3. Naval Combat
Whilst the bountiful boarding scenes are greatly rewarding, they only come about after having a bout of oceanic warfare. Said warfare has been executed brilliantly, being that there was always going to be a danger that piloting such a slow-moving vehicle for the majority of the game would be a total pace-killer. However that is not the case, being that sea combat moves with great weight and power, and alternately setting up to ram a smaller ship or accelerating just enough to dodge an incoming one, only to deploy some explosive barrels and watch the resulting explosion, is all great fun. There have been some concessions made for videogaming in that the instant control you have in terms of turning circles and acceleration/deceleration is exaggerated, but to be honest if we were to stick to how long it actually took to ready some of these ships before departure, the game would be a docking simulator. What we do have instead is a fun set of gameplay sequences that perfectly fit into the larger need for more powerful equipment and armour, as well as allowing aesthetic luxuries to ensure you roam the seas in suitable rags-to-riches style.