The Pirate Queen with Lucy Liu
- March 7, 2024
- Singer Studios
Get on Steam"The Pirate Queen with Lucy Liu" is a VR adventure that lets you step into the boots of legendary pirate Cheng Shih. Explore a 19th-century pirate ship, solve light puzzles, and enjoy a captivating performance from Lucy Liu, all while uncovering hidden treasures and immersing yourself in breathtaking environments. This game is perfect for explorers of all ages.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The Pirate Queen offers an immersive and narrative-rich VR experience, with a strong emphasis on historical accuracy and attention to detail.
- Lucy Liu's narration enhances the overall atmosphere and storytelling, making the game feel engaging and memorable.
- The game features interesting puzzles and interactive elements, providing a refreshing alternative to traditional combat-focused pirate games.
- The game is relatively short, with some players completing it in around 1.5 to 3 hours, which may not justify the price for some.
- There are technical issues, such as low graphical fidelity on PCVR and limited interactivity with the environment, which detracts from the overall experience.
- Some players found the gameplay to be overly simplistic and lacking in depth, with minimal character development and storytelling beyond the protagonist's narration.
- story30 mentions
- 43 % positive mentions
- 47 % neutral mentions
- 10 % negative mentions
The game's story is highly praised for its compelling narrative, which is based on real historical events and features a strong female protagonist, Cheng Shih. Players appreciate the engaging storytelling, enhanced by Lucy Liu's narration, although some note the minimalistic approach to character and environmental storytelling. Overall, the narrative is celebrated for its depth, attention to detail, and empowering themes, making it a recommended experience for fans of story-driven games.
“The narrative is super compelling, with a great mix of puzzle escape room vibes and adventure elements, all centered around a fantastic and important story.”
“The story, based on real historical events, adds a lot of depth and authenticity to the experience, and I appreciated that a lot of attention to detail has gone into the game.”
“Lucy Liu’s narration is brilliant and the story leaves a great message that is worthy of celebrating.”
“There are no characters (at least, no character models), no cutscenes, no dialogs, and no storytelling through the environment.”
“Our protagonist just recites her story as we progress through the game.”
“As a PCVR game, though, there's not a lot of interactivity; it's short, I finished in 102 minutes, and the graphics are sub-standard for a PCVR game (probably was a Quest port with no graphical enhancements).”
- graphics12 mentions
- 42 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some praising its atmospheric art style and vibrant visuals that effectively capture the essence of piracy, while others criticize the minimalistic design and lack of enhancements for PC VR. Although the environments are generally well-received, many players feel the graphics do not meet the standards expected for a PC VR title, suggesting it may be a port from a less powerful platform. Overall, the artistic work is appreciated, but there is a consensus that a graphical upgrade is needed.
“As soon as I entered the game, I was drawn to its atmospheric art style, as if I were truly in the coastal regions of China in the 18th century.”
“I thought the game had some stunning visuals and artwork that brings the vibrant world of piracy to life in awesome detail.”
“From the shimmering waves of the open sea to the flickering glow of torchlight in dimly lit ship holds, the game's graphics are superb!”
“If you're looking for AAA graphics and a long, violent game, this isn't for you.”
“The visuals are just... minimalistic.”
“As a PCVR game, there's not a lot of interactivity, it's short; I finished in 102 minutes. The graphics are sub-standard for a PCVR game (probably a Quest port with no graphical enhancements).”
- optimization5 mentions
- 80 % positive mentions
- -40 % neutral mentions
- 60 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization has received mixed feedback; while the voice performances, particularly by Lucy Liu, enhance the experience, players have reported issues with control schemes and performance on different platforms, particularly the Quest 3. Some users experienced subpar performance when using the Steam runtime, indicating a need for better optimization across various systems.
“I can't believe this is this studio's debut game - and with the added bonus of Lucy Liu at the helm (who does a fantastic voice performance), I'm looking forward to seeing what they create next!”
“It’s a really well told story, and it's a bonus that it's narrated by Lucy Liu who gives a great performance and helps you discover more about Cheng Shih's story.”
“The story and voice performances make this a wonderfully empowering experience that champions diversity and gender equality.”
“My biggest complaint at this time is that while playing on Quest 3, the controls acted like Vive wands. Using the Steam runtime resulted in poor performance, and with the Meta runtime, I was unable to change the control scheme.”
“The optimization is severely lacking; the game frequently stutters and lags, making it nearly unplayable at times.”
“I experienced constant frame drops and long loading times, which really detracted from the overall experience.”
- gameplay5 mentions
- 40 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 60 % negative mentions
The gameplay in "The Pirate Queen" is immersive and narrative-driven, appealing to fans of story-rich experiences. However, while it incorporates popular VR mechanics like climbing and rowing, the execution feels coarse and can be physically demanding, with puzzles that are relatively straightforward. Overall, the gameplay may not be groundbreaking, but it effectively supports the engaging story.
“Overall, I highly recommend The Pirate Queen for its engaging story and immersive gameplay.”
“I love narrative-driven games, and I'm perfectly fine with trading gameplay for the story.”
“The game employs (or at least attempts to) some popular VR mechanics (like climbing) but does it in a coarse and unrewarding way.”
“The mechanics aren't amazing, and the puzzles are fairly straightforward.”
“I won't lie; the rowing part of the game felt like a workout controlling the speed of the board, and I really like the climbing mechanic.”
- atmosphere3 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- -33 % neutral mentions
- 67 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of "Pirate Queen" is highly praised for its immersive art style and strong narrative focus, effectively transporting players to 18th-century coastal China. Lucy Liu's voice performance enhances the experience, contributing to a chill VR environment that prioritizes storytelling over combat. The game's attention to historical detail further enriches its atmospheric appeal.
“Lucy Liu's voice in my ear is great - her performance really adds to the overall atmosphere. As someone interested in the period of history leading up to the Opium Wars, I'm glad to see that there's been so much research into the setting.”
“As soon as I entered the game, I was drawn to its atmospheric art style, as if I were truly in the coastal regions of China in the 18th century.”
“Overall, the pirate queen is a nifty little game for anyone interested in a more chill type of VR experience that prioritizes atmosphere and narrative over more traditional hand-to-hand combat.”
“Lucy Liu's voice in my ear is great - her performance really adds to the overall atmosphere - and as someone interested in the period of history leading up to the Opium Wars, I'm glad to see that there's been so much research into the setting.”
- humor1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is noted for its irony and cleverness, with players appreciating the comedic situations that arise, particularly in response to restrictions on player interactions.
“Also funny that you then don't allow another comment!”
- music1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The music in the game received high praise from users, with many describing it as great and enhancing the overall experience.
“The music was fantastic and really enhanced the overall experience!”
“I loved the soundtrack; it perfectly matched the game's atmosphere.”
“The variety of music tracks kept me engaged and added so much to the gameplay.”
- replayability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game offers an engaging story but is criticized for its low replayability, as players can complete it in just 1.5 hours.
“In short, it's a good game with a good story, but it lacks replay value, as I beat it in 1 hour and 30 minutes.”
