Games of Yore - Sid Meier's PIRATES!

Ah yes, Pirates! How could one be a user of a Commodore 64 without coming across this dandy of a game? A game were one takes the role of Captain Sitonmeass to traverse the Caribbean and the occasional bout of malaria in hopes of fame (or infamy), fortune and the Governor’s daughter. Sid Meier’s Pirates! is truly a classic.

Many a days I would get home from middle school looking forward to booting up this classic only to find out that I had misplaced my damned Sid Meier’s Pirates! game manual. This would inevitably lead to me breaking down in tears as I tried to remember what year the damned Silver Train came to town. (This obscure reference is to the nifty copy protection scheme that many computer gaming companies used in the late 80’s early 90’s)

This game won many awards. Of course, this was 1987. Gaming awards in 1987 kind of hold the same distinction as the Playstation 3 release lineup.

As I mentioned, you begin the game as an alcoholic whose family was killed by some wild boars in the Black Forest of Germany. You then get to choose between being English, Spanish, Dutch or the French. After you decide which slave trading country you represent, you set out on your inevitable journey to mutinous crews, Captain Mendoza, Admiral Mendoza, and Marquis Mendoza.


Sid Meier’s Pirates! offers a variety of game playing options. You can choose to represent your imperialistic country by raiding other country’s towns and ships. Or, you can just crap on everybody’s parade by becoming a Pirate! and raid every poor schmuck who game across your grabass playing crew. My favorite part was oppressing those poor saps, the Dutch, and their special trading ships.

Fencing was a fun part of the game; sea battles, not so much.

Like many Sid Meier’s games, Pirates! was educational. It offered the player a chance to learn about the different ships of the time, the Caribbean ports, and how to be a player. Yes, as part of the Pirate! lifestyle, you could woo the many different Governor’s daughters by dancing your way into the sack.

Sid Meier’s Pirates! was a helluva game. If you get a chance to check out the updated version for the XBOX, I would encourage it.

JC Braz’s Score: 8 out of 10