Live Disneyland’s Pirates of the Caribbean in “Sea of Thieves: A Pirate’s Life”

No fear of evil curses, says you? 

This is definitely a “is this really happening?” moment. Sea of Thieves, a pirate action-adventure game by developer Rare Limited, was always kind of the kindred spirit of Pirates of the Caribbean. Now, the two are crossing over with Sea of Thieves: A Pirate’s Life, and there’s a lot for fans of Sea of Thieves, the Pirates of the Caribbean films, and the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction to love. In fact, this free addition to Sea of Thieves is essentially an eight-hour playable Pirates of the Caribbean movie with more than a smattering of Disneyland’s original attraction blended in.

Boasting three years of continuous content updates and 20 million players, Sea of Thieves has been a massive success for Rare. I’ve been playing since the game was in beta, and when Rare says there has never been a better time to get into Sea of Thieves, they really mean it. Seriously, I cannot put down A Pirate’s Life, which is very bad – my pirate runs on grog, but I run on sleep. 

Let’s set the tone with a little music and dive down deep, to the depths of the Sea of Thieves: 

A Pirate’s Life

“A Pirate’s Life” isn’t just adding Captain Jack Sparrow to an already existing game, nor is it just a Pirates of the Caribbean add-on. This is a full-sized story update consisting of five “Tall Tales” to explore. I really mean eight hours. 

The tone, humor, and fantastical nature of Sea of Thieves is a perfect fit for a Pirates of the Caribbean infusion. “Authentic to the Pirates of the Caribbean, while staying true to the Sea of Thieves” is how VP of Disney & Pixar games, Luigi Priore put it. 

Disneyland fans will be delighted to know that the entire first Tall Tale is essentially an homage to the original attraction. From the moment you enter the Sea of the Damned, the nostalgia fountain is turned on. A Ghostly Parrot appears, speaking the lines of the parrot at the entrance of the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction.

Soon after, a scene full of the dead in rowboats, holding lanterns; very reminiscent of At World’s End’s departure from Davy Jones’ Locker. Finally, eerie dialogue, actually the exact audio that the skull speaks before the first drop, plays as spectral ships with no crew sail past.

Ye come seeking adventure in salty old pirates eh?

Coming ashore, more familiar lines echo across the stone of the caves.

Dead men tell no tales.

That’s because it’s literally the attraction dialogue.

Who knows when that evil curse will strike the greedy beholders of this bewitched treasure? 

The caves play out much the same as the ride, full of greedy skeletons, as you follow the ghosts of a long-dead crew who did behold the cursed treasure. You can imagine what happened to them. 

All the while, Rare has put together rather special renditions of both the Pirates of the Caribbean overture and Yo Ho, a Pirates Life for Me that plays behind the action. It fits so well that if you didn’t know the attraction tune, you’d swear it was a Rare original.

Of course, the original versions are inserted in clever places, like the tavern in Sailor’s Grave. The classic version of “Yo Ho, a Pirate’s Life for Me” plays as the ghosts of a pirate crew act like animatronics, firing their flintlocks at each other and singing drunkenly.

Sea of Thieves’ music was so good already that Rare has intertwined their own tracks with the Pirates ones with spectacular results. For example, sailing through the bayou has a delightfully spooky track that mixes a slow banjo version of “Yo Ho, a Pirate’s Life for Me” and Sea of Thieves’ own shanties like “Bosun Bill.“ An album release really is in order (you can listen to some in the video down below).

Pirates film fans will love moments like the frantic climax to the first Tall Tale. After rescuing Jack Sparrow (who is offering a familiar dog with keys in its mouth a bone) from the Ferryman’s brig, a thrilling high-speed naval battle between the Flying Dutchman and the Ferry of the Damned breaks out.

Davy Jones has his own dark plans for the glowing key that got Jack locked up in the brig. These big set pieces are new for the game, epic in scale just like Pirates of the Caribbean. Rare really brought the charm of Pirates, both the ride and the film series, to the Sea of Thieves, but have done so in a way that weaves the two IPs together.

The third Tall Tale, “Captains of the Damned” is quite faithfully delving into Captain Jack Sparrow’s past escapades; literally playing through idealized versions of the film: the meeting with Tia Dalma in the bayou, the gruesome mass hanging scene at the beginning of Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, and the Disneyland attraction’s Raid on Isla Tesoro.

The centerpiece for this tale is the raid on Isla Tesoro best known as the siege scene on the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction. Venturing through the town in this way and seeing vignettes of the attraction scenes…well, there’s just no other way to experience the Disneyland attraction quite like this. 

The whole town has been realized and the developers have gone out of their way to let you explore the show scenes.

All the major scenes are present and feel just like the ride, including the original attraction audio. What’s great is you can just stand and watch, there’s nothing pushing you along, it’s pure visual storytelling and fan service.

Of course, Jack Sparrow is there. He’s hiding where you expect, but he sneaks away when you approach. It’s sort of interesting to watch Sparrow fill in the gaps from the ride, like actually stealing the keys from his barrel hiding place. 

Getting to walk around the town and then through the fort itself adds quite a lot of perspective to the classic attraction this is based on.

Overall, I’m impressed. It’s everything I wanted in a playable version of Pirates of the Caribbean. 

As a bonus, if you’re feeling a bit nostalgic, the prison dog with the keys (Poochie) is available as a pet through the Pirate Emporium.

You can pet Pirates of the Caribbean's famous "Prison Dog" in Sea of Thieves: A Pirate's Life pic.twitter.com/Wi61vFfj6p

— Can You Pet the Dog? (@CanYouPetTheDog) June 24, 2021

Plundering

I was initially a little hesitant to recommend Sea of Thieves to the general audience here at MiceChat. You see, this can be a frustrating game initially because, well, other players are pirates. Pirates will shoot you, sink your ship, and steal your treasure because they’re pirates. If you’re new to the game, I recommend checking out the Pirate Academy to learn the mechanics. Fortunately, some (not all) of the tales do take you outside the Sea of Thieves, thus allowing you to avoid other players for a time. Make no mistake, this is a game I think is well worth the time of learning. 

Easter Eggs Pirates Treasure

To truly appreciate the references and easter eggs, I’ve put together a cinematic look at the first and third Tall Tales intercut with a few images from the attraction for comparison. I’ve tried not to spoil too much of the story for those who still want to play through it, but be aware this may spoil some of the fun surprises… but I know many of you will want to see more, so here you go: 

Set Sail

Are you ready to rescue Captain Jack Sparrow and save the pirate’s way of life in the Sea of Thieves? A Pirate’s Life is available as a free update to Sea of Thieves now, all you need is a copy of the original game: 

It’s available on Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and PC via Steam or the Microsoft Store. Sea of Thieves is also included in Xbox Game Pass (Xbox and PC), meaning you could get up and running for only $1. For that price, I highly recommend giving A Pirate’s Life a go, it’s a must-play.

Let’s Hear From You

The A Pirate’s Life add-on is not only the most fun I’ve had with Sea of Thieves since it released, but it’s also the most fun I’ve had with the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise since Curse of the Black Pearl. Let’s hear from you, have you played Sea of Thieves? Would you want to give it a try now? Let us know in the comments below.

We’re devils and black sheep, we’re really bad eggs…Drink up me ‘earties, yo ho!

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