REVIEW: ‘Sea of Thieves’ Is Fun With A Crew, But Mixed Alone (PS5)

Sea of Thieves, the pirate action-adventure developed by Rare, is finally dropping anchor on PS5. A previous Xbox console exclusive, it joins the likes of Hi-Fi Rush, Pentiment, and Grounded as they make their way to PlayStation. Originally launching in 2018, Sea of Thieves has become a fan favorite, garnering over 40 million players since its launch. The swashbuckling pirate simulator has changed a lot since launch, as Rare have continually added to the game over the years. With the imminent launch of Season 12, Sea of Thieves can be a lot of fun with other players, but isn’t as strong for solo players.

Sea of Thieves lets you live you the pirate adventures of your dreams, with varying results. Sea of Thieves does not have a character creator, instead randomly rolling sets of characters with random variation. I was disappointed that I wasn’t able to make my own pirate captain, as the initial customization options aren’t substantial. This made more sense when I found the customization shop, locking a number of hairstyles and customization options behind paid currency.

A good number is available through in-game gold, but some of it was expensive. Allowing the player to make their own initial customization from scratch, with further options being locked, would have been understandable, but it was frustrating not to even be able to do that. Instead, those presets and limited customization options are all you have as you start your adventure.

There are two primary ways to play Sea of Thieves, Safer Seas and High Seas. Safer Seas is effectively a single-player mode, keeping other players out of your journey at the cost of experience and gold earned. It allows players to sail solo or with friends without the ever-present worry of getting raided or losing treasure to other pirates. High Seas, on the other hand, offers greater rewards and fewer restrictions but has other players existing in the same space, for better or worse.

Safer Seas, and even playing solo on High Seas, is a mixed bag. It can be a totally relaxing and chill experience. Just you, your ship, and the sound of the waves as you journey around. It reminded me a lot of No Man’s Sky in it’s quieter moments, feeling like a tiny piece of the sea. On the other hand, it can also be a really monotonous and frustrating experience. Sea of Thieves only allows you to carry one piece of treasure at a time, while using specific chests to carry up to 3 smaller pieces. This gets frustrating when you find yourself making upwards of 10 trips to and from your ship.

On my journey, I came across one of the PvE offerings – a sea fortress. After heading inside and defeating waves of phantoms, I got a key that let me into the store room that had a bunch of treasure. It was my first decent haul, adrenaline still pumping from the fight that got me here. Then, 20 minutes of back and forth. I couldn’t find a chest to help me carry, and there were at least 10 pieces of treasure. Grab one, run and swim back to my ship, turn around, rinse, and repeat. It got old fast, with no way to speed up the process. It felt padded for the sake of it, wasting your time in the name of immersion, but failing to be engaging.

When playing with friends, the process is inherently sped up as your crew can grab and carry more than a single pair of hands can. This translates to all of Sea of Thieves, it’s much more engaging and entertaining with friends. Hopping on your ship solo leaves you with handling the anchor, mast, directions, ship repair, and steering. It can be fun to ride solo, making the experience feel entirely your own. At the same time, that can run its course quickly, as you’re doing the same thing over and over again regardless of the quest you’re doing. With friends, it’s a riot as you yell over one another to raise the sails, drop the anchors, change direction, and so on.

Sea of Thieves’ main loop comes down to accepting a quest from one of 5 factions, going to an island to kill a thing, capture a thing, or find some treasure, and returning. Doing enough quests for a faction will raise your relationship with them, possibly leading to greater rewards and inventory in their shops. Do this enough and you’ll be able to buy an emissary flag. Flying any one of the faction’s flags will increase the rewards you get but also make you a target on the seas to other players. These loops are simple but fun. Hopping in for a quick couple of runs daily is rewarding and helps you build towards buying your own ship.

Combat is also quite simplistic, but gets the job done. Your sword lets you attack and block, while also adding a charge strike. There are a few different options for guns as well. The pistol may shoot and reload faster, with greater range, but the blunderbuss hits harder at close range. The different variations of these weapons found in shops is purely cosmetic. While limiting the differences in weapons to cosmetic only levels the playing field for new players, it does leave something more to be desired.

Ship combat is an entirely chaotic experience in the best way, especially with a crew. Coming across another ship, whether it’s player-controlled or a ghost ship, is hectic fun as you try and decide how to tackle the situation. There are a number of different cannon balls that have varying effects. from the standard cannonball to the firebomb that can light fire on enemy ships or the chainshot, which can shred masts. The harpoon lets you grab other pirates or ships at a close distance. The upcoming Season 12 will let you run on the ropes shot from the harpoon to board opponents, unlocking a whole new tier of chaos.

Playing solo in these combat encounters can be stressful. If you’re lucky enough to run into another solo player, it’s a lot of fun as you try to handle the damage your ship is taking while taking them out. Running into a group of people is overwhelming and hard to compete with, with the best tactic turning tail and fleeing, hoping they’ll leave you alone. It can be really frustrating to spend time on a few quests, loading up on treasure, heading to an outpost to deliver, only to be assaulted in the final stretch, and lose out on all your progress made.

Sea of Thieves on PS5 comes with a host of PlayStation specific enhancements, including Dualsense haptics, adaptive triggers, and using the built-in mic to chat, along with trophy support. The great news is if you’re a returning player, progress made in other versions of the game carries over, and you can crossplay with friends on Xbox or PC. It was awesome to see Xbox achievements pop on my phone every time I got a trophy. This synchronicity is fantastic to see as the lines continue to blur between ecosystems.

Over the years, Sea of Thieves has also added a number of story missions and crossovers in the form of the Tall Tales. These include crossovers with Pirates of the Caribbean and Monkey Island. From what I’ve played so far, these are fantastic and feel like playing interactive theme park rides. The production value is top-notch. You get drawn in with the performances and set pieces. These are fantastic to engage in solo or with friends.

Graphically, Sea of Thieves looks beautiful. The sun rises, and the sunsets on the open water are gorgeous. I dropped anchor in the middle of the sea a couple of times to just take them in. The water effects are incredible and really made me miss sitting on the beach and watching the tide. The cartoony art style also fits the game’s wacky charm as well. Similarly, the audio effects are really well done. Close your eyes and listen to the waves – you’ll swear you’re sitting on a shoreline.

Sea of Thieves is a great game that offers a lot. Between the PvE elements, PvP chaos, story missions, added content, and the upcoming Season 12, there’s a ton to engage with. Playing solo may be a mixed experience, but when it clicked, there was so much to enjoy with your time on the sea.

Hitting the high seas with a crew is a genuine blast, leading to absolute chaos in no time flat. I’m excited to try the open-party search, as it was unavailable to test during the review. Despite my issues with Sea of Thieves, when it works, it’s an experience unlike any other. I’m excited to become my own version of a Pirate King.

Sea of Thieves is available now on Xbox, Game Pass, and PC, with the PS5 version available in early access and launching fully on April 30th, 2024.