At long, long last, Sea of Thieves is finally going to let players revive each other when the game's next update rolls out to sea. The wait for this seemingly innocuous feature has been perhaps a little too long out from the game's 2018 release, but the game's community is no less eager for it and other improvements packed into this month's major update.
Xbox Games Studios' Rare, of unforgettable Nintendo 64 fame, has spent the past years molding an increasingly varied pirate experience around the rather bare skeleton that was the initial launch version of Sea of Thieves. The Microsoft exclusive has had its fair share of rocky update rollouts and, like any always-online title with a content drip, has been criticized on more than one occasion for moving too slowly and prioritizing the wrong features at the wrong times. However, when a Sea of Thieves update goes well, players have a (sometimes literal) blast with the harrowing experiences and bizarre items that are unlike anything else in the AAA online multiplayer space. Most imminent on the game's roadmap is the Ships of Fortune update, which will introduce furry companions and much more to the high seas.
The most-requested and long-awaited feature of the Ships of Fortune update is far and away a crew revival mechanic, which will at long last give players the opportunity to bring downed friends back from the brink before they push off to Davy Jones' Locker. In the below developer update video, executive producer Joe Neate admits that the long-absent feature was something that Rare has wanted to include since "really early on in the Unity prototype" of Sea of Thieves, noting his eagerness to finally see the "really cool social dynamics" revives will bring to the heat of battle. The developer brought in Sea of Thieves YouTuber and streamer Hitbotc to summarize the mechanic's fine details, who explains:
"When you die, you no longer go directly to the Ferryman. Instead, you now have the opportunity to be revived by one of your cremates. However, the clock is ticking. In Adventure Mode, you will have 15 seconds to get to your crewmate before they're sent to the Ferryman, but if your crewmate does make it to you in time, they are now prompted with the option to revive you, which will take a total of 4 seconds, giving you 25 percent of your health back and getting you back into the action. In Arena Mode, you will have around 10 seconds longer to revive... You are now also going to be able to revive other crews in your alliance."
Unfortunately for solo players, revival may be little else besides a thorn in their solitary sides. However, Hitbotc reports that theirs and all in-game deaths will now be more palatable, as "time on the Ferry has been reduced by a few seconds." He also points out that revival can be a double-edged sword, as an outnumbered player can use crew revival attempts as an "opportunity for an easy kill." Other Ships of Fortune update changes include bans for excessive quitting in the Arena, a toggleable crew status option that helps players better keep up with crewmates, and the ability to find Tall Tale quests on the ship map. As for revival, Hitbotc isn't technically wrong when he says that it'll be "an absolute game-changer," but it's mildly astonishing that the multiplayer title is getting such a ubiquitous feature so far down the line.
Critics have long declared the Sea of Thieves ship to have sailed ages ago, but the game's active playerbase and constant stream of updates have continued to shape the swashbuckling multiplayer experience into something greater than its origins as a pretty sailing simulator. Rare's cheeky tenacity coupled with recent record high Xbox Live player counts is a good signal that Sea of Thieves won't be walking the plank anytime soon.
Source: Sea of Thieves
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