Port Royale 2 Has What it Takes to “Hook” Players

by Louis Bedigian

“Attack ships at will, loot and plunder vessels, take aggressive missions against certain nations, eliminate rival pirates before they become too powerful.”

Ever wonder why pirates talk so funny?  I think it has to do with their misfortunes.  How many pirates do you know who aren’t missing a leg, hand or eye?  I can only imagine what it would be like to play a PC game with a hook.  You could hunt and peck the keys, but you’d never maneuver a mouse with that thing.

No one in their right mind would ever want to be a real pirate.  To be a video game pirate – now that’s exciting.

Port Royale 2 comes from the same shores that brought you the first game.  It’s got all-new, open-ended gameplay elements that allow the player to do whatever he or she chooses.  You’re not restricted to being a pirate, nor are you restricted to doing things that are good and pure.  Play the game the way you want to play it.

Twitching to know more, the GameZone staff began hopping up and down on one foot.  When asked what the heck we were doing, we told the developers it was our way of showing our support for all the pirates walking on wood.  They rolled their eyes, tipped their patches and took a few moments to answer our questions.

Introduce our readers to the world of Port Royale 2 and explain why the characters are privateers, not pirates. 

Alan Wild, International Product Manager, Ascaron Entertainment: Port Royale 2 is set in the world of the Caribbean during the 17th century. It's a world where cartels are created, constructions are build, and conquests can affect the power of nations. Port Royale 2 is the sequel to the hugely successful trading simulation Port Royale: Gold, Power & Pirates.

In Port Royale 2, it is entirely up to you how you play. If you want to be play as a pirate, simply do what a pirate does. Attack ships at will, loot and plunder vessels, take aggressive missions against certain nations, eliminate rival pirates before they become too powerful. Or, play as a buccaneer, become a 'pirate of value' as it were. Alternatively, simply enjoy Port Royale 2 for its real world trading elements, or develop monopolies over certain goods, forcing others to buy from you. You could even build up your military convoy and set sail to conquer the towns and fleets of specific nations...

Other than its theme, how does this game differ from its competitors?  What are the things that make it stand out from the pack? 

AW: Port Royale 2 is easily accessible for novice and experienced players alike. On the surface Port Royale 2 is very simply to play, and quite rewarding. The more experienced you become, the more details you will uncover. One of the things you will notice after several hours of playing Port Royale 2 is that it doesn't become stagnant as you continue to gain new and improved rewards for your efforts.

And one boat said to the other who smelled, “You sink!”

Suppose I'm a gamer playing Port Royale 2 for the very first time: what's the first thing I should do?  What are my goals? 

AW: The first thing you need to do is load up the scenarios. Pick the first scenario and play it through. There are 4 beginner scenarios which will quickly and simply teach you everything you need to know for playing Port Royale 2.

Once you've mastered the features of trading, construction, sea battles, and so on, then there are 4 further scenarios (making 8 in total) which are more demanding and have specific objectives, with themes such as "Hunting Blackbeard" or "Saving Tortuga."

Give us the goods on Port Royale 2's four nations and 60 towns. 

AW: English, French, Spanish and Dutch nations are all actively competing within the game world. Everything is real time. If you sit and watch your screen, then you can be sure that you competitors and others are all trading away in the background, or making and breaking alliances, declaring war, running short of goods, building new plantations, and so forth. 

How do the battles play out?  Is there a lot of defense involved? 

AW: Battles are played offensively in Port Royale 2. Such is the nature of ship versus ship or ship versus land combat. Ships have very little in the way of defensive mechanisms, with the exception of strategy. If you're up against heavily armored ships that will more than likely destroy your fleet with little effort, then maybe you need to select your faster vessels and attempt to run rings around the slower ships. Or perhaps try a combination of hit and run approaches. Maybe use the grape shot to decimate your enemy's crew and board their ships to reduce their numbers... or you could just flee. But beware; a fleeing ship can be caught!

Luxurious accommodations at the Eye Patch Spa & Resorts.

Port Royale 2 allows players to construct things like production facilities and special function buildings.  Tell us about these. 

AW: You are able to construct all the buildings in Port Royale 2. This allows you to secure yourself a large part of a particular good's market share. There are 19 goods in total and, if you wished and were motivated enough, you could in fact control the entire economy!

Later on in the game, as you increase in rank and are considered important enough to be granted an audience with the viceroys, then you can get even more missions which, if completed successfully, can see you being rewarded with land gifts from the viceroys. Complete enough missions and you'll gradually piece together enough land to rival the more established towns and ports.

Is the construction process a simple or complex one?  Can it be done just by pointing and clicking as in Sim City? 

AW: Extremely simple. Firstly you need building permission from the Master Builder. Then, simply click on the Master Builder's special building. Click on the type of construction you want. Then click of the building you want. If you have enough resources (e.g. gold, bricks, wood...) then you can simply place the building on the map in the game screen and it will start building.

How does the cartel setup work? 

AW: In simple terms, you can buy up all the computer AI opponents' buildings of a certain type. Thus, you create a cartel. Your competitors will only build further production buildings for this particular good if they think they can make any money from it. And, if they do, you can buy it from them. However, your opponents aren't daft, and the more powerful you get, and the closer you come to establishing a cartel, the more you will be asked to pay for other buildings.

“Two ships in the middle of the ocean, firing back and forth?

I’ve got a sinking suspicion about this.”

Could you explain the open-ended aspect of the game? 

AW: This mode allows you to start with nothing and build up. It's akin to a campaign mode, where you make the choices and decide the direction you want to take. The game will go on for as long as you want to play. You can save at any point in time and come back to Port Royale 2 later, without missing out on anything.

No pirate – or privateer – would be complete without ships...  Tell us about the ships and why some of them are specific to certain nations and pirates. 

AW: A lot of the texts that focus on the 17th century Caribbean showed certain ships to be more associated with the different nations. The Spanish Treasure Fleet is one such example.

There are ships of different speeds, draft, cargo space, crew capacity, etc, etc. We felt it was important to represent the ships of that time, and also their heritage as accurately as possible.

With Port Royale 2, we've created a realistic world that is perpetually alive, and is populated with active characters, nations and items.

There might also a secret hidden in Port Royale 2... 

Great!  I look forward to finding out what it is.

Thank you for your time.