Developer: Crim
Publisher: Crim
Genre: Action
Nintendo Switch
I will be the millionth person to reference Sid Meier’s Pirates in my review of Sagres, but I don’t mind not being original here. Like many, the game was a key part of my early gaming days, and no game has emulated that experience since it came out in 2004. Sagres has a lot going for it, and it reaches some of the highs of the game that inspired it, but it still falls short in many ways.
Like Pirates, players explore the seas, dock at ports, and trade. They can hire crews and upgrade their ships to improve their chances of surviving the brutal ocean.
One of Sagres‘ strongest points is its large world. Sagres allows for both maritime and land exploration. Being able to explore both gives a nice sense of adventure that’s missing in most sea-faring games like this. You can sail the oceans, then mount a donkey or camel to venture inland, discovering new cities, towns, and hidden treasures.
While Sagres pays homage to Uncharted Waters and Pirates, it is a more casual experience. It has plenty of exploration and decisions to be made, yet it is accessible to newcomers. Experts in the genre may find the game lacking in some ways though.
The exploration mechanics, while initially engaging, quickly become too easy. The various systems are fairly easy to exploit when players know what they are doing, especially trading. There is a lot of luck in place and the trade system doesn’t have much depth. Even with the luck-based mechanism though, it’s still fairly easy to predict, and guessing wrong isn’t usually devastating.
Combat is the weakest mechanic in Sagres. The rock-paper-scissors-style battles rely heavily on luck, with little opportunity for strategy or skill development. When I say rock-paper-scissors, I’m not comparing to something like Fire Emblem‘s weapon triangle. It’s literally rock-paper-scissors. This randomness makes encounters feel like a chore.
Visually, Sagres has a pixel art style, but there isn’t much charm to the art. Character artworks and discovery images just aren’t too cool or cute, and the colors aren’t vibrant. The world map is full of things to discover but is visually uninspiring. The music in Sagres is well-composed and has a few earworms. The sound effects are nothing to write home about but aren’t offensive.
