Key information
Rare Ltd. released a new developer vlog discussing upcoming plans for the multiplayer pirating sandbox Sea of Thieves. The video began with a brief acknowledgment of recent changes at the studio following Microsoft placing Rare under Activision’s control, with the team thanking fans for their well-wishes.
The developers provided updates on several gameplay experiments. A test matching crews into servers with only the same vessel size has had its forward development pushed back, though useful feedback was gathered. Additionally, testing larger ships in the Last Ship Standing mode encountered performance problems with six galleons and full crews. Instead of scaling back the ship count in the free-for-all mode, developers plan to test brigantines, though this test experienced significant delays due to issues with the PlayStation 5 test build.
Recent efforts to shrink the game's file size have seen success, aiming to reduce PC and Xbox installs by at least half for 4K users and by 30% for standard PC, Xbox, and PlayStation 5 players. Other updates covered ongoing efforts to stop file mods used for cheating, the addition of sea shanties to the Pirate Emporium, and upcoming Emporium bundles that will adjust prices if players already own items within them.
