In a recent post on Reddit, user vJoeyz shared news regarding a possible Sea of Thieves open-beta. The information, obtained by digging through newly added files for the insiders-only version of the game, contains multiple references to content for an unannounced open beta. The only way the closed beta could be accessed was to either have it pre-ordered or be a member of the games insider prog

The beta for Sea of Thieves happened recently, and to not many people’s surprise, dataminers got a hold of the game’s data. What perhaps was not expected is what they found hidden beneath the sea of c

Rare’s Short Haul trailers are just one way the developer is continuing to communicate with its audience, whether they’re excited for Sea of Thieves or not. There are several other short video series that are ongoing, like the Inn-side Stories series or one-offs created for special events, like Talk Like a Pirate Day. Perhaps this extensive amount of developer-to-player communication is another strategy to help bring players closer to the experience that Sea of Thieves will provide . Perhaps in knowing Rare, players will better know their ga

In terms of content mentioned in the post, the most interesting may come in the form several mentions of the Order of Souls quests. Order of Souls is one of the three announced factions for the game, alongside The Gold Hoarders and The Merchant Alliance. During the closed beta, the only faction available was the Gold Hoarders but fans could soon be off battling skeleton pirates with the Order of So

A few things found in the datamining process include the Kraken. The data has animations for a Kraken holding the player, eating them, and spitting them out, and another action called ‘waterdunk’. These animations are written out, as opposed to being actually visible, but it could be a hint as to what we’ll see in the fut

In summary, we want each of the Sea of Thieves weapons to be the right tool in the right circumstances, allowing players to get into cannon exchanges, gun battles and tense sword fights when the right moment stri

Previous episodes in Sea of Thieves ‘ Short Haul trailer series include ” Creating Clouds ,” ” Aboard the Ship ,” and ” Instruments .” Each explores an example of how Sea of Thieves tries to bring the player closer to the world in which they’re playing. Instruments talks about how players can add their own soundtrack within the game through gameplay, but how it’s also influenced by social aspects of the game . Creating Clouds shows how Sea of Thieves is using an ever-present object in virtually every game — clouds — in a new way to add depth to the experience. It’s unexplored territory, which pirates would appreci

Specific examples of visual effects cited within Sea of Thieves ‘ trailer include cannon explosions and how cannon balls crash into ship hulls, as well as the spray of water as a ship parts the sea. Andreas Oberg, the VFX Lead at Rare, describes these effects in detail regarding how they’re used to create a more visceral and engaging experience for players. Andreas describes it thusly within the trai

Other honorable mentions include the mention of mermaids being listed as enemies although they appear to be benevolent in the beta, and other fruits joining the banana as food available to players. The Full Record list of data below also features new maps, landmark locations, NPCs and Shops that have not been seen bef

We’ve also gone a step further compared to most other experiences that have aim down sights, in that the default position when carrying a gun around is not held in an aiming stance from the hip. Instead, guns that are not being actively aimed have their barrels pointing upwards or close to the player’s body. The reason for this is that players have to take a specific action to aim the gun (and be seen to aim the gun), which makes it much clearer to determine the intent of other players: if you see them aiming at you, you know they are trying to line up a shot. Conversely, if you come across another crew in the world who seems more friendly and their guns are raised, the situation can feel less hostile. Ordinarily, in a typical shooter, even with aim down sights, the gun is held outwards and from the hip and other players automatically look more dea

“When we talk about visual effects in games, we normally mean particles. That’s what we’re using to create all of the cannon effects for example, like the different explosions. You want to give the player strong feelings when they’re playing the game… You should just feel like you’re really part of this beautiful wor

Whether it ends up happening or not, it doesn’t seem like players are going to be forgetting about the game anytime soon. Despite much criticism pointed towards Microsoft’s first party games Sea of Thieves has always proven to be a bright spot in the public eye, especially with the game set to feature cross-play between Xbox and PC , a step most gamers would agree is in the right direction. It’s now all up to Microsoft and Rare to ensure smooth sail