While the continual influx of zombie-themed videogames has slowly begun to wain, another is beginning to take its place, pirates. Taking to the high seas to loot and pillage has really begun to gain popularity, whether its non-VR such as Sea of Thieves, or in virtual reality (VR) with titles like Pastimes for Pirates, A Tale of Pirates: A Dummy Mutiny, Ship Ahoy, or Narrows. Adding to that list is Craft Game Studio with its Steam Early Access experience Crooked Waters, ready to set sail this week.
Crooked Waters is an online pirate battle game where up to eight players battle it out in a 4v4 ship battle. The goal of each encounter is to sink the other ship which can only be done through cooperation with your team. This isn’t some arcade style experience where you can steer the ship and fire the cannon liberally. Only together can you manage the ship and achieve victory.
Ships require their crew to be on top form. One needs to be the navigator, steering the ship in the right direction; but a ship is no good without sail being adjusted to get optimal speed and load. There will always need to be someone on lookout in the crows nest to find the enemy and when you do so the cannons will need to be loaded, aimed and fired to take down the opponent.
VRFocus first reported on Crooked Waters last month ahead of an Early Access release on 19th June. That didn’t occur due to the team trying to improve performance, in doing so a few network bugs surfaced. The delay has meant further bugs have been ironed out, plus a singleplayer mode where the goal is to get the highest score on the leaderboard by sinking ship targets has been added.
Crooked Waters is due to enter Steam Early Access this Friday, 13th July 2018. The initial version will feature everything mentioned with Craft Game Studio also planning to add destruction of ships, more offensive weaponry, and a progression system so players get rewarded for winning matches. As further updates surface for Crooked Waters, VRFocus will keep you posted.