High Seize

There’s nothing like a boys-own swashbuckling adventure to fill an empty half hour and, as Johnny Depp showed when he played Captain Jack Sparrow, pirates are the in-vogue rascals of the moment. With a sequel to Pirates of the Caribbean in the works, too, it’s a trend that’s got legs, though thankfully not wooden peg ones. This fascination for all things Pugwash has spread to developers RedLynx, the people behind the phenomenal Pathway to Glory, and they’ve decided to turn their hands to hi-jinx on the high seas.

Set in the 17th century when the nations of Europe were finding their seafaring legs, you play a former navy sailor whose father has been kidnapped by an evil pirate captain. Being the caring sort, you drum up a crew, save up for a ship and set out across the seven seas to rescue him. Along the way you’ll find treasure maps and search for the booty, romance governor’s daughters, swordfight with pirates and engage in massive ship-to-ship battles as you exchange broadsides with competing ships. The game as a whole was loosely inspired by Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic novel Treasure Island and much of the imagery that the book contained has since become stereotypical of pirates in general – you’ll certainly see many familiar sights when playing, such as the skull and crossbones flag on pirate ships, Caribbean coastal villages with rowdy waterfront taverns and profiteering merchants who sell the supplies you need but at inflated prices.

Balancing these same strategy and adventure elements that made Pathway to Glory such a success, High Seize should further cement RedLynx as the premier developer for Nokia’s N-Gage. “High Seize has a great story at its heart and we know players will enjoy following the twists and turns of this strategy-based game”, mentions Toni Virhia, a producer on the game. “Our experience in developing Pathway to Glory was very positive, so we are excited to work with Nokia again” adds Esa Hotti, the director of RedLynx.

If all this sounds like quite a time-consuming pursuit, fear not as there are several play modes on offer. “High Seize offers outstanding game play options whether you want a quick single player challenge or a lengthy strategic battle against global adversaries. Players can use the N-Gage Arena to meet match-made opponents and rank high scores, or get four friends together and you can battle it out close range over Bluetooth technology”, details a spokesman for Nokia.

It’s for all these reasons that High Seize is one of the most eagerly awaited games among the Pocket Gamer crew. Not only is the seafaring plot a relatively unique one, the pedigree of RedLynx means that we’re getting as excited as a pirate who’s just about to get his grog ration. You can rest assured that we’ll be bringing you an in-depth review as soon as we can.