Many times when I log on to an MMO I feel that I have played the game a million times before I even set foot into their online world. Swords, sorcery, magic, and dragons…that’s pretty much the set up for a lot of the MMOs on today’s market. While a lot of these games have individual features that make them unique and fun to play, I get sick knowing I’m going into a generic fantasy world.

In many ways, Puzzle Pirates puts the oooh’s and ahhh’s back into MMOs. When I first logged on I honestly had no idea what to expect…besides the fact that I would be playing a pirate. Other then that I had no clue how the game would work or how it would function.

Having mentioned functioning, I have to say that in this department Puzzle Pirates works very well. The graphical style of the game is something I don’t think I have ever seen before. It’s a 2D isometric view that has a relatively cutesy yet very detailed look. It almost looks like I'm looking at Lego pirates…. except a lot better. The ships, scenery, and islands are all perfect and have a very stylized look and feel. There are also tons of different piratey clothing colors and styles that players can choose from, some more rare then others, so very few players in the game actually look alike. This feature lets players be unique, as well as setting a form of status in the game.

The lingo used in the interface really puts you in the piratey mood. For instance, instead of “friends list�, its “Me Hearties�. Items are called “Booty�, and the “Ye� tab gives you all of your personal information, including current jobs and wages and pending orders. There are many examples of this found in the game. Puzzle Pirates’ interface also allows you to easily find a group to party with, which results in very little downtime and adds to the social aspect of the game. The game’s interface also allows you to get into quests with the touch of a button. Helping out the “Navy�, is Puzzle Pirates’ form of questing. Another interface feature I found interesting is the chat filter. A usually annoying feature, Puzzle Pirates’ filter is actually kind of cute and will give you a few quick laughs as it replaces common curse words with words like “tart�, “barnacle�, and my personal favorite….“Scupper�. Overall, the interface in this game makes it very easy to handle and simple for new players to use.

The game play is where Puzzle Pirates really shines and keeps you coming back for more. Everything in the game from sword fighting to running a ship works through a series of very unique and interesting puzzles, some unlike anything I have seen in other games. Most of these are as addicting as Tetris itself. Although some are slightly better then others, they are all balanced and skill based, some may taking longer to master, but all are fairly easy to learn. This gives Puzzle Pirates an easy learning curve and opens the game to casual puzzle players. The graphics in the puzzles all look really good, and all include a performance gauge of some sort. Wether it be a swinging hammer in carpentry, high sails in sailing, or a pump in bilging, they all let you know how well you are doing. Puzzles included in sailing a ship also pause for a brief moment at “league points� to tell you how well you are working.

Another great aspect of the game is how it allows a “crew�, consisting of an allotted number of players depending on the size of the ship, to “pillage� together. Pirates new and old can travel the seas and raid ships together, wether it be against Imperial bot brigands or simple Sailors of a fellow players crew. Pillaging is not only a great time, it provides puzzling experience and plenty of PoE.

The politics system in this game really works and makes the game stand out from everything else on the market. Players can essentially own islands, tax them accordingly, and for the most part rule them. You may be thinking “Yeah, but what’s the fun in that, all the islands are already owned�. Yes and no. The game has an excellent form of attack called “blockades�. Every so often a flag, which is a band of allied crews, will blockade an island. This spawns giant sea battles that will decide the outcome of who will own the island for the coming weeks, that being the attacker, or the current defense. Blockades are a blast and really show some of the high end content of the game. Another excellent blockade feature is the chance to obtain a highly sought after injury. The chances of getting injured in a blockade are slim, and can only be obtained in a blockade where ships are sunk. These injuries include a pegleg, hook, and the ever popular eyepatch.

Tournaments really add to the social content of the game, and the way this feature was implemented is near to perfection. When a tournament of any significance is registered, (by the players of course), it is broadcasted through the entire ocean, as all tournaments are universal. Players can join the tournament by visiting the local Inn of whatever island they might be on, and view the tournament board. The tournament system offers a lot of different features to keep the tournaments interesting and different. For instance, everyone can use the same sword, their own sword, or a random color scheme of whatever sword you might own. Players can also choose to make an entry fee, offer prizes, set the payoff system, and match up the pairs of fighters randomly or by rank. Sword Fighting is not the only available universal tournament option, drinking games are also available. Puzzle Pirates also caters to card sharks, offering Spades and Hearts games which can also be wagered.

One of the biggest aspects of Puzzle Pirates is that it is not a huge multi-million dollar MMO. The Developers are often playing on the servers, and there is almost always an “Ocean Master� available to assist players with anything they might need. On several occasions I have actually had the chance to chat with the CEO of Three rings, Daniel James. It really adds a warm fuzzy feeling knowing they care enough to consider you an actual customer and not just an account number.

Now with that being said, Puzzle Pirates is not perfect. For one, the game is not finished and there are a lot of crafting activities that do not have puzzles created for them yet. This makes me feel that players are paying for a game that should still be in beta. To the developers defense, there are consistent upgrades that add new life to the game. The camera angles have some issues, since it doesn’t rotate and therefore cant give you a great view of the action, but this for the most part isn’t a huge downfall. Being that the game is made in flash and nothing is really rendered, there are no fancy water movements, night or day effects, or a lot of the gimmicky features I have come to expect from most MMOs being put out on the market today. All in all these take away very little if anything from the fun factor or ambiance of the game. It just seems like if I do an emote effect for a “wave� I should get a cute little graphical emote to go along with it.

The major points in Puzzle Pirates far outweigh the trivial downsides, and in my personal opinion, Puzzle Pirates is an example of innovation working at it’s finest.

Graphics 8.0
Fun Factor 9.5
Community 9.0
Value 10.0
Overall 9.5