The Story Timeline Order of Sea Dogs Games
Sea Dogs is a franchise of immersive sandbox simulation games set in the Age of Sail, featuring sailing in an open overworld while different factions are fighting for power. The games feature quests, an RPG system, characters, different towns and the ability to pledge alliance to any faction.
What Are Sea Dogs Games Like?
The Sea Dogs games feature quite a unique gameplay style, not having many similar games. Personally, some of the games I find similar to Sea Dogs are Mount & Blade and Kenshi. The Sea Dogs games are unique in the sense that they blend a very singular combination of genres: RPG, simulation, sandbox and open world. These games are not open world in the same sense as Grand Theft Auto. Instead, they feature an overworld, like Mount & Blade and classic Final Fantasy games. This persistent, dynamic world is inhabited by factions fighting for power, merchants and pirates. In some Sea Dogs games, the world is also inhabited by captains that have the same abilities as the player, including capturing towns.
The Origins of Sea Dogs
The first Sea Dogs game was released in 2000. There weren't many immersive sandbox simulation games with RPG elements and an overworld by then, but there are some games worth mentioning that might have been an inspiration to the development of Sea Dogs. While these games were not common, they may have been quite influential during the time.
Some games that share similarities to Sea Dogs are Sid Meier's Pirates! (1987), Sword of the Samurai (1989) and Uncharted Waters (1990). In Sid Meier's Pirates! (1987), the character is able to sail the seas, fight against other sailors, earn power and prestige and visit towns. Sword of the Samurai (1989) is an action-adventure simulation RPG, featuring AI rivals, melee combat, RTS battles, conquering lands and diplomacy. Uncharted Waters (1990) features an open world which can be explored by the player while looking for economic opportunities for trade and discovering new locations.
All of these games share the characteristic of a persistent, dynamic world that exists independently of the player, and this is the reason why these games have simulation elements. They also feature RPG systems. Certainly, it is reasonable to say that some of these games may have been an inspiration to Sea Dogs (2000).
The Evolution of Sea Dogs Games Over the Years
The Sea Dogs franchise of games has improved and expanded over the years. It had humble beginnings in the first Sea Dogs game, released in 2000. Indeed, the first game featured a clunky movement of the main character in the town, while more recent games allow for a more fluid movement.
Another example of improvement is the world navigation. In the first Sea Dogs game, the world navigation was done simply using a map and pinpointing to the destionation the captain wished to travel. While this was an effective navigation method, later titles greatly improved the immersion aspect by showing real-time animations of allies, enemies and weather.
The Different Names of the Sea Dogs Franchise
The Sea Dogs franchise has a release order that may be confusing to some because these games were also called by different titles over the years and in different places. The Sea Dogs franchise has also been called Pirates of the Caribbean (in the second game of the franchise) and Age of Pirates. In Russia, the series is known as Corsairs.
Is It Important to Play the Sea Dogs Games in Order?
While the Sea Dogs games are famous for their sandbox nature of gameplay, these games usually have a main story that can be followed by the main character. In some specific cases, this main story can connect different games of the franchise.
Playing the games in the release order is also interesting for people who want to see the improvements that were made to the series over the years, with new gameplay features, better graphics and effects.
Storywise, the greatest perk of playing the Sea Dogs games in story order is having a better understanding of the backstory, which affects the main characters of some of the Sea Dogs games.
The Release Order of the Sea Dogs Games
This is the order in which the Sea Dogs games were released. Some of the games are not directly connected to other Sea Dogs games in terms of story, only set in the same universe, or in some cases, they are set in a similar universe (the Age of Sail Caribbean).
While not all of the games in the list are directly related to each other in terms of story, it is interesting to know the release order because in some cases there is a direct succession between games, even story-wise. However, this is not the story order of the Sea Dogs games.
Sea Dogs I [Sea Dogs]
Sea Dogs II [Pirates of the Caribbean] (2003 Video Game)
Sea Dogs III [Sea Dogs: Caribbean Tales]
Sea Dogs IV [Sea Dogs: City of Abandoned Ships]
Sea Dogs V [Sea Dogs: To Each His Own] [Revised Version: Sea Dogs: Legendary Edition]
In the West, Pirates of the Caribbean (2003) was marketed with that name. In Russia, Pirates of the Caribbean (2003) was marketed using the name that the Sea Dogs franchises is known for in Russia, which is Corsairs. In Russia, the game was marketed as Corsairs 2: Pirates of the Caribbean. This is the reason why, in this list, the game was ordered as the second Sea Dogs game, even if in most Western countries the game is not known with that name.
The Chronological Story Order of Sea Dogs Video Games
This is the recommended playthrough order for players who want to experience the Sea Dogs game in a story order that is coherent.
Sea Dogs
Sea Dogs: Caribbean Tales
Sea Dogs: To Each His Own (or Sea Dogs: Legendary Edition)
Sea Dogs: City of Abandoned Ships
Sea Dogs tells the story of a young captain who desires to discover the world and the seas. It is told to the player that their father did the same thing, but not much else is explained. It is up to the player to decide where to go and what to do, with an open-ended story.
The Pirates of the Caribbean 2003 video game has no relation, story-wise, to the other Sea Dogs games. Thus, it should not be considered in the Sea Dogs chronological story order. While in Russia it was marketed as a Corsairs game (the Russian name for the Sea Dogs franchise), the game is set in a different universe, not the same universe of the Sea Dogs games. Thus, in this list, the Pirates of the Caribbean 2003 game is not considered to be a part of the Sea Dogs chronological story order or universe.
Sea Dogs: Caribbean Tales tells the story of either Blaze Shark or Beatrice Shark, which are the children of the main character of Sea Dogs, the first Sea Dogs game. Thus, it can be said that Sea Dogs: Caribbean Tales continues the storyline started in Sea Dogs.
While Sea Dogs: City of Abandoned Ships is the game that was released after Sea Dogs: Caribbean Tales, the games that takes place most immediatly after Sea Dogs: Caribbean Tales is Sea Dogs: To Each of His Own, due to the year in which the game is set. Sea Dogs: To Each His Own (revised edition called Sea Dogs: Legendary Edition) is the official Sea Dogs main game after Sea Dogs: City of Abandoned Ships. The game allows the player to take the role of Charles de Maure. While Sea Dogs: To Each His Own is set in the same universe as the other Sea Dogs games, just like in Sea Dogs: City of Abandoned Ships, there is no clear evidence of story connection between Sea Dogs: To Each His Own and the other Sea Dogs games. However, chronologically in the Sea Dogs universe, Sea Dogs: To Each His Own is set some years after Sea Dogs: Caribbean Tales, and before Sea Dogs: City of Abandoned Ships.
Sea Dogs: City of Abandoned Ships allows the player to choose one of three characters (Peter Blood, Jan Stance and Diego Espinoza) during character creation. There is no clear evidence that either of these characters is directly connected to the story of either Sea Dogs or Sea Dogs: Caribbean Tales. Also, City of Abandoned Ships is set 15 years after Sea Dogs: Caribbean Tales (see list below for the year in which each game is set) and 1 year after Sea Dogs: To Each His Own.
The Story Timeline Order of Sea Dogs Games
Through the in-game date system, it is possible to know in which year each Sea Dogs game is set (the year when the game starts). This list answers the question "when is each Sea Dogs game set?".
162? Sea Dogs
1640 Sea Dogs: Caribbean Tales
1654 Sea Dogs: To Each His Own
1665 Sea Dogs: City of Abandoned Ships
In the specific case of the first Sea Dogs, it is only said in the manual that the game is set in the middle of 17th century. No clear date is given, so it is not possible to say the exact year in which Sea Dogs in set. However, since Sea Dogs: Caribbean Tales tells the story of the Sea Dogs' main character's children, it is reasonable to assume that the first Sea Dogs is set before 1640, necessarily. It is reasonable to set Sea Dogs either in the 1610s or in the 1620s.
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