As the story of the movies segues into Pirates of the Caribbean Online, you’ll be faced with taking responsibility for the choices you make in the game, notes Mike Goslin, vice-president of Disney’s VR Studio. “We establish a storyline where the player is a rogue pursuing fame and freedom, just as Captain Jack Sparrow does in the films,” he explains.

A Buccaneer Here Be! A bit o’ swordplay with a Navy cadet.

In fact, Jack is the first character you meet in the game, after you sift through nearly limitless combinations to create a unique buccaneer. You find yourself in a jail in Bilgewater, but Jack frees you and offers a clue: Find Doggerel Dan and ask him for help. Unfortunately, the town is under attack by Jolly Roger, a new villain whose forces provide one nemesis in the game — Lord Cutler Beckett’s Royal Navy comprises the other group.

“I’ve been having a blast crewing up on ships and causing havoc on the high seas.”

- Mike Goslin, vice-president, Disney’s VR Studio

Doggerel Dan gives you the sea chest where you keep your quest journal, weapons, items you collect, and important information about your character. He also tells you to find Captain Bo Beck, who can take you by boat to Port Royal — the mission is interrupted by Jolly Roger. After disposing of Beck and his ship, Roger lets you go, but not without a warning: “Just make sure Jack Sparrow knows I’m looking for him.” Luckily, your character knows how to swim.

Aye, He’s a Spark Plug. Choose from a wide variety of physical attributes

Getting Your Sea Legs

The other major characters from the movies soon make appearances: Will Turner gives you a sword and teaches you to use it; Tia Dalma proclaims: “There is a touch of destiny in you,” before presenting you with a compass; Elizabeth Swann puts her father’s seal on the Black Pearl’s release orders, putting you one step closer to helping Jack get it back from Beckett’s navy; and Captain Hector Barbossa shows you how to use a pistol.

Barbossa also gives you a coin from that infamous cursed pirate treasure. It not only turns you into a skeleton, but it allows you to fight another pirate who has done the same — as long as both of you stay true to the Pirate Code, of course. You can also challenge other pirates to games of blackjack and poker, winning gold coins that let you buy all sorts of important items, including more powerful weapons, tonics that regenerate lost health points, and better ships.

Audrey 3? A pirate uses his voodoo doll against a monster.

You receive your first ship, a basic sloop, early in the game. It allows you to travel between islands, which comes in handy when you must locate Jack at Tortuga. He’s happy to receive help freeing the Black Pearl, but he directs you to speak with his first mate, Joshamee Gibbs, who tells you to sink a navy ship and defeat four navy soldiers to prove your worthiness.

“Videogames are always about mysteries and secrets uncovered, and that’s amazingly enhanced when you know others are on the same path.”

- Terry Rossio, co-screenwriter, Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy

Each time you complete a quest given to you by Gibbs, Jack, or any of the many NPCs (non-player characters) in the game, you receive notoriety points. Earn enough of them and you advance to the next level, gaining more fortitude to ward off enemy attacks. You also earn notoriety in sailing and specific weapons, allowing you to specialize in certain skills, which comes in handy when you want to join a pirate crew. And if your interests bend toward the supernatural, don’t forget to build notoriety by using your character’s voodoo staff and voodoo doll to defeat enemies and assist friends.

Mysteries and Secrets Uncovered

There are two types of quests in the game: Story Quests, which advance the narrative and must be completed, and Opportunity Quests, which you receive from townsfolk, shopkeepers, island governors, or even members of the Royal Navy. Opportunity Quests are optional, but they give you greater insight into the game world, and you still earn notoriety points from them. Any time you need help with a quest, you can enlist friends to join your crew, increasing the odds in your favor.

Landlocked. Players explore a derelict ship.

“I’ve been having a blast crewing up on ships and causing havoc on the high seas,” remarks Goslin. “It’s fun whether I’m captaining my own ship or sailing with someone else. I think the multiplayer ships are one of the biggest differentiators in the game; they’re a lot of fun.”

His team drew heavily on the movies, but the game isn’t set during a specific point in those stories’ timeline. Goslin explains: “We’ve tried hard to weave new characters and stories into the existing mythology from the movies, so we inevitably expand the stories of the movie characters as we develop their new relationships and situations. We also need to extend almost every aspect of the mythology because our world needs to support hundreds of hours of gameplay, as compared with a few hours covered in the typical movie.”

Devil’s Anvil, Dead Ahead! That ray of light leads you toward completing the current action-packed quest.

While the screenwriters didn’t participate in the game’s development, they did get a chance to see its progress, and Rossio notes: “There is a point playing the game where you get it — those other people running around with you are real people, in the midst of their own adventures. If someone heads off on some mission you want to see what they’re up to, spy on them, or compete with them, or learn what they know. Videogames are always about mysteries and secrets uncovered, and that’s amazingly enhanced when you know others are on the same path.”

If you liked this game, check out:

• Disney’s Toontown Online
• Playhouse Disney Preschool Time Online
• Tropico 2: Pirate Cove
• World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade
• Yohoho! Puzzle Pirates