Review of the Corsairs series of games. Pirates of the Caribbean: Guides and Walkthroughs Report from a Captured City

Review of the cult series of pirate-themed games.

Corsairs: Curse of the Far Seas

Developer: Akella

Publisher: 1C

Game description

"Corsairs" - role-playing game, set in the days of sail on a large group of islands called the Archipelago. Although the Archipelago does not actually exist, the game takes us back to the mid-17th century, when the great European powers fought over the lands and wealth of the Caribbean. In "Corsairs" you will become the captain of a sailing ship and set off to sail the seas in search of adventure. You will have to fight with the captains of enemy ships for the right to own fabulous treasures, complete numerous quests, carefully monitor rumors about lurking dangers, and also take the side of one of the great sea powers. You have a unique opportunity to achieve power beyond the dreams of the most seasoned sea wolves that history has ever known.

Peculiarities:

• More than a hundred original characters and a dashing non-linear plot in the spirit of the novels of Stevenson and Sabatini.
• Three-dimensional graphics, realistic sea, beautiful landscapes, detailed cities and forts, day and night cycle.
• An extensive game world with dozens of unique islands.
• Weather, directly affecting the physics of the ship. A dead calm can chain you to one place for a long time, and the current can carry you aground.
• Possibility of character development, hiring a team, forming a fleet.
• 43 various types ships, from Boats to Battleships.

Pentium II 233
RAM 64 MB
3D accelerator with 8 megabytes of video memory
800 MB hard disk space
Windows 95SE/98/2000/XP

Corsairs 2: Pirates of the Caribbean

Developer: Akella with the participation of Disney Interactive

Publisher: 1C

Game description

"Pirates of the Caribbean" is a story that follows the adventures of a young captain during the heyday of piracy in the Caribbean. You have to manage sailing ship and his crew, fight hordes of thugs, get involved in desperate adventures, uncover political conspiracies and defeat all rivals on the path to wealth, fame and love! On any of the islands where fate takes you, you can chat with the townspeople and fill your holds to the brim . Perhaps you will meet gloomy individuals whose minds have long abandoned the hope of getting rich, but in their pocket there is still an old map...
You are not alone in this endless water desert - you are surrounded by dozens of characters, friendly and hostile. Many of them, for example, free captains, will not mind joining you. You can choose your path: the career of a captain devoted to the flag of the state, a desperate pirate or a peaceful merchant, but the goal is the same - to make fate submit to you!

Peculiarities:

• A thrilling pirate epic on land and sea
• Stunning graphics and realistic weather effects
• Fierce sea battles and bloody boarding battles
• Huge game world: islands and cities, jungles, caves and dungeons
• Unique mission generator
• Dozens of ships, hundreds of characters and thousands of tasks

Windows 98SE/ME/2000/XP
Processor Intel Pentium III 1.2 GHz or AMD Athlon Duron 1.2 GHz
Memory 256 MB
NVIDIA GeForce3 video card with 64 MB RAM or ATI Radeon 8500
Sound Blaster Audigy Series Audio Card
Hard drive 2.9GB of free space
16 speed CD-ROM
DirectX 8.1 or higher

Corsairs 3

Developer: Akella

Publisher: 1C

Game description

The action of "Corsairs 3" takes place in the vast expanses of more than two dozen islands of the Caribbean archipelago. Four nations - England, France, Spain, Holland - are fighting for dominance in this region. The main characters of the toy - Blaze, the adopted son of the legendary Nicholas Sharpe, and Beatrice, a charming pirate girl - intervene in the confrontation: brave young people have to prove that not only kings can rule the world.

Peculiarities

Fans of the "Corsairs" series can expect to encounter a large-scale game world - not static, but alive, intensively developing regardless of the player's actions. Blaze and Beatrice can enlist in the service of each of the four powers represented in Corsairs 3, or they can be free sea robbers. None of the five independent storylines limits the player’s choice - at any moment the main character can side with each of the countries, engage in free trade, or choose the path of piracy. There is only one condition for victory: all the colonies of the Caribbean archipelago must ultimately belong to you. The choice of the path you will take to victory is yours. Completely.

Add-on "Dead Man's Chest"

Calm remained astern. Once again, gusts of salty wind fill the proud sails and rush the pirate ship along the azimuth of the most exciting adventures. Fill your holds with apples and biscuits to capacity - you're in for a really long voyage in the vastness of the Caribbean waters. On this occasion, the Corsairs team receives a significant addition! The Corsairs III: Dead Man's Chest add-on will include many significant changes and fundamentally new elements, as well as dozens of minor fixes. The main development efforts were focused on adding depth to the original game. Therefore, the expansion will offer new storylines, individual quests and a completely new hero with his own unique backstory. The new hand-to-hand combat system will give the player the opportunity to take a different look at the familiar “Corsairs III” and get unexpected impressions from the game. And the changeable weather will completely immerse you in the pirate atmosphere of the now even more realistic game. According to preliminary estimates, at least 20 additional hours will be added to the total gameplay time. Moreover, not only the duration, but also the quality of the original will increase significantly. To the above should be added ten new landscapes and general cosmetic work that have beautified the appearance of the entire game world.

Processor 1.5 GHz; 256 Mb RAM; 64 Mb Video

Corsairs: Return of the Legend

Developer: Seaward.ru

Publisher: Akella

Game description

The fictional archipelago from the games "Corsairs" and "Pirates of the Caribbean" has given way to real islands Caribbean. Spanish Main, Cuba, Hispaniola (Haiti), Jamaica - from Belize to Barbados and from Porto Belo to Bermuda, a new game map stretches, including cities familiar to the reader of books about pirates such as Caracas, Cartagena, Maracaibo, Panama, Havana, Tortuga and others ( corresponds to a 3000x2000 kilometer section of planet Earth). Geographical changes also affected the land part of the game - gigantic spaces with jungles, caves, catacombs, grottoes, bays, Indian and pirate settlements. On the islands and the mainland there are thirty cities and settlements belonging to four nations (England, France, Spain, Holland), Indians and free pirates. There are uninhabited islands and wild undeveloped spaces.

Game Features:

• Each task in scenario quest lines can be solved in several ways, even failure of the task is not fatal for the game, all development options are processed and the plot follows its own path, depending on the player’s actions throughout the story. Any little thing at the beginning of the story can lead to an unexpected turn of events at the end of the plot. But even without the rigid framework of plot stories, the game world is full of various tasks and events - quest generators will each time give the hero unexpected turns in seemingly standard tasks. The merchant to whom the cargo needed to be delivered can cancel the deal and the hero will be left with his nose, but he will have the cargo as compensation for his labors. Searching for a debtor, delivering chests of gold, escorting merchants and passengers, quests from governors, various rumors in a tavern, searching for treasures using pieces of a map - all this will leave no time for boredom and “mandatory leveling up” of the hero.
• The new role-playing system of the game PIRATES is named after the first letters of the English names of the hero’s characteristics - Power, Impression, Reaction, Authority, Talent, Endurance, Success. These characteristics affect the speed of development of 14 character skills, which are divided into personal (authority, light weapons, medium weapons, heavy weapons, pistols, luck and stealth) and ship skills (navigation, accuracy, guns, boarding, defense, repair, trade).
• The opportunity to engage in fair trading is also attractive to the player, since the game has a well-developed economic model for pricing, packaging and shortages of goods. Those who are disgusted with trading can turn to piracy. Capture and plunder merchant ships filled with cargo. Sell ​​the loot in friendly ports and hand over captured captains to the authorities, or keep them in the hold of your ship, periodically visiting them, or execute them - all in the will of the captain. The more sins the hero has committed, the more powerful hunters will set out in pursuit of him.
• Reworked Storm 2.5 engine
• The game "Corsairs: Return of the Legend" gives the player almost unlimited possibilities for the style of play. The game grabs you from the very beginning and will not let you go until the player makes a career from privateer to admiral or takes over the entire archipelago. But even then, you will want to start over in order to try new paths of development, perhaps get a wife and your own farm on land, or go through the game along a different path. "Corsairs: Return of the Legend" is a real simulator of pirate life at the end of the seventeenth century.

In "City of Lost Ships" the creators of "KVL" implemented everything that, due to time restrictions, did not have a place in the original game.
New town- City of Lost Ships. The ominous pier, where ships lost in the Caribbean end up, has accumulated countless treasures over the years. Courage alone is not enough to take them away from the dead.
The new capital is the golden capital of the Aztecs, Tenochtitlan. Here, as you know, there is also something to profit from. Between the pirate and his comfortable old age stand only mythical creatures from the dark beliefs of a South American tribe.
You might think that this is no longer possible, but “KVL” has really become bigger, more beautiful and more interesting!

Game Features:

• New areas to explore
• A new hero with his own line of quests and biography
• New adventures and ships as rewards
• New types of NPCs
• Improved artificial intelligence
• The computer enemy is capable of qualitative and quantitative comparison of squadrons
• Simulation of city life in ports
• Improved character animation
• Improved movements when fencing with axes and sabers

"And we will never die until

The lights are swinging over the gear..."

A. Gorodnitsky

Introduction

"Argh! Tremble, you landlubbers, full of rotten squid eyes! The Pirates of the Caribbean are on their way!" — it was with this exclamation that my friend appeared on the doorstep on July 18 and, without letting go of the box with two 1C disks, rushed to the computer. Just after starting the installation, he began to untie his shoelaces, from which you can understand how the release of the Pirates of the Caribbean game threw him off balance. Those who played Corsairs, I think, don’t need to say anything more, but for the rest I’ll explain: it was apparently the best at that time, and perhaps still remains the best RPG-action from Russian manufacturers. Moreover, action, made on its own, and very good engine. In general, "Corsairs" could outshine (and outshine) most of the games in this genre that I know.

The release of "Pirates of the Caribbean" (by the way, the film of the same name will be released soon) was awaited with impatience and slight apprehension. Well, we can safely say: the fears were not justified. The fantastic beauty of the seas and shores makes you take screenshots almost every second, the naval combat system has grown noticeably, as well as ground and deck combat (although there is still room for improvement), the character development system has greatly expanded, etc. and so on. In my opinion, the usability of the interface has decreased somewhat; on the other hand, the map for sailing between islands is implemented fundamentally better... however, everything is in order.

Attention! For the most curious and impatient, I suggest you immediately look at the end of the article, in the section " Instead of a conclusion".

What are we playing?

For the main part of the game you are an English corsair. This means that you have to carry out tasks of the English authorities, simultaneously causing possible harm to the enemies of the crown in the archipelago. This archipelago, as the name suggests, is located somewhere in the Caribbean, however, you should not look for it on real maps, it’s better to look at the attached one.

In addition, you, naturally, have to achieve possible enrichment, as well as find someone with whom to share the joy of a wealthy old age... For more information on how to do all this without problems, see the walkthrough.

There are two fixed assets, and they are somewhat...er...different in size. This is your ship and your saber (and also your pistol).

Which do you think is more important? Write it down on a piece of paper or remember it. It will soon be said how things really are.

This is interesting: There are quite a lot of different types of both bladed and firearms in the game. The good news is that the variety extends not only to you, but also to your enemies. It is quite interesting to fight with three bandits, one of whom has a Turkish scimitar (where did he get it?), another has a French saber, and the third... and what the third has is unknown, since you shot him with a pistol on the way.

The English government, through its governor, will set you a variety of tasks, and you shouldn’t forget your own interests, and therefore gamers will have to travel both by sea (which those who played “Corsairs” are already accustomed to) and by land (which is already somewhat new, especially the opportunity get out of the city and walk through the jungle). And, I assure you, fighting with numerous opponents (both living and not so alive), getting to know the local residents (happy, unhappy, honest, mean, treacherous, good-natured and others), even just looking at land and sea landscapes - you will get a lot pleasure.

Land

The game begins with a routine: your ship is in port, and you have to go ashore to sell the cargo, give orders to repair the hull, and also recruit a crew.

The first thing that strikes you on the shore is the scale of the city. It's quite impressive (and Oxbay, where you start, isn't the most impressive settlement in the game). In addition to the plot buildings (shop, shipyard, tavern, governor's house, port), there are many houses of ordinary residents, some of them are locked, and some will hospitably open their doors to you... and the lids of their chests.

This is interesting: Locals prefer to store jewelry in chests, but for some reason they don’t care about their protection at all and are not even particularly indignant when you rummage through their things in front of them. For an unscrupulous corsair, the money received from selling rings, pearls and other things obtained in this way can serve as a serious help, at least at first.By the way, such chests are also on the ships that you board.

Residents of the city, whom you can meet on the streets, are usually friendly and ready to tell you about the city and local rumors, or give you directions to somewhere; However, as a rule, you don’t need all this at all. Functional characters are much more useful - the innkeeper, the owner of the shipyard, the merchant (shop owner), the governor - as well as the plot ones (see " Walkthrough").

Advice: You can navigate to the desired building by pressing Enter and selecting what you want in the bottom left corner of the screen. However, you should first walk around an unfamiliar city at least a little. They are all different from each other and quite beautiful.

The difference from the Corsairs is not only in the size and variety of cities. Now you can go beyond them and wander through the jungle to your heart's content! However, there are no guards keeping order here (who quickly and large quantities appears in any populated area, barely noticing any disorder), which means that robbers can be expected around every next turn. However, more about these scoundrels and the fight against them a little later, but now about nature. She deserves special mention. First of all, the sky. Sometimes when playing Pirates of the Caribbean, stop and look up. Better - more often. You are guaranteed a good mood, no matter how the fight against the enemies of the crown and the search for treasures progresses. In addition, there are rocks. Coastal sand and reflections on the water. Palm trees. Butterflies. And grass, yes, of course, grass! When I left the city gates for the first time, I deliberately walked along it for several minutes.

This is interesting: The grass in the game moves when a character walks over it. This seemingly small detail seriously adds realism to the world around the player.

In addition to cities and jungles, the game also contains a variety of catacombs, both urban and suburban (abandoned mines, for example). They contain creatures that are much less close to civilized man than the cute inhabitants of cities and even the not so pleasant thugs from the jungle - skeletons. However, you will encounter skeletons both on the surface and even in the sea.

This is interesting: It turns out that post-death in the Caribbean is guaranteed not only to people. Skeleton monkeys are quite dangerous opponents. Don't underestimate them!

The catacombs are useful, of course, for the treasures hidden in them. So, in one abandoned mine on Oxbay you can find a good blade at the very beginning... which is very useful.

Wandering through the jungle/catacombs, you will have to wave your saber quite a bit. The first people you will meet are ordinary robbers. They will stand around the bend in the road, and their ordinariness is compensated by their numbers: as a rule, four go to work. If you have low fencing skill, it is better to avoid them (as a rule, this is possible; you can usually see them from afar, if you look carefully) or fork out some money. They kill the greedy. It's another matter if your fencing skill allows you to compete with them (for this it would be good to have it at least 3-5... I quickly raised it to 9 and never regretted it). About skills and their development, see below, but for now - about hand-to-hand combat.

Fans of “Corsairs” remember that there it was necessary to guess the direction of the enemy’s strike and place the necessary block, and in response, confuse the opponent with feints and hit him in the unprotected heel. The system is logical, but practically does not allow organizing a battle with 3 or more participants. In Pirates of the Caribbean, things are a little different. The character takes care of the directions of the blows himself (more precisely, he simply ignores these directions). The player only needs to determine what the character should do now: block, attack, or just stand. In the state of “blocking,” the character is protected from attacks from any number of opponents from any direction, including from the back, but cannot strike himself or even walk. Depending on the characteristics of the character and the enemy, in this state you may or may not receive damage, however, as a rule, with developed fencing skills you can withstand an impressive crowd for quite a long time. However, in order to attack, you have to open up - remove the block - and then you become vulnerable. There are thus two effective battle tactics: waiting and retreating.

Waiting is based on the fact that each enemy can strike with a certain frequency, and not more often (less often - it can). However, they do not coordinate their actions, and someday they will all strike at the same time. Immediately after this, you need to get out of the blocking state and attack one. With some skill and a bit of luck, you can kill quite a lot of opponents this way. The advantage of this method is its versatility: it can be used in almost any case (the character even blocks attacks from behind). The downside is unreliability: with some probability, opponents will break through your block, and the more of them there are, the longer you will have to wait for synchronization.

Retreat is a classic tactic. Seeing opponents rushing at you, you run back (backward forward, of course), choosing a path so that the opponents are on the same line (they try to run straight at you). This way you will prevent simultaneous attacks. A bandit (as well as a skeleton or even a soldier) who runs within striking distance should be immediately attacked until he goes into a blocking state himself, and then continue to retreat. Repeat until done... that is, until everyone is ready. The advantage of this tactic is its effectiveness and reliability: it allows you to win without losses in approximately 90% of cases. The downside is that it is demanding on environmental conditions. The tactic is applicable only when there is somewhere to run, and, as a result, in the case of not too many attackers (after all, the more there are, the further you will have to run, and the island will very quickly seem a little small to you). An important consequence: this method is not applicable for boarding!

This is the idea: in fact, it’s a little strange to see how a character, especially without moving, blocks the blows of many attackers from different directions, including from the back. However, the effectiveness of the idea that the player simply orders the block and does not have to specify what kind of hit is undoubted. Thus, there is a desire to somewhat expand the combat system. For example, a character who is able to “block” defends himself to the best of his ability from blows, meeting each of them with his own blade. He can do this with some frequency (bOhigher than the permissible frequency of attacks of one person), determined by his skill. The main thing is that each block is drawn (this process can be simplified by standardizing hits and blocks). The hero will have the ability to repel 3-4 blows delivered from different directions (and the player will see how he does this!), with good fencing skills - more. However, an opponent greatly outnumbered will overwhelm even a very competent fencer: he simply will not be able to keep up. The only question is how difficult the introduction of such a system is in itself, and how demanding it is on computer resources.

Yes, and I almost forgot about the gun. As a rule, it can be fired exactly once during a battle - at the very beginning, while the enemy is still far away. And the point is not in the inability to reload (somehow it reloads itself... probably the character has a tame monkey trained in this art hidden somewhere), but in the time it takes to fire the shot itself. During this time, a good opponent will have time to deal two blows, which you most likely will not be able to survive. So heavy artillery (how heavy depends on the thickness of your wallet... a good gun is approximately equal in cost to a bad ship), as it should be, only works before the battle.

And one last thing. Buy, collect and otherwise obtain bottles of medicinal potions, and in battle do not forget to monitor your health. As a rule, after one successful blow from the enemy, there is not enough health left, and you should be treated immediately. Luckily, all you need to do is press a few times. Enter. Just make sure that the supply is not depleted.

Sea

Well, enough about land rats, it’s time to say a few (or better yet, more) words about the sea. First of all, having raised the sails, look - where? No, not to the sky, we have already agreed that you look there periodically to maintain a good mood. Look at the computer A s (in the upper right corner of the screen). The arrow on it indicates, however, not the north magnetic pole, but the direction of the wind. This is exactly what you should keep in mind at any time when you are at sea (unless on a map). In general, the tactical navigation system has changed little compared to Corsairs, except that the views have become noticeably more beautiful (a good video card is highly recommended!). The speed at which you can follow the chosen course depends on the direction and strength of the wind, the speed of the turn depends on your seafaring skills, the ship, and also on the number of sails raised (before turning, it is better to take reefs - collect the sails partially; there are three gradations of sail in total - sails lowered, sails half lowered, sails raised). I suggest paying special attention to the fins and silhouettes of sharks periodically flashing around the ship, as well as to the strange colored growths on the rocks found at the bottom (corals? polyps? something else?). However, you still have to sail from island to island using the map, and not in tactical mode.

The map has changed quite a bit. Instead of indicating on paper where we are sailing and waiting with some trembling in the knees (either from fear or anticipation) for a possible meeting with some ship, you seem to rise above the deck to a bird's eye view, and from this height (there are two gradations: low and high) you survey the surroundings, including nearby ships, as well as natural phenomena (tropical storms, in other words).

This is interesting: On the map, ships can sail in reverse. It’s not fast, it’s true, but it’s very convenient for getting out of the narrow fjords near the islands. Although it’s quite funny to see, say, a frigate backing away...

Generally speaking, this system is logical. You can spot an approaching problem, say a gathering storm front, with enough anticipation, and change course to avoid it. On the other hand, you can, on the contrary, boldly move towards her. Everything depends on you. In a tropical storm, say, it is better not to get into a damaged ship - you may not get out. On the other hand, going through it means gaining a certain amount of experience, which is extremely useful, especially at first. Naturally, sailing in a storm is carried out exclusively in tactical mode. If you, intentionally or accidentally, get into it, there is only one piece of advice: lower the sails at least halfway and hold on to the helm tightly. It will shake you mercilessly, and maybe even strike you with lightning. Don’t forget, however, to look around - the beauty in some places is indescribable. And I categorically reject complaints about the absence of circles on the water: you won’t have time for them. Yes, it is strongly not recommended to get caught in a storm in the coastal area: it can easily be thrown onto the rocks, which is very bad for the ship.

However, the storm is somewhat, let’s say, a secondary phenomenon. As you know, the most dangerous people on this planet are people. Some of the ships, seeing you, will pass by on their own course, some will try to escape, but there will also be some that will go the other way. Most likely, these are pirates (judging by their sails), and they have one goal (explain what? No need? I knew, I knew...). If you were unable to escape from such a pursuer, or if you yourself turned out to be a pursuer who overtook the victim, a naval battle awaits.

This is interesting: As far as I can tell, the initial courses of ships in tactical mode (when you first get into it) correspond to the courses in map mode; at least I didn't notice too many deviations from this rule, although maybe I was lucky. If this statement is true, you can lay the foundations for a successful collision at sea already on the map, by correctly setting your course relative to your opponent’s course.

The naval combat technique has changed little compared to the Corsairs. However, these changes led to some evolution in tactics. However, everything is in order. For those who haven’t played Corsairs, I’ll explain: you can either sink your enemy, or capture them, or get away from them. For the first, the ships have cannons, for the second, grappling hooks and a crew armed to the teeth, for the third, of course, sails. Cannons can be loaded with one of four types of shells - cannonballs, buckshot, nipples or bombs. They differ in the effect and distance of the shot

Unlike the Corsairs, the cannons are also located on the bows of the ships. This nullifies the tactics of “sail after me until there are enough sails”: the pursuer walking in the wake was methodically shot with nipples from the stern guns. Now, alas, he can respond in kind. However, true sea wolves quickly abandoned this tactic. After all, boarding will allow you not only to defeat an enemy who has a significant advantage in cannons, but also to take his ship as a prize (and if you have a free officer, to add it to your squadron). However, before you can give the command “Hooks on board!”, you will have to get close enough to the enemy. Here you need to remember one thing: you must go with the wind, and it must go against it. If there is ground nearby, you can try to press it to it; if not, just try to maneuver it so that the wind works for you. This sounds extremely vague, but with a little practice it will become clear what we are talking about. In addition, the enemy’s broadside should be exposed to the bow or stern, and in no case the side (this will make the target for his gunners smaller, and they will miss more often). At the same time, it would be better for you to hit your opponent’s side (for the same reasons).

Advice: when shooting from the deck, when you set the aim yourself, the likelihood of a good salvo is higher, especially at first. Therefore, if you strive for maximum efficiency, you will have to aim yourself. However, I was usually too lazy to do this. In addition, when viewed from above there are people on the deck, but as soon as you go down onto it, they disappear somewhere... It's a shame, however!

Thus, maneuverability is extremely important: ideally, you should turn twice as fast as the fastest of the enemy ships (so that for one of its phases “shoot-turn-shot with the second side” there are two of yours, and you shoot it at the substituted, but already shot your ammunition on board). This is quite difficult, and a long naval battle will inevitably lead to damage to your ship, the repair of which can cost a lot of money (probably even exceeding the proceeds from the sale of the opponent taken as a prize... if he is not too large compared to you).

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Advice: in Pirates of the Caribbean, the ship can be controlled by any officer, not just the first mate, as in Corsairs. To prevent the captain candidate from being killed during boarding, do not assign him to the position (in the window with officers, do not transfer him to the bottom 4 rectangles, but leave him in the strip at the top). He will not help you in battle, but he will remain alive. And somehow you yourself...

Therefore, the fastest possible boarding of the strongest enemy should be considered an effective tactic. After the ships hit the sides, and yours, as well as the enemy sailors, throw ladders over them (so that there is somewhere to wave your saber), you will appear not in the captain’s cabin familiar from the “Corsairs”, but on your own deck, with a saber (or that , what you will be armed with at that moment) in your hand and the enemy right in front of you. Next, see tips on hand-to-hand combat (above); Just don’t forget that sea wolves fight better than land rats, and don’t relax after clearing the upper deck - there are also lower ones, and on large ships there are several.

Advice: Be sure to inspect the chests and barrels, near which the “hand” sign appears on the screen (it signals an opportunity to profit). It is quite possible to earn several thousand coins in this way, and bottles with medicinal infusion will also be a good help in the upcoming battles.

Your sailors (if there are many of them) and officers (if you have appointed them to a position) will be with you. For the latter, this is a serious risk: they, at least at the initial levels, can easily be killed. The most annoying result of this is the inability to take your opponent's ship as a prize (or you will have to sink your own). And it’s a pity for the officer, although finding him is not nearly as difficult as in “Corsairs.”

This is interesting: Actually, not all officers can be killed. Danielle apparently grew up with a sword from the very cradle. Not a single enemy is able to inflict damage on her, but she shreds them into cabbage. So, if she is participating in the boarding, you can quietly smoke somewhere in the corner. Just remember to hold the block.

This one will not miss out... Business in the store goes on as usual.

After a successful boarding, as you probably already understood, you will either appoint one of your officers as captain, or part with one of the two ships you now have. As a rule, you should exchange your ship for another without a twinge of conscience if it is of a higher class. On the other hand, if you are very attached to your lugger, barque or frigate, well, the prize ship can always be sold in the port for good money (let me remind you, this is done in the shipyard). And the money will come in handy.

Income and losses

Have you forgotten what our goal is? Yes, of course, to serve the English crown, but that’s not the main thing. What's the main one? Undoubtedly - enrichment! In other words, your income should be slightly higher than your expenses. And the latter can be quite large.

First of all, the team wants money, and so do the officers. And it’s better to pay them (although you don’t have to pay them, but in this case her mood will worsen... which is not welcome for obvious reasons). Secondly, the ship needs to be repaired (either in port, which is quite expensive, or while sailing, which requires having planks and canvas on board). Finally, thirdly, in some places in the plot it is worth forking out (see “Walkthrough”). At the end of the game, monthly expenses can reach up to twenty to thirty thousand coins.

This is interesting: Compared to "Corsairs", the price level in "Pirates of the Caribbean" has increased slightly. Either the value of money fell due to the huge influx of gold into the metropolis from the New World (this really happened), or something else... In general, selling a ship for more than 100,000 coins is a very real operation.

Where can I get so much money?

Firstly, at first you can... uh... take what is not lying well. In unlocked chests in unlocked houses you can find jewelry and antiques, which you can later sell. Not bad at first, but somehow disgusting, and you won’t make much money from it. Although it’s worth looking for bottles this way.

Advice: As you move around the island, watch for the “hand” symbol that appears. Sometimes precious things, stones or bottles of healing potions can be found in the most unexpected places...

Secondly, you can trade. In the ship's log you can find records of the trading preferences and restrictions of a particular island. Smuggling (a smuggler can be found in a tavern) is much more profitable than ordinary trade through a store, but also more dangerous (with some probability, soldiers will come running at the moment the deal is concluded, and in the port you will also have to fight off a customs, say, frigate). However, even this activity will quickly tire of active corsairs.

Thirdly, you can perform escort missions. Merchants are ready to pay for their safety, and if someone attacks, you can also take cargo from the attacker (don’t forget about the chests on the decks), or earn experience by sinking the enemy. In addition, you can load up on goods and make some extra profit.

And finally, fourthly - the most interesting thing. The English crown does not care at all what exactly we do with the attacked ships of its enemies - we sink, we capture... But for us it is more interesting to capture. Even if for one reason or another you do not have an officer to bring the ship to the port and sell it there, you can always take its cargo. However, trading ships, as in the Corsairs, is an extremely efficient enterprise from a financial point of view. Try it - you will like it!

Character

"Pirates of the Caribbean" - RPG-action. That is, in addition to shooting bow-stern-right-left and randomly waving your saber left and right, you have to develop your character somewhat. The system is classic: experience is gained for useful actions, and upon reaching a certain amount of experience, a level is given, which allows you to improve the character’s characteristics. But what happens next is more interesting.

For each level we are given the opportunity to increase one of the character’s characteristics by 2 points, as well as give him one of the abilities. I deliberately do not provide here full list characteristics and abilities: dealing with them, especially abilities, is a special pleasure for a true gamer. However, I’ll give you a couple of tips (those who want to figure it out completely on their own can safely skip next two paragraphs).

First, the characteristics. Which ones should be developed?

Here we return to the question I asked at the beginning of the article. What is more important: the ship or the blade? Correct answer: blade. In principle, both are a means to win the battle. However, the blade also allows you to make money on this (during boarding). In addition, at one point in the plot you are left without a ship (I warned you - if you want everything yourself, don’t read here!), and guess how you get it for yourself?

First of all, you should master fencing. Without him, you cannot survive in the cruel world of Pirates of the Caribbean. I, as mentioned, quickly raised it to 9 and have never regretted it. Further - at will. The good thing about RPGs is that different characters, using different tactics in accordance with their characteristics, can win with equal success.

Secondly, abilities. They can be divided into basic and advanced. The former can be developed without any conditions; for the second, it is necessary that the character already masters some basic ones. Therefore, the main advice is: be consistent. Select the ability you want to get, build the entire tree up to it, and develop all the necessary abilities one by one.

And finally, on the general tactics of character development. The division into abilities and characteristics suggests a logical solution: develop characteristics in one direction, and abilities in another. This way you can get a balanced character. On the other hand, you can focus on one thing (say, like me - on fencing), compensating for the lack of the rest with the skill of the player. Decide for yourself, I won’t recommend anything. The fun here is in the decision making.

Instead of a conclusion

Actually, I haven’t told you everything. It would be possible, say, to describe the performance characteristics of ships for a long time and conduct a comparative analysis of them (in a kind of mentoring tone, with a frown and pursed lips: “When attacking a frigate with a barque in the south-south-west wind, it is necessary to set the maximum possible sail area and move at an angle of up to 30 degrees to the wind, choose the moment of approach during the reloading phase of the enemy vessel...", well, etc.). Or draw a map of the islands and tell where small joys in the form of bottles are hidden, precious stones and so on. You can spend a long time developing different schemes for character development, and also talk about the effectiveness of constantly hiring officers compared to the desire to keep them alive for as long as possible...

But, damn it, this is all for those very land channels that were threatened by my friend who burst into me like a fresh sea breeze! It is better for true corsairs to try everything on themselves once than to follow a hundred stupid pieces of advice! So - go ahead, friends, seven feet under the keel, and an anchor in my throat, if you don't like Pirates of the Caribbean! And the most curious and impatient are invited to run for the disk faster than others, because they will take it apart...

WALKTHROUGH

Introduction

I’ll make a reservation right away - in this walkthrough the actual plot moves will not be described in detail. This would be similar to the popular prose adaptation of Eugene Onegin. The goal here is to help the player progress through the story, not to retell it. I hope that with my help you will be able to kill two birds with one stone - both enjoy the game and easily complete it to the end.

Attention! This walkthrough contains information about the plot and characters, the possession of which may reduce the enjoyment of exploring the game on your own. If you want to go through everything yourself, please do not read further.

Basics

We start the game on our ship. Immediately after loading, either the first assistant or someone else comes up to us (it doesn’t matter at all), and offers help in mastering, so to speak, the vastness of the universe (that is, the game itself). Well, the player, of course, is not a fool, we agree to everything, especially focusing our attention on fencing training. We train until we begin to consistently win against this same officer. We study the system of skills and abilities, and so on and so forth, in general, we do everything as he says.

Fully equipped, we head to land. Advice: we let the pestering assistant go immediately, we say that we can handle everything ourselves, we wish him good luck and all that. No need to cry: the game, unlike "Corsairs", is densely populated with officers (boatswains, first mates, gunners...).

Getting ready for the first voyage

The first thing we need to do is sell all the goods on board in the store. To find it faster, click Enter, at the crossing (lower left corner) select the “store” sign (gun and bag), and are transported there. By the way, this operation can also be done with a shipyard, port, etc. If there is no sign, then the “establishment” is closed until the morning. You can wait out the night in a tavern by talking with the innkeeper (you can rent a room for the night).

Having sold all the goods (except for ammunition), we go to the shipyard and completely repair the ship (by pressing the "repair" - "complete" buttons). Now you can type the command. We go to the tavern, ask the owner if there are any newcomers in his establishment who are ready to set sail. If the corresponding menu opens, it means it is there. But he can also say that it is too late and everyone has gone home. In this case, we rent a room for the night and repeat the question in the morning.

Well, now we are ready to sail, we go to the port and board the ship.

The helm fits into the hand as usual, and we begin to scan the horizon in search of prey...

Capture of Oxbay

But it was not there. Immediately after going to sea, we are shown a colorful cartoon about the attack of the French fleet on Oxbay (where we were until the last moment). Fortunately, we were one of the few ships that managed to escape.

Now our path lies to Redmond, to the governor of the English colonies in the archipelago.

Redmond

Sailing to the port of Redmond, we disembark and go to the residence of the head of the archipelago. At the entrance, a soldier is blocking the way, we tell him about the capture of Oxbay and he urgently lets us in, saying something like “why didn’t you say before?” Having entered the residence, we report an attack. In response, we are asked to give up the ship voluntarily or it will be taken away from us. Let us put forward a counter-proposal: we will enter the service of England together with the ship.

We are immediately given our first task: to penetrate the captured city and find out what it costs. We agree without delay. We leave the residence, go to the port - and to the ship.

On the island of Oxbay, in addition to the town of Oxbay, there is also the town of Greenford. So, it’s better to land at its port. For obvious reasons.

We reconnoiter the situation

Having gone ashore, we head to the city - to the exit from it that is on the left hand. We stomp through the jungle all the way straight to the city gates of Oxbay, and then go to the tavern to talk with the innkeeper. He talks about the situation in the city (the residents are complaining, and the French soldiers are drinking more and more and paying nothing), and also gives some useful information: It turns out that a French ship with ammunition is supposed to arrive on the island. We leave the city back to Greenford. We board the ship and leave.

Report from a captured city

Having dropped anchor in the port of Redmond, we go to the governor’s residence and report: they say, the ship should sail from the island of Fale de Fleurs, and it would be nice to capture or sink it. Having considered the current situation, the governor gives the answer: “Do what you want, but the ship with supplies should not sail to Oxbay.” We take this literally and sail on the Fale de Fleurs (for those in the tank: this is a French colony, and we are now an English corsair).

Fale de Fleurs - ammunition

Having arrived on the island, we go into the city. We are met by a sailor from a French barque. For some pennies, he reports that the captain is now in the tavern. We go there, talk to the innkeeper, we find out that the captain is upstairs in the room. After going up the steps, we go into the room and talk to him. We need to get a letter to escort a ship with ammunition, so we can kill this captain and take it from the corpse, or pay him 3,000 piastres, and he will give the letter voluntarily. We leave the tavern and head to the port manager (a two-story building in the port). With a quick glance at the paper, he sends us off to carry out our mission. We run to the ship, talking with the ward captain along the way (he will come up himself).

So as not to swim...

Now we have two ships under our command. Let's go to the map. We are faced with a task: to make sure that the ship with ammunition does not sail to Oxbay. There are four ways to solve it:

Sink the ship yourself.

Capture the ship.

Bring the ship to any English fort, where he will be shot.

Bring him to the pirates: first they will sink the ship, and then you just have to shoot them to the bitter end.

The best option is to capture the ship; other options are good if the player absolutely does not know how to wield a blade and does not have even minimal boarding skills. Having completed the task, with a clear conscience we sail to Redmond to the governor.

On Redmond we receive a new task: to bring a friendly ship to the port of Greenford, and also talk to an informant in Oxbay. We leave the city to the port, talk to the captain of this very ship, sail to Greenford.

Informant

There, a local resident meets us on the pier. He reports that at night you need to swim to the bay of the gray rock. We immediately board the ship, and using the “follow to” button we sail to this bay, disembark there and talk to him again, and after killing the French who came running, again. After this, we appear in the tavern, where we talk with the captain of the transport ship. We go out into the jungle, go straight to the city gates of Oxbay. In the tavern we talk to the innkeeper about some business, he tells us where the English informant is. We go to the second floor, there we talk with the man sitting by the window. During the conversation, French soldiers run into the tavern - we kill them. We continue the conversation with the informant, he offers to take refuge with the owner of the local shipyard. We leave the tavern and run to the shipyard.

Her owner is hiding us from the patrol. After the departure of this same patrol, the conversation with the informant continues, and from it it becomes clear that the captain with whom he was supposed to meet is waiting for him in the tavern, and since the English agent cannot appear in public places, we need to go there and reschedule the meeting behind the tavern to the city wall. After finishing the conversation with the informant, we will have a conversation with the owner of the shipyard, Owen. He asks to take a chest with unknown but important contents to Redmond. We leave the shipyard and, without fearing anything, head to the tavern. There we speak with the captain and reschedule the meeting at the appointed place. The captain got nervous, but went (what, exactly, can he do?).

We leave the tavern, immediately turn left, talk to the agent. We will have to sail from the island on the captain's ship, follow him to the ship, sail to Redmond.

Monstrous mistake

On the island we immediately appear at the residence of the governor, who, having paid for the previous task, gives a new one. We must participate in the capture of Oxbay. We leave the residence and go to the tavern. Near it we are met by a couple of unknown and slippery types who demand to give up Owen’s chest. Sensing something was wrong, we immediately agree (those interested and confident in their fencing skills can try to refuse... “whoever plays seven diamonds is surprised”; by the way, soldiers will come running to the aid of such daredevils). We remember that it would be good to discuss this episode with Owen. We go into the tavern, there we talk with the girl (Daniel). After the conversation, English soldiers burst into the tavern and attack us; we kill them. Ralph (the girl's friend) is dead; cursing about his death, she runs away. After this, soldiers enter the tavern and arrest Nathaniel (that is, us). In prison we talk with the jailer about how he came to live this way. After the conversation, the governor comes into the prison and reports a terrible mistake. We follow him to the residence, where he informs us that Oxbey has been liberated, and that we took a huge part in this. We receive a new task: to find and present before the bright eyes of Raoul Reims, a malicious traitor to England, and generally a bad person, a radish. The last time Reims was seen was in the pirates' lair, in the settlement of Quebradas Costillas - that's where we'll head.

Quebradas Costillas - Reims

At the entrance we break up the fight (since we are now self-respecting English corsairs); By the way, you can take the rescued gunner, but I chose not to do this, since there was already one. We go to the tavern, talk to the innkeeper, she gently sends us away. We leave the tavern, and a pirate meets us at the entrance, who will clarify the situation somewhat - in particular, he will say that he can guess where Reims is. After exchanging a few words with the sailors from the Reims team, he learned that the ship was heading to Conceicao - we were heading there.

Conceicao - Reims

We go into the city, there we go to the tavern, we talk with the innkeeper, we begin to ask him about a certain Raul, they say, has he appeared here... However, during the conversation we mention the name Machado (the head of the smugglers), and the owner of the tavern refuses to talk to us . We leave the tavern, and some guy meets us right in front of it. We'll have to threaten to kill him, after which he will agree to take us to Machado. From a conversation with him, we learn that Raul has already sailed, but he has a house (Machado placed guards there). We go straight there and kill the guards, as well as everyone who came running to their aid (it’s our own fault, we should have been more polite and orderly). We go into the house, there we find the ship's log of Reims; Unfortunately, there is nothing useful in it. More guards appear - we kill immediately. We leave the smugglers' lair and go into the city - to the right, and after crossing straight. From the city to the port and to the ship. Now we're sailing to Oxbay.

THIRD PAGE

Oxbay - Owen

In Oxbay we go to Owen and talk to him. The result of a long conversation is this: one man sold him this chest, saying: send it to any of your competitors, and he will be cursed. In general, we were involved in some mystical affairs. It also becomes clear that we need to sail to the Fale de Fleurs, however, this is not urgent. We leave for the port and head for Redmond.

Redmond - letter

We come to the governor. With our heads down and a little despondent, we report that Raul’s trail has been lost in the smugglers’ lair. The governor asks to deliver a letter to the leader of the pirates: they say, if you haven’t caught it, then maybe they will catch you. We go to the port, cast off and sail on the Fale de Fleurs. From the port we enter the city and go to the house in the far right corner. There we ask Pete about the legend. We go out to the port, our old friend meets us there, and together we go to the tavern. Over a glass of the vaunted Spanish rum, he talks about a way to destroy the ghost ship - the Black Pearl. From the tavern we head to the port. We sail to Quebradas Costillas.

Quebradas Costillas - letter

We speak with the head of the pirates, give him the letter. We leave the house to the port and sail to Redmond.

Redmond - collection

On Redmond we go to the governor, receive a long-awaited reward and a new mission: return the stolen collection. Let's go to the port. We are heading for Duwezen.

Duvezen - collection

We moor at the port of Duwezen, go into the city, and from there straight into the jungle. We go along the right “wall” to the bay with a pirate ship. One of our sailors meets us there. We tell him to return on board, and we ourselves go on the boat to the pirate ship. Once there, we kill all the attackers, take the collection and swim ashore.

We go back to the city (accordingly, along the left “wall”). With a sense of accomplishment, we get to Redmond to see the governor and hand over the collection. We receive a reward and a new task: deliver the prisoner from Greenford prison. We sail to Oxbay to Greenford.

Greenford - prisoner

In Greenford we go to the prison (far right corner), go into it, talk to the head of the garrison (the man on the right), from the conversation we learn that the prisoner has escaped. What a disaster! Bunglers. We leave the prison, at the exit we are met by a girl begging for help - to help out the old man. We calm her down. From the conversation we learn: the old man is an experimenter, he lives in a lighthouse, something exploded there, some clouds rose, and now the whole city is ready to kill him. We approach the crowd (three are already a crowd), talk to someone, run into a fight, kill all the attackers. The old man thanks and promises to put his innovations on the ship for us, we refuse (another ship will blow up, old eccentric), then he takes us to the lighthouse to show us how he lives. At the entrance we meet our old friend, Danielle, we talk to her, she talks about her friend. We talk to him, he says that he knows where Reims is.

We agree with Danielle about a joint search. We return to the city through the canyon (straight all the time). We go to the port, sail to Redmond, there we talk with the governor. We inform you that we will be able to continue the search for Reims; he agrees. We leave the residence to the port, sail to Oxbay. It’s better to land at Oxbay from the direction of the lighthouse, and we’ll disembark there. We go to the lighthouse, Danielle comes up behind us, we talk to her, after the conversation we return to the ship by boat. We are sailing to Duvezen.

Douvezen - Reims

There, at the port, Danielle meets us again, we talk to her, we go to the tavern (to get drunk, perhaps, out of grief?), where her friend comes up to us and tells us that Raoul is sitting at the end table. Such a surprise! We talk with Reims, he, a nice man, takes us to his home. Outside the city gates, Daniel notices surveillance. The pursuers must be detained (killed, in other words). We do our dirty work and catch up with Daniel and Raul (straight at the first intersection, right at the second). We go to the swindler's house and go into it. We talk with Danielle; She, having learned that we work for Sailhard, pokes a knife at us. Damn, it hurts! We are falling (any other suggestions?). We pretend to be dead and listen to the conversation through the pain. We need to find clay tablets, they are mentioned in the church library of Isla Muelle. Having come to life, we sail there.

Isla Muelle - library

We go to the local church and talk to the clergyman. He promises to give us access to the library if we deliver him the papers stolen from the church, supposedly very important, necessary and useful (he even gives us an indulgence for any action). We agree. We run to the port and sail to Conceicao.

Conceicao - documents

In the city of Conceicao, we go to the tavern and talk to its owner about the person the priest is looking for. The innkeeper points to one sitting by the window, we go to him. In the conversation we convince him to give us the documents for a good cause, from the same conversation we learn that the papers are incriminating evidence on the priest. We take them and sail back to Isla Muelle.

Isla Muelle - Library 2

Having landed on the shore, we go to church. There you can simply give the papers to the priest or start blackmailing him. In the case of blackmail, you can also get 5,000 piastres (not so bad, although it could be better... The Church is not a poor organization). After delving into the church books, we learn that the tablets were found in the Oxbay mines. We sail to Greenford (logical, isn't it?).

Greenford - signs

We speak with the innkeeper. We go to the Oxbay Canyon, to the mining village, there we go into the house to the left of the entrance. The owner begins to be indignant - they say it’s private property. We quickly calm him down and start asking him about the signs. First he says that they were destroyed, then, when we explain that we work for Sailhard, the owner quickly adds that a person came to make copies of the signs, and one of the workers was assigned to him. We go into the mine and talk to a more or less dressed black man (Leborio Drago). It turned out that Danielle was here, but had already sailed to Isla Muelle, in search of the person who was deciphering the tablets. Let's sail there. A thousand curses on this headwind!

Isla Muelle - signs

On the island we will go to the tavern and talk with the innkeeper. He will say that Danielle just left (that means all is not lost yet!). We go out after her. On the street, three suspicious characters attack us - without blinking an eye, we kill (are you not used to it yet? Get used to it...). Once all three are killed, Daniel runs up. A long and difficult conversation begins, which results in an agreement to join forces in search of the treasure. Daniel knows a secluded bay on Redmond where you can land without risk. It's time to visit Sailhard. We are sailing to Redmond.

Redmond - Sailhard

Having arrived, we speak with Daniel, after which we immediately appear in His Majesty’s bedroom (we climbed through the window - it’s a bit cramped, but unnoticeable), we speak with Sailhard. He seems to agree to cooperate, but then runs away, calling security. Two foreheads burst in (so-so security, to be honest) - we kill. We return to the bay, where we come to the decision to split up. Daniel will look for the continuation of the legend, and Nathaniel will look for the Idol. We're sailing to Greenford.

Greenford - idol

In Greenford we go into the tavern and talk to the innkeeper about the idol. He reports that the idol is with the chief of the garrison. We go to the prison, there the captain sits on the left - this is the head of the garrison. We talk to him. He will say that Governor Sailhard ordered not to give the idol to anyone unless that someone presents the appropriate paper (what a cunning one, huh?!).

The guards and the captain attack us, we kill them (well, are we used to it now?). Sylhard, it turns out, ordered the figurine to be sent with the first ship to Redmond, but the ship is still in the port of Greenford - we run there. Immediately after going to sea we find ourselves under fire from the fort. We swim away from him to a safe distance as soon as possible. There will be an enemy frigate there (it will most likely swim up to our ship on its own), we board it (if your ship is worse than a frigate, then, without hesitation, we change it; a frigate is already serious). We sail to the lighthouse. There, an old experimenter will run up to us and say that Daniel has not appeared yet (everything is clear, she is on Isla Muelle). We go out to sea with the goal of showing everyone where Kuzka’s mother spends the winter, but that was not the case... A colorful screensaver - a storm. And the screensavers don't just show...

This is true. We are washed away from the ship and washed up on the shores of Duwezen. "Everything that is acquired by honest labor...". Hmmm.

Duwezen - storm

Without a ship, crew, money - not the best situation. On the shore we are met by a local resident who saved us. We leave the bay and go to the city (after crossing to the left). We talk to the owner of the tavern about work, he tells us that something can be found in the pirate settlement. We leave the city and go to the village (at the idol stone to the left). There in the tavern we speak with a bearded man sitting to the left of the entrance. You can hire him on his ship, or you can kill him and, according to pirate law, become the captain of his ship (guess which is better?). Having taken possession of the ship, we go to the bay to the left of the settlement. We load on board and sail to Isla Muelle.

Isla Muelle - meeting

There, at the port, our team meets us (from the ship from where we were washed away). They are all delighted (did you pay them regularly? It’s better to pay them regularly!), and we throw a grand party with all the officers, and we buy several barrels of rum for the whole team. At the tavern, Daniel comes up to us and says that he is waiting for us in the room upstairs.

What, did you want a pornographic cartoon? You won't get it. This is not "Mafia" for you. In the room we talk with the girl about our difficult fate.

Having talked enough, we go to the port. We board the ship and sail to Oxbay to the lighthouse.

Lighthouse - Ambush - Greenford

We go to the lighthouse, go into it, there will be an ambush there. We kill everyone (and they call this an ambush? The mice went to catch the cat...). "Ambush" told us that the old man was in prison. After thinking a little, we come to a decision: we will capture Fort Greenford (logical, right? Really, why waste time on trifles?). Nathaniel is from the sea, Daniel is from the land. To capture the fort, we will need 12-caliber culverins (they have a longer range) and 6-7 thousand cannonballs. It is better to stand so that the fire of the fort does not reach us, i.e. at the very entrance to the bay. From here you can fire at the fort until it is left completely without guns: then an icon will appear, signaling the possibility of landing. Trying to exchange fire with the fort is not the best solution. It is quite capable of sinking 4 battleships.

We go to the prison and talk to the old man (last cell). Having picked it up, we go to the tavern. There, an alarmed sailor runs up to us and reports that an English squadron is moving towards Greenford, and “he has never seen such huge ships in his life.” Well, we’ll have to deal with the squadron, since Daniel will command the hastily restored fort. The British can be dealt with quite easily by luring ships under fire from the fortress. After we sank (or boarded) the last ship, we sail to Coel Roa. There we will be met by another squadron, this time - pirates. Somehow they got wind of the treasure. In addition, there you may (or may not) meet Sailhard on a manovar - an excellent prize for boarding.

Having entered the bay, we disembark.

Coel Roa

Having landed, we go to the pyramid. We rise to the very top and enter the labyrinth. There the trio of characters are separated, we are given the central passage. Generally speaking, it’s difficult to get confused: there are “skull-sun” signs on the floor; we go where the sun points. Having calmed (without killing: “Die! Die! I killed you! You’re dead!” - “Idiot! I’ve been dead for a long time!”) several skeletons along the road, we reach the place where we need to put the idol on a stand - a passage will open.

Behind this passage, the trio are reunited (and how did they get here? After all, only one passage out of three should have led to this hall...). In the large hall, through a simple system of teleporters (first to the right one, it is blue, then to the one with a passage on the staircase-ramp), you can get to the thick central beam, and along it you can go to the supposed treasure.

"I"ll be back!", wait for guests!

"Black Pearl"

Having escaped from the temple destroyed by the earthquake, we urgently board the ship, as the old man scares us with further cataclysms. However, we have some prey with us - a strange spherical artifact. Alas, it won't last long.

At the exit from the bay, the Black Pearl, a ship of skeletons and ghosts, awaits us. Having good speed, almost perfect maneuverability and even better accuracy (what, oh, what are these skeletons looking at?! Why can’t we recruit such gunners for our team?), they will easily sink our squadron - two battleships and a manovar, by the way - in an open clash. The maximum that was achieved in a fair battle was to demolish about 30% of the hull of this “Pearl”. However, we have a secret weapon taken from the temple, and now is the time to use it. Click on “abilities” and find the ball symbol that appears among them. Apparently, the priests of the ancient American Indians did a good job of conjuring their artifact: the skeletons really don’t like it, and the “Black Pearl” has 20% of its body left. This is about 5 good broadsides of our manovar. Taking into account the enemy's maneuverability and the less than ideal conditions (a storm is clearly approaching), 10 salvos can be completely dealt with.

That's all, actually. “Tired, but happy...” Nathaniel and Daniel stand hugging each other on the deck of a common manovar, and everything is clear with them. Happy ending, ladies and gentlemen! Yes, happy ending... only skeletons don't know about it. And, leaving the sunken Black Pearl, they look straight at us with eerie blue eyes. Wait for the guests!

ADDITIONALLY

Helpful city residents

(excluding various random encounters and the main storyline)

Innkeeper. You can do a lot with it: hire a crew, rent a room for the night (to wait until other establishments open), find a merchant willing to pay for an escort to some island. In a tavern, you can hire an officer, sell contraband, play dice, drink and let them steal all your money... In general, the innkeeper is one of the most useful NPCs in the game.

Shipyard owner. He can repair and equip the ship under your control. Here you can sell or buy a ship. The effectiveness of the last action, however, is questionable: boarding, of course, is noticeably more profitable, but buying a ship of a class higher than you have ever managed before will not work.

The owner of the store. In the store you can sell various goods or purchase them. True, in "Pirates of the Caribbean" trade plays a noticeably less role than in "Corsairs": as a rule, there are simpler and faster ways to make money. However, to each his own.

They stand apart traders — they buy and sell personal items, unlike a store where there is wholesale trade. The stolen jewelry is sold to them, and it makes sense for them to choose a better blade and pistol.

Governor. Well, everything is clear here. They came, received money for the previous mission, took on a new one, and off they went. Unless, of course, we climbed through the window and communicate with the governor in... uh... raised voices. However, beyond that - into the walkthrough.

Types of charges for naval guns

Cores: the simplest charge, a metal ball. They fly the farthest, causing damage to the main body, and relatively little. In use they are quickly replaced by bombs.

Buckshot: many small pieces of metal. The shot distance is minimal, the damage is mainly done to the team. Good to use immediately before boarding.

Knipples: halves of kernels connected by a chain or otherwise connected. They fly far enough and mainly damage the sails. They are effective in pursuit, both for the victim (to slow down the attacker) and for the pursuer (to finally catch up with these cowardly creatures). Who will be more useful is a matter of accuracy.

Bombs: Cannonballs with a fuse explode after being hit. They mainly damage the hull (noticeably more than the cores) and cause damage to the team. The shot distance is average. Effective for sinking the enemy.

Historical reference

The development of the Corsairs, from which Pirates of the Caribbean grew, was not an easy task, although it was fun. At the dawn of the creation of the sea epic, the developers sat in the basement, in which regularly, about once a week, the sewer broke through, and it spewed out rivers of... uh... liquids.

The developers are hardy people, and everything would have been fine, but one day the sewer broke just during the visit of guests from Activision... That’s when everyone got a slap on the head!

We sailors work for money like horses and spend it like donkeys.(c) Tobias Smollett

Have you ever heard the sound of rushing waves under your feet? Have you ever felt a pleasant salty taste on dry lips? Have you ever been blown by a light, caressing morning breeze, blowing your loose hair from your eyes to the back of your head? Have you ever felt a slight shiver running through your body, not the cowardly one that boys feel before the first fight in their lives, but the soul-warming one that comes only before a fight, a real fight?..

Of course, all that I was now diligently praising could not appear out of nowhere. We must also pay tribute to the programmers who created a special engine - the well-known Storm 2. Of course, its main feature, according to the creators themselves, is the processing of gigantic water spaces without loss of performance. Naturally, after all, “Storm” was created specifically for “Corsairs”. But the engine copes with no less huge spaces, saturated with game characters, dense vegetation, buildings, various living creatures (in the game you can see dolphins, seagulls, etc.). But because of this, system requirements rise quite high - after all, not every gamer in the world has a GeForce 3 or Radeon 8500? Although the game will not look ugly on the second GeForce.

But let’s leave the technological side of the project and find out what awaits us immediately after entering the game. The events take place during the most intense period of confrontation between several maritime powers - the 17th century. Compared to the first part, their number has increased. Now these are England, Spain, France, Holland and Portugal. The political situation in the Caribbean is extremely tense. Completely weakened Spain is trying with all its might to retain its remaining possessions, while England and France, which are gaining momentum, are looking for new lands for their subsequent annexation. As for Portugal and Holland, these two are trying first of all to establish and strengthen trade ties; the colonies they captured are not as large as others, but they are among the most developed and richest in the archipelago.

The player is faced with a choice - whose side to take? Although your will is to stay away from high politics and lead the stormy and daring life of a pirate, or peacefully engage in trade. Unfortunately for many, the game does not have the ability to capture colonies, but the fort of some prosperous Portugal will be able to be taken away by force. But then do not expect mercy from the manovars of the disadvantaged enemy. But you can also turn the situation so that it is the one who wants retribution who will beg your forgiveness for his insolence. But you can answer him in several ways. The principle of combat in "Corsairs 2" is slightly different from its predecessor. The main thing that has changed is the boarding system. Now such a charged affair will not be a duel between two captains, where everything depends on your sole skill. Now, in addition to you, a whole squad will fight, the number of fighters in which will be proportional to the number of people on your team. Naturally, you will command everything, but you can only give simple commands - “Retreat”, “Forward”, “Group”, etc. After a victory during boarding, it will also be possible to capture and enslave the defeated. Newly made slaves can be sold on the black market, but this will negatively affect your Reputation (see below). Naval battles will undergo less radical changes. The balance will simply improve, and when conducting a battle you will need to really work out battle tactics, and not stupidly fire at everyone with all the available guns.

Adventures on land will be no less interesting than adventures at sea. Taking on the image of your main character on land, you can go on reconnaissance around the island. The possibilities for investigating the territory will be greatly expanded. In addition to cities, you may also encounter caves with hidden treasures of ancient pirates, jungles with their unpredictable inhabitants, with whom you may have to fight. A land battle is not much different from that of a boarding battle. In the same way, a certain number of allied assistants stand for you, ready to always support you. The AI ​​of these bots, like the intelligence of allies at sea, according to the programmers, is perfectly developed, so now you don’t have to take the rap for the whole team - you will get real benefits from your companions.

In the cities, most of the turning points of the plot await us. Exactly at populated areas Major meetings will take place, important agreements will be concluded, weapons, ammunition and ships will be purchased, and of course here you will receive quests. The game offers both story-driven and randomly generated missions. The random quest generation system is one of the main prides of the game developers. It works something like this: you go to any city, hoping to receive a task, the system analyzes your parameters, selects the quest that best suits a given set of statistics, and places the corresponding NPC with a story made up on the fly in some nearby tavern. The number of orders generated like this is more than a hundred (100!). Speaking about the RPG side of the game, one cannot help but delve into statistical details. Now there will be approximately 10 parameters (this is exactly how many the developers announced at the time of writing the preview), including the previously unknown Stealth and Authority. Reputation will remain one of the main parameters. A lot can depend on it - various troubles and simply a bad attitude towards you are guaranteed if this statistic is negative.

It is extremely difficult to discuss absolutely all aspects of such an epoch-making game as “Corsairs 2”. And what can I say, you have to see it. See and taste. Everything that cannot be explained in clear language, everything that makes you want to get into the monitor and stay there forever will be available in the game, and you will see it. With my own eyes. There is less than a month left until release.

Do you feel the salty taste on your tongue? And a shiver runs through the body...

There is more than one website dedicated to the Corsairs series of games, but on none of them have I ever come across a structured list of all parts and additions that gives a clear chronological picture of these games. I decided to fix this and create a list of all parts of the Corsairs game with a short subjective description of each of them. Thumbnail- these are the main parts of the series. Italics— official and fan-made additions (add-ons).

1. 2000 - Corsairs: Curse of the Far Seas. ("Akella") The very first part of the series, long imprinted in the minds and hearts of fans with its incredible atmosphere and quality of storylines. It is rightfully considered one of the best pirate-themed games. It was also warmly received by Western gamers, unlike many other products of the Russian gaming industry.

1.1 2003 - Corsairs: Golden Caravan. (Pnv.ru). The most ambitious add-on to the first Corsairs. Due to his honorable age in current time Rarely mentioned on fan sites. It was developed by a fan base of enthusiasts, which is why it turned out to be of quite high quality, and as a result, popular.

2. 2003 - Corsairs 2. Pirates of the Caribbean. ("Akella") Initially it was supposed to be Corsairs 2, previously intended to be the most epic game with a pirate and sea theme. Alas, they didn’t. The developments of K2 were sold to the Americans and were completed on the knee to coincide with the release of the film of the same name. Well-redesigned graphics did not save the project from a barrage of criticism from fans who rightly blame the game for its incredible linearity. Even the improved battle mechanics and the ability to wander through colorful locations outside of cities did not soften the blow.

2.1 2004— Corsairs: Return of a Sea Legend. (Seaward.Ru) . A fan-made add-on that makes the game more flexible and a little closer to the original version planned by the developers.

2.2 2007 — Pirates of the Caribbean: New Horizons. (Pirates Ahoy!). An addition from Western fans, which boasts updated graphics due to new textures and locations, various functions previously considered unrealizable on this engine, and many storylines, one of which is the game for Captain Jack Sparrow.

3. 2005 — Corsairs 3. ("Akella") Instead of rehabilitating a series that was still quite breathing, the developers simply cut off the oxygen to their brainchild with this part. The most disgusting game has been released, boasting only its excellent lags and quests, the banality of which even the developers of Chinese MMOs will be surprised. Playing “this” is strictly not recommended!

3.1 2007 - Corsairs III: Dead Man's Chest. ("Akella") Official add-on, which is a workaround for K3 errors. The fans received it a little less than nothing. This addition, which was morally outdated at that time, was not even hacked, since the audience’s attention was focused on the semi-fan project K:VL.

3.2 2009 — Corsairs 3: Wind of Freedom. (Seven Winds) A fan modification from Seven Winds Team, which makes Corsairs 3 more or less playable by adding adequate quests and solving problems with crazy lags.

3.3 2009 - Corsairs 3: Secrets of the Far Seas. (BG Team). A fan-made add-on that significantly reworks the game system. There is a second part with the remaining, similar name, but already based on the K:GPK game engine.

4. 2007 - Corsairs: Return of the Legend. (Seaward.Ru and “Akella”). Symbiosis of VML fashion and K3 game. This part didn’t turn out to be a mess, but it still wasn’t without regular bugs and a vague storyline. At that time, the project was the most suitable of all previously presented, not taking into account K1, of course.

5. 2007 - Corsairs: City of Lost Ships. (Seaward.Ru and “Akella”). All the same K:VL, but without bugs and with new quests. K:GPK was positively received by both fans and Russian gaming magazines. 7 years of a thorny path strewn with the same rake, and, finally, we have before us the best game in the series, again, if we do not take into account the first part.

5.1 2011 — Corsairs: Secrets of the Distant Seas 2. (BG Team). A continuation of the add-on of the same name, the first part of which was intended for K3.

5.2 2010 - Corsairs: Damned by Fate. (Seven Winds). New quests, hero, ships and so on.

5.3 2010 - Corsairs: A Pirate's Story. (Corsairs-Harbour.ru). Addition from users of the Corsair's Harbor fan site.

6. 2012 - Corsairs: To each his own. (BlackMark Studio with the participation of Akella). The project was initially positioned as a mod for K:GPK, but then the corsair lads decided to cut the gold and decided to release it as a full-fledged game, entirely consistent with the following thesis: they failed to make it interesting, so they made it difficult .

6.1 2013 - Corsairs: To Each His Own - Kaleuche. (BlackMark Studio with the participation of Akella). There is a fan base, so why not, capitalizing on nostalgic feelings, throw together another insipid addition and try to make more money?

6.2 2015 - Corsairs: To Each His Own - The Last Lesson. (BlackMark Studio with the participation of Akella). Need more gold!

6.3 2016 - Corsairs: To Each His Own - Under the Black Flag. (BlackMark Studio). A perverted form of mockery of a digital corpse, done in order to extract even more money from fans of the series.

6.4 2017 - Corsairs: To Each His Own - Hero of the Nation. (BlackMark Studio). No comments.

It is worth noting that the list shows only the most common additions. In reality there are many more. Many add-ons were never released, some are not so significant as to be mentioned and once again confuse the reader, others, for no clear reason, are still being developed.