Uncharted Waters: Difference between revisions

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''[[~~Uncharted Waters (Video Game)|~~Uncharted Waters]]'' ([[Market-Based Title|originally known]] as ''Age of the Great Voyages'') is a series of Japanese [[Pirate|privateer]]/[[An Entrepreneur Is You|trader]] video games set in [[The Cavalier Years]]. [[The Original Series|The first game]] was developed by Koei in 1991 (for [[MSX]] and [[NES]], and later for [[Sega Genesis]], [[Super NES]], and the PC). The second installment, ''Uncharted Waters II: New Horizons'', followed in 1994 on NEC [[PC 98]], SNES, and Genesis, later ported to PC, [[Sega Saturn]], and [[Play Station]]. Unfortunately, the second game was the last to be officially translated into English. Two more sequels, a [[Gaiden Game]], and a [[MMORPG]] based in the setting never made it out of Japan. However, as of October of 2010, the [[MMORPG]] is in an open beta for the English speaking world.

''[[Uncharted Waters]]'' ([[Market-Based Title|originally known]] as ''Age of the Great Voyages'') is a series of Japanese [[Pirate|privateer]]/[[An Entrepreneur Is You|trader]] video games set in [[The Cavalier Years]]. [[The Original Series|The first game]] was developed by Koei in 1991 (for [[MSX]] and [[NES]], and later for [[Sega Genesis]], [[Super NES]], and the PC). The second installment, ''Uncharted Waters II: New Horizons'', followed in 1994 on NEC [[PC 98]], SNES, and Genesis, later ported to PC, [[Sega Saturn]], and [[Play Station]]. Unfortunately, the second game was the last to be officially translated into English. Two more sequels, a [[Gaiden Game]], and a [[MMORPG]] based in the setting never made it out of Japan. However, as of October of 2010, the [[MMORPG]] is in an open beta for the English speaking world.

Gameplay-wise, the series is a [[Wide Open Sandbox]] with [[RPG Elements]] in it. You play as an owner of a small fleet (up to 5 ships in the first game, up to 10 in the second) and are free to engage in any kind of activity on the high seas: trade, gambling, [[Design It Yourself Equipment|ship pimping]], [[Pirate Booty|piracy]], [[Treasure Map|treasure hunting]], exploration, even global politics, once you have the money (and firepower) to. What set the first game apart from its Western competitor ''[[Sid Meiers Pirates]]'' was the sheer size of the game world: instead of being confined to the Carribbean, you have the ''entire world'' to explore. The exploration gameplay was further enhanced in the second game, where you could sell the maps of your voyages, find natural and cultural wonders around the world, and look for even more treasures. The underlying gameplay mechanic involves ship management (crew, supplies, captains, repairs), character evolution (both the PC and the captains you hire), port development (trade balance, investments), and [[Alliance Meter|maneuvering between the major factions]] (Portugal, Spain, Turkey, [[My Friends and Zoidberg|and pirates]] in the first game; England, Holland, and Italy join the club in the second). It's pretty complex but not excessively so.

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* [[Alliance Meter]]: The relationships between the major naval powers are tracked on separate meters. If your relationship with a country is good, you will be given free entry into their ports and their fleets will offer you helpful advice when met out at sea. Hostile relationships will result in you being denied entry and attacked on sight by enemy war fleets. And if it gets ''really'' bad, they will come after you in force.

* [[Badass Spaniard]]: Catalina, full stop. Also, pretty much every Spanish battle fleet has a tough asskicker for a captain, and even Spanish merchants can sometimes hand your ass back to you.

* [[Boarding Party]]: The two basic means to attack another ship in a sea battle is either shooting them from afar with your cannons or "rushing" them, that is, going into hand to hand combat. Also, in the second game, "rushing" the enemy flagship gives you an option to challenge their captain to [[Combat By Champion|a sword duel]].

* [[Boarding Party]]: The two basic means to attack another ship in a sea battle is either shooting them from afar with your cannons or "rushing" them, that is, going into hand to hand combat. Also, in the second game, "rushing" the enemy flagship gives you an option to challenge their captain to [[Combat by Champion|a sword duel]].

* [[But Thou Must!]]: Regardless of how you play in the first game, at some point, you will be asked to buy "14 lots of Coral", which can only be accomplished by traveling to the New World. Also, to achieve the highest nobility ranks, the King of Portugal will inevitably ask you to defeat powerful pirates or opposing factions' captains, even if you were going a pure merchant route before. {{spoiler|Finally, the last mission is always a battle against a pirate fleet for the princess.}}

* [[The Captain]]: You.

* [[Cartography Sidequest]]: ''Main'' quest for Ernst, but played straight for other characters in the second game, especially those of the explorer background.

* [[The Cavalier Years]]: The games are set in the beginning of the 16th century.

* [[Combat By Champion]]: The duels between two fleets' captains in the second game can decide the outcome of a naval battle in a single round without having to damage your ships much. In fact, this can become quite a [[Game Breaker]], e.g. when playing Pietro (whose swordplay skill is pretty high for some reason), you eventually gain enough money to afford the best armor and swords in the game. Which, in conjunction with the fact that explorers generally have very fast and maneuverable ships, unexpectedly makes him the deadliest man in the high seas.

* [[Combat by Champion]]: The duels between two fleets' captains in the second game can decide the outcome of a naval battle in a single round without having to damage your ships much. In fact, this can become quite a [[Game Breaker]], e.g. when playing Pietro (whose swordplay skill is pretty high for some reason), you eventually gain enough money to afford the best armor and swords in the game. Which, in conjunction with the fact that explorers generally have very fast and maneuverable ships, unexpectedly makes him the deadliest man in the high seas.

* [[The Computer Is a Cheating Bastard]]: Good luck waiting for the pursuing AI fleets to run out of supplies and go home.

* [[Cool Boat]]: Quite a few, especially in the second game, but very few compare to the Heavy Galleons from the first one. Those are so awesome, no port in the world builds them in the beginning of the game and you first need to invest ''LOTS'' of money to even get a shot at building one of those brutes.

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* [[Gaiden Game]]: ''Daikoukai Jidai Gaiden''.

* [[Historical Domain Character]]: Quite a few, especially in the second game.

* [[Hot Chick ~~With~~ a Sword]]: Catalina. Damn hot and a swordplay stat of 92 (our of 100 maximum) ''at the beginning of the game''.

* [[Hot Chick with a Sword]]: Catalina. Damn hot and a swordplay stat of 92 (our of 100 maximum) ''at the beginning of the game''.

* [[Hot Mom]]: Joao's mom is quite a looker.

* [[Informed Ability]]: Joao playing a lute.

* [[Intrepid Merchant]]: Ali.

* [[Market-Based Title]]: The original Japanese title of the game series was ''Dai-kōkai jidai'' (''Age of the Great Voyages'') but "Uncharted Waters" does sound better in English.

* [[Number Two]]: The first game had Rocco Alemkel, a bearded [[Boisterous Bruiser]] who couldn't navigate his own ship but always followed Leon (as opposed to hired navigators who could [[So Long and Thanks For All ~~The~~ Gear|desert you with their ships]] if their loyalty wavered). In the second game, you had number two (First Mate), number three (Book Keeper), and number four (Chief Navigator) in your [[Player Party]].

* [[Number Two]]: The first game had Rocco Alemkel, a bearded [[Boisterous Bruiser]] who couldn't navigate his own ship but always followed Leon (as opposed to hired navigators who could [[So Long and Thanks For All the Gear|desert you with their ships]] if their loyalty wavered). In the second game, you had number two (First Mate), number three (Book Keeper), and number four (Chief Navigator) in your [[Player Party]].

* [[The Original Series]]: The first game was titled simply ''Uncharted Waters''.

* [[Pirate]]: Where do we start?

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* [[RPG Elements]]: Actually, the games have enough customization to be considered full RPG: you and your mates have stats, levels, and skills; your ships come in different types, configurations, and upgrades; there are items that greatly affect the gameplay, etc.

* [[The Smurfette Principle]]: Catalina is the only female captain in the entire second game (and there were no female captains in the first one at all), but this is [[Justified]] by [[Wooden Ships and Iron Men|the setting]]. The female presence in the games is mostly limited to various waitresses (each with her unique appearance), but there are a handful of plot-relevant women, as well, e.g. the Princess in the first game, Ali's sister, and Ernst's {{spoiler|Chinese girlfriend}} in the second.

* [[So Long and Thanks For All ~~The~~ Gear]]: If you hit a particularly hard luck, you will notice that your navigator's loyalty is dropping, and when it falls all the way down to 30-40%, one of them (if not more) will certainly desert you, taking his ship (as well as whatever cargo and crew it was carrying) with him, never to be seen again.

* [[So Long and Thanks For All the Gear]]: If you hit a particularly hard luck, you will notice that your navigator's loyalty is dropping, and when it falls all the way down to 30-40%, one of them (if not more) will certainly desert you, taking his ship (as well as whatever cargo and crew it was carrying) with him, never to be seen again.

* [[Time Skip]]: Between the first two games.

* [[Three Quarters View]]: The navigation inside port towns in the second game. In the first one, you just clicked wherever you wanted to go to.

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* [[Wizard Needs Food Badly]]: ''Always'' check your supplies before leaving ports.

* [[Wooden Ships and Iron Men]]: And how.

* [[You Lose At Zero Trust]]: If your navigator's Loyalty drops to 40% or lower, you are running a high risk of them pulling a [[So Long and Thanks For All ~~The~~ Gear]] on you.

* [[You Lose At Zero Trust]]: If your navigator's Loyalty drops to 40% or lower, you are running a high risk of them pulling a [[So Long and Thanks For All the Gear]] on you.