It’s Talk Like a Pirate Day, So Play These 15 Pirate Games, Matey
Assassin’s Creed and pirate games don’t seem like a good mix, but Black Flag went ahead and proved us wrong. By freeing itself up from the convoluted lore (mostly), it allowed for one of the best games in the series and offered up an appropriate amount of freedom that made both its lead Edward Kenway and its gameplay a ton of fun. The LEGO machine came for Pirates of the Carribbean series quickly, and it certainly was a fun experience. Covering all four films, the game does a good job of retelling them and making the somewhat darker moments of the series more funny for the younger audiences. It’s a collect-a-thon, sure, but it’s a well made one and playing with a buddy never gets old.
After being informed that the war between two Titan Lords will soon end with disastrous consequences, you’re instructed to infiltrate a pirate group that’ll help you save the world. In between all this, you’ll travel the Seven Seas, learn valuable piracy skills, and carve a name for yourself in the world. The atmosphere is what makes the game, and you’ll certainly be feeling like a pirate by the end of it. It’s fun being a pirate, and you’d imagine that same feeling extends to being the Pirate King. Tropico 2 shows that you’d be right on the money, giving your men orders while hunting for booty and running the island they all live on. Can it be stressful, most certainly. But underneath that is one of the best entries in the Tropico series, and a fantastic pirate game all around.
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Shantae and the Pirate's Curse
Wayforward has been quietly doing solid work with the Shantae series, and the third entry focused on pirates may just be the best. It sucks that there are just small islands to travel in place of an open world, but it's forgiven by having a funny narrative, fun gameplay, and best retro platforming adapted for today's standards.
Monkey Island
'90s LucasArts fans will remember the Monkey Island games. The adventures of Guybrush Threepwood were some of the best point and click adventures in all of PC gaming, and while there's no reason to not play them at any point in time, Talk Like a Pirate Day is a good time to start.
Lego Pirates of the Carribbean
The LEGO machine came for Pirates of the Carribbean series quickly, and it certainly was a fun experience. Covering all four films, the game does a good job of retelling them and making the somewhat darker moments of the series more funny for the younger audiences. It's a collect-a-thon, sure, but it's a well made one and playing with a buddy never gets old.
EVE Online
They may not have peg legs or parrots (unfortunately), but the pirates in EVE Online are still pretty deadly. They'll wait for you to arrive at stargates or asteroid belts so you can later regret that decision. If you get got by them and want justice, you'll have to do it yourself-- their activities are "legal" in terms of the game's rules.
Age of Booty
Admittedly, Age of Booty more than likely isn't going to be your jam if you play its single player mode. But if you play it with some friends, then you're gonna have one of the best pirate experiences around. Who would've thought that pirates and RTS would mix so well?
Sid Meier's Pirates!
Oh yeah, who could forget this gaming classic? While Meier's Civilization series has been the one to shine in the spotlight, Pirates is still one of the shining gems of Firaxis' always sterling career. It's been remade multiple times, but getting a new entry would be pretty sweet.
Pirates of the Carribbean
Games based on movies are usually not all that hot, but Pirates of the Carribbean bucked expectations by being pretty dang good. It's a fun action-RPG from Bethesda that probably would've succeeded better now, if only because there aren't many pirates games out these days. If you've still got an original Xbox kicking around, boot it up for some fun.
Elite: Dangerous
You can make your money in the galaxy any way you choose to in Elite, one way of which is piracy. That means not only stealing cargo from the ships of NPCs and other players, but also killing them, at least if they don't cooperate. Or even just because, since you're a pirate and all. The risk is Very High, but so is the fun, if you decide to go this route.
Tropico 2: Pirate Cove
It's fun being a pirate, and you'd imagine that same feeling extends to being the Pirate King. Tropico 2 shows that you'd be right on the money, giving your men orders while hunting for booty and running the island they all live on. Can it be stressful? Most certainly. But underneath that is one of the best entries in the Tropico series, and a fantastic pirate game all around.
Uncharted 4: A Thief's End
Not a pirate game in the traditional sense, but Nathan Drake's final adventure involves him hunting down the treasure sought by legendary pirates Henry Avery and Thomas Tew. As is always the case with Drake's adventures, this pirate hunt doesn't go as smoothly as possible. But you do do some sailing in the seas in search of pirates, and even make your way to a pirate island or two.
No Man's Sky
While you're out touring the galaxy, you can come across deadly space pirates who want to make sure your body's spread across the cosmos. If you ever decide that you want in on the space plundering, all you need to do is remember where trading outposts are so you know when the right time to hit convoys are. An infinite galaxy means infinite booty.
Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves
In the penultimate episode of Sly Cooper's trilogy, the Gang has to head for an island filled with pirates to gain a new member of the crew. At first, you start things off by dressing like a pirate and cursing like one, and by the end of the episode, you're hunting for treasure, fighting the Kraken, and getting into swordfights. One of Sly's ancestors was a pirate, so if we could get a pirate game with her, that'd be sweet.
Risen 2: Dark Waters
After being informed that the war between two Titan Lords will soon end with disastrous consequences, you're instructed to infiltrate a pirate group that'll help you save the world. In between all this, you'll travel the Seven Seas, learn valuable piracy skills, and carve a name for yourself in the world. The atmosphere is what makes the game, and you'll certainly be feeling like a pirate by the end of it.
One Piece: Pirate Warriors 3
Most pirate games want you to travel the seas in search of treasure and escaping the law. One Piece: Pirate Warriors 3 has a different idea in mind, and that involves kicking the crap out of hordes of enemies on your journey to find the Grand Line. Each member of the Straw Hat crew has their own skillset of moves to kick ass with, and damn if it's not fun as hell.
Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag
Assassin's Creed and pirate games don't seem like a good mix, but Black Flag went ahead and proved us wrong. By freeing itself up from the convoluted lore (mostly), it allowed for one of the best games in the series and offered up an appropriate amount of freedom that made both its lead Edward Kenway and its gameplay a ton of fun.
About the author
Justin Carter
Sometimes a writer, always a dork. When he isn't staring in front of a screen for hours, he's probably reading comics or eating Hot Pockets. So many of them.
