The reason this change in creative directors is such a big deal is because the company we once fell in love with as a whole no longer existed at this point in time. Everyone who had worked on the classic smash hits such as Banjo-Kazooie, Jet Force Gemini, Donkey Kong Country and many, many others throughout their seven years with Nintendo had left the company and were replaced by a whole new group. Rare, as it stands today, has no members of the original creative team behind their ingenious games left on their roster. Much like when Star Wars was bought by Disney, a whole new creative team is now behind those films; George Lucas and his new ideas have been tossed out never to be heard from again. Meaning that Rare as we knew it is truly dead.

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

One caveat should be considered with this data dive. The assets pulled are not officially announced, and could, therefore, be cut content or take on a much different role in the final game, especially when a beta is usually never the same version of the game that's released when a game is launc

Ship customization seems to be another thing unearthed by the data-pirates. The files found seem to imply the ability to customize a ship's cannons, capstan (pirate talk for 'anchor holder'), livery, mast, and the captain's wheel. There are additional sections as well, listed under 'Ship misc' is a harpoon

Perhaps a tutorial or two beforehand, randomly placed as you are amid one of the trading outposts upon booting up a new session. "SEAOFTHIEVESANDHERE’SANISLAND, GO!!" Ummmm…errrr, wait-what? Yes, it’s that sudden and without a map or instructor or any sort of indicator beforehand, the perplexing nature and seemingly deserted simplicity of your surroundings can feel as much like miscommunication as it can misunderstanding. There could very well be some manner of narrative or cinematic oversight with which the beta hasn't provided, but it goes without saying that Sea of Thieves almost expects too much for its starting players to simply just accept and tolerate.

While all this should be taken with a grain of salt, it's easy to see why a Rare and Microsoft would be gearing up for an open beta. With the hype surrounding the game right now thanks to the closed-beta and high twitch viewership, not to mention a limited edition controller set to be released, the studios would want to keep riding this high up until the game's release and an open-beta could go a long way towards t

I’m not suggesting there be some kind of grind or loot-based collectathon (Rare certainly know how to do collectathons, but perhaps they best steer away from that concept for the time being) that hooks players into getting better/faster/stronger/more resilient, but more importantly, coming back for more. Whether it’s the bare simplicity of island design, the lack of any real management structure aboard your ship or just the general transparency of its world’s engagement, Sea of Thieves feels just like one of those temporary respites prior to some grander investment in another game. Something you muck about with for an hour and nothing more. And for something as crucial as it’s been for someone like myself who seldom indulges in online multiplayer, while Sea of Thieves gets the teamwork principle down…then what?

The closed beta for Sea of Thieves has come and gone and despite server issues on day one , it's safe to say it was quite the success. With interesting co-operative gameplay and fun cartoonish art style, Microsoft and Rare's pirate adventure seems to be winning gamers over. Now, if the rumors are to be believed, those who missed out on the closed beta may soon be getting a chance to captain their own s

If you've ever wanted to glaze over a truly beautifully crafted MMO, you can definitely do so with Perl Abyss and Kakao Games' Black Desert Online , which is headed to consoles sometime early next y

Then there’s the workings and actual programming side of the ocean itself, particularly the many ways in which the waves crash and tumble against your ship. The textures and dynamics, the way they sway to and fro, sending a once calm voyage into potentially risky affairs; I’ve plenty to say on this feature alone, so I’ll leave it at that for the time being. In terms of gameplay, wherein (least in the beta build) you can decide to go it alone, team up with another or join a party of four, Sea of Thieves is a hands-on, labor-focused experience, stripping away all hereditary comforts with the interface such as a mini-map or objective indicators alike in favor of more communicative and team-based, working together.

Microsoft has officially announced that Rare's multiplayer pirate action game Sea of Thieves will feature cross-play between Xbox One and PC. The announcement came during today's Xbox Gamescom livestream, which included some new trailers, a few announcements, and concluded with the launch of Xbox One X pre-orders. But cross-play for Sea of theives in space of Thieves could be the biggest surprise, with the game's closed technical alpha implementing the feature, effective immediat