found that the game mechanics were quite intuitive, and it's not a game you need to spend hours poring over a manual or practicing detailed tutorials just to play.”
- “The gameplay is simple, maybe overly so, and there isn't much replay value.”
- “The gameplay loop is not very varied.”
- “However the overall game, especially the gameplay (e.g. ship-to-ship battles) itself, feels 'sluggish'.”
graphics
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
57%
22%
21%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising the art style and overall visual appeal, particularly for a title from 2011. However, some players note that the graphics feel dated and are hindered by technical issues, such as misaligned unit indicators in battles. Overall, while the visuals are considered charming and enjoyable, they may not meet modern standards, reflecting the game's age.
- “On first impressions, the graphics looked really good; the physics of the cannons firing from the ship were excellent, and the voice-overs seem professional enough.”
- “Overall fairly good, mostly because of the pleasant music, pirate puns, and nice graphics.”
- “Graphics are cute and cartoon-like.”
- “The land battles are presented terribly, partly due to the outdated graphics (and there is a severe bug in my case that the indicator of an enemy unit is not in the same place as where the unit is displayed, so that you need to hunt for the spot to click for attacking), while partly due to the lack of strategy in the RTS mode.”
- “Whilst I did not experience any performance problems (note: make sure you switch the game to use your dedicated graphics card if you have an Optimus laptop!), it seems to me a lot of effort went into graphical improvements, without any of these improvements contributing anything beneficial to the overall gameplay experience = waste of computer resources.”
- “Graphics are dated, but the game is also a decade old.”
humor
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's humor is described as a mix of dry jokes and corny pirate puns, with some players finding it charmingly amusing despite its shortcomings in delivery and voice acting. While not the funniest game, it evokes a nostalgic feel reminiscent of classic titles like Monkey Island, offering a quirky and enjoyable comedic experience.
- “It has a wiry sense of humor.”
- “Black Cove has its own style and humor... like the wonderfully corny pirate jokes in a bottle that are so bad I can't help but smile.”
- “This is a fun game, really a lot of humor in this and it reminds me of a Monkey Island game. :)”
music
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
80%
60%
The music in the game is generally well-received, described as pleasant and enhancing the overall experience, complementing the visuals and action. Reviewers appreciate the catchy tunes that contribute to the game's casual and enjoyable atmosphere, despite some noting the repetitive nature of gameplay.
- “Overall fairly good, mostly because of the pleasant music, pirate puns, and nice graphics.”
- “The music is pleasant and the action is good.”
- “The music is pretty good; voice work is good.”
- “One song makes me want to punch the screen.”
- “The music is repetitive and lacks variety.”
- “The soundtrack feels out of place and doesn't match the game's atmosphere.”
stability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The stability of the game has received mixed feedback, with some players reporting significant issues such as bugs and glitches that hinder gameplay, while others experienced only minor glitches without major stability concerns. Overall, the game's stability appears to be inconsistent, affecting the enjoyment for many users.
- “I want to love this game, I really do, but this has to be the worst game I've ever played due to a lack of support, bugs, glitches, and a very lacking game in general.”
- “When I hit the halfway mark, I realized some of the achievements were buggy and had not unlocked for things I had gone for.”
- “[lots of glitches; boring land combat; ship combat is mindless and stupid; AI is dumb; very repetitive; pirate jokes can get on your nerves]”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game has limited replayability, with many users noting its simplistic gameplay and the inability to continue after completing the final mission, leading to a lack of incentive to revisit the experience.
- “The gameplay is simple, maybe overly so, and there isn't much replay value.”
- “I don't see much replayability in the game, and you cannot continue after completing the last mission.”
- “No replayability as I see.”
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere of the game is highly praised, with users highlighting the effective use of narration and sound design that contribute to an immersive experience.
- “The narration and sounds create a deeply immersive atmosphere.”
- “Great atmosphere that pulls you into the game world.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
150%
100%
Users report mixed experiences with optimization; while some did not encounter performance issues (noting the importance of using a dedicated graphics card), others criticized the game for poor optimization and bugs, suggesting that the graphical enhancements did not enhance gameplay and wasted system resources.
- “The optimization in this game is impressive, allowing for smooth gameplay even on lower-end systems.”
- “I appreciate the attention to detail in the optimization process, which enhances the overall performance without sacrificing visual quality.”
- “The developers have done a fantastic job optimizing the game, ensuring that it runs efficiently across a variety of hardware configurations.”
- “While I did not experience any performance problems (note: make sure you switch the game to use your dedicated graphics card if you have an Optimus laptop!), it seems to me that a lot of effort went into graphical improvements, without any of these improvements contributing anything beneficial to the overall gameplay experience. It's a waste of computer resources.”
- “Poor optimization, bugs.”
grinding
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the sea battles engaging due to the variety of ordnance available at different pirate ports, but land battles are often seen as tedious, exacerbated by poor controls that make later encounters frustrating. Overall, while the naval combat offers some enjoyment, the grinding nature of land battles detracts from the overall experience.
- “Unfortunately, the ship-to-ship combat becomes tedious after a few hours, and the controls in the land battles are so bad that the later battles become almost impossible.”
- “The sea battles are enjoyable, particularly with the different ordnance you earn at different pirate ports, but the land battles are a little tedious.”
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Character development received a mixed response, with a general rating of 7/10. While some players appreciated the depth and progression of characters, others felt it could have been more engaging or nuanced. Overall, it contributes positively to the game's narrative but leaves room for improvement.
- “The character development in this game is truly engaging, allowing players to form deep connections with the characters as their stories unfold.”
- “I love how the characters evolve throughout the game, each decision I make feels impactful and shapes their journey.”
- “The depth of the characters and their personal growth is one of the standout features, making the storyline even more compelling.”