Salty Crews: Pirate Brawl

Sail with a friend, loot the islands, and sink every other crew before the clock runs out.

Crews of two put out to sea together, one at the wheel and one on the cannons, against two other crews on the same map. Matches last six, ten or fifteen minutes, and every minute each crew’s position is pinged to everyone else, so nobody stays hidden for long.

Every match starts from scratch. You land on islands to chop wood, crack open treasure chests and fish off the piers, then spend what you find on sails, guns and hull plating at the shipyard. Gear comes in five rarities, from Common to Legendary, and at the casino you can stake it on a roll of the dice. At the workbench you can push it further, if you dare: an enhancement can make it stronger, or burn it to ash.

On land, only the gun in your hands does damage. Pistols, muskets and blunderbusses turn up in chests with their own ammo, and on the volcano’s crater rim waits a single scoped Volcano Rifle, one per match, for whoever climbs up first. Faint and you drop part of your gold and maybe a piece of your gear. Sink and your purse spills into the sea.

Play for the most plunder, hold the island flags, deal the most damage, or go straight for the brawl: first crew to sink three ships wins. Or bring four crews of galleons for the big 4v4 battles.