Sea of Thieves, Rare’s newest pirate adventure game on Xbox One and PC, is out now for people to enjoy. Yet while many are loving the romanticism of piracy, adventure and kicking Kraken butt, Sea of Thieves was not always planned to be the cooperative, competitive pirate game that many are now sinking hours into. Other worlds and themes were discussed, such as the mysterious, gothic world of vampires and the prehistoric glory of dinosaurs. Considering the recent reveal of games such as Jurassic Park Evolution and Vampyr, perhaps Rare really dodged a bullet in changing their game to be one about pirates.
In an interview with IGN, Rare studio head Craig Duncan explained that the development of Sea of Thieves started with the concept of a co-op adventure between friends, but early in development the kind of world that adventure would take place in had yet to be finalized. Rare had a lot of ideas, but it was all about finding the best one that would both be enjoyable and work in the world they wanted to create.
Duncan further reiterated the importance of theme by saying “we had all these different themes, vampires, dinosaurs, you name it. Just imagine everything, because at this point you’re going broad, you’re brainstorming.” Duncan mentioned later in the interview that he was pleased that the team didn’t go with dinosaurs, considering Ark: Survival Evolved ended up exploring that theme and world in a very similar fashion to their original idea.
We can’t speak for everyone, but we’re pretty pleased that Rare decided to stick with pirates for this. We remember when Assassin Creed: Black Flag came out and the fun we had exploring the treacherous seas in that, so to be able to do that but with a friend? It’s a no-brainer that Rare looks to be onto a winner with Sea of Thieves.
Sea of Thieves is out now on both the Xbox One and PC.
