[MrSeagull]

After playing this game for roughly a week, maxing out everything a free account can do, I’ve decided that I will not pay for the unlimited access. There are a number of reasons why, but I believe it better to address the changes I believe could make this game successful. I will reference ideas from other MMO’s as examples.

First priority: The graphics engine. The engine in this game is horrible. The graphics in the game are mediocre at best, but the performance is terrible. Take a machine that can run games like Supreme Commander at full settings flawlessly and Pirates Online requires its settings lowered to be playable. Either the engine needs to be seriously tweaked, or rebuilt completely.

Second: Content. I know that running an MMO is a costly endeavor. I know some form of income must be present to keep the game alive. From straight monthly fees (World of Warcraft), no fees with purchasable content (MapleStory), or only requiring user to buy the game/expansions (GuildWars), there are a multitude of options for making money. However way they do it, they need to make the game sellable. They need to give reasons for users to pay for it. However, at the same time, they need to be able to recruit players with enough content to draw them into the game. There is where I feel Pirates lacks. The severe limits imposed upon free players do not provide enough encouragement to upgrade the account. It took me less then a week to max out a free character, and afterwards I didn’t want to play anymore. I thought about taking advantage of the 50% off deal for the first month, but after reading that the character would basically revert back to the way it is now once that month expired, I decided against it. It’s my suggestion that they use a model similar to other games, like Runescape for instance. Basically, make half the game accessible to free players. As an example, remove the level and rank limits on skills, but keep some of the skills locked – Like Doll magic is mostly unlocked, and Voodoo Staff magic mostly locked (unlock just enough to get a taste of it, enough for players to desire more). Unlock most, if not all, of the current ships and create additional “Exotic” ships that, say, have additional crew space, allow below-deck cannoneers, more cargo space, etc. Remove the notoriety limit, but keep the free-play penalties. Create areas that free players can fight, and areas limited to only paying members to fight. These areas can have unique mobs with extra, more luxurious, drops. Unlock enough weapons for a player to use up to the higher levels, but leave a good amount, including the best stuff, for paying members only. For vanity items, like Tattoos and piercings, you can leave most of these things locked, but make a small bit unlocked.

Third: Cost. I feel that there is a direct relationship to the monthly cost and the un-lockable content. The more you pay for the game, the more you should expect to get. With the way the game is now, taking into account all the items mention above, I would not pay $10 a month. $5 a month, however, I’d be willing to pay for what they have now. If the game was more like the suggestions I posted above, I would be fine with $10, mainly because I will still have a reason to play if I decided to let the account expire for a short while.

Fourth: Bugs. There are a lot of glitches and bugs in this game. I won’t go into detail here, I just feel they need to be addressed.

I feel this game has a lot of potential, and it can provide a unique style of game compared to the others out there. It just needs a lot of work.

Please, feel free to suggest additions or changes to this list; I’d like to hear what other players think.

A thought that came up while I waited for approval on this...

Can anyone think of a Pay-to-play MMO that does NOT have some form of professions? Or at least some type of non-combat oriented activity that benifits the character?