Port Royale: Gold, Power and Pirates
| Port Royale: Gold, Power and Pirates | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Ascaron Entertainment |
| Publisher(s) | Tri-Synergy |
| Platform(s) | Windows |
| Release date(s) | |
| Genre(s) | Business simulation game |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, Multi-player |
Port Royale is a business simulation game set in the Caribbean and partly the Atlantic during the 16th and 17th centuries. Created by Ascaron Entertainment in 2003, it combines business–economic simulation with real-time battles and towns that can be visited for trade and other purposes. The sequel Port Royale 2 was released about a year after in September 2004.
On 2 August 2011 the publisher Kalypso Media who purchased many of the licenses and assets from Ascaron Entertainment during its insolvency, announced that they had acquired the licences of the Port Royale installment. They announced also that they were already working on the third title which is named "Port Royale 3" and it was released for the PC and consoles – without mentioning which consoles was meant. Therefore, Port Royale 3 was actually released on the second quarter of 2012. Kalypso Media also demonstrated Port Royale 3 with a playable preview upon the Gamescom trade fair which was held from 17 to 21 August 2011 at Cologne, Germany.
It is an open-ended game and the players can choose any type of career that they wish, including trading and interactions with pirates (including privateering).
There are also many other activities in the game besides trading or hunting down pirates. Players can visit governors in towns and accept missions from them as long as their reputation with the country is good enough. Missions include armed transport and tracking down lost relatives that have been kidnapped by an NPC called Axesmith (whom the player can choose, eventually, to defeat outright in battle). Treasure maps, purchased in pieces from around the game board, can also lead to newfound wealth and even the creation of a private port.
An important part of the game are the colonial nations in the Caribbean (Spain, France, England and The Netherlands) and their relationships.
There are a total of 12 different ship types available to players, of increasing cost, efficacy in battle and room for cargo. They range from the small pinnace, to a large ship of the line.