Looking for a little adventure on the high seas? Want to buckle some swashes … er, do a little swashbuckling with the likes of skeletons, headhunters, and one-legged pirates?

Then Westwood Studios (a division of Electronic Arts) has the game for you. Pirates: The Legend of Black Kat (in this case, for the Xbox) is a role-playing game which substitutes islands for dungeons, but still manages to load up on a variety of boss monsters – some easy, some difficult – as well as pack in a little ship versus ship battle on the oceans surrounding the land masses.

As far as the graphics are concerned – wow! The oceans are lovingly rendered, with crystal waters around the islands so clear you can see sunken vessels, an assortment of fish and the hull of your ship. The sound is exceptional and the storyline manages to tie the whole program nicely together.

Katarina de Leon is the daughter of Governor Marcus de Leon. Unbeknownst to her, until revealed upon her father’s death at the hands of a bloodthirsty and somewhat cowardly scoundrel named Captain Hawke (yes, a scourge upon the seas), her mother was a pirate queen. Katarina, also known as Kat, has been indulging in the pirate trade as well. But now she is on a mission – discover her mother’s hidden fortune, and complete some quests along the way. She will have to discover the chartstones which will point the way, but only after exploring the islands, fighting a variety of beasts, avoiding numerous traps, freeing port towns from Hawke’s control (and putting her own flag in its place), upgrading her ship and herself, and digging up an incredible amount of buried treasure.

As to the latter, you can say that she has a nose for it. There are some chests that are in plain sight, but you will need a special key to open. As for other treasure chests – if they are buried, and Kat gets close to them, she will let you know, and the controller will vibrate harder the closer you get to the spot you need to dig.

Some of the adventures are linked. For example, you will run across a flying voodoo chief that curses Kat so she can’t raise her sword against him. Not really a big problem the first time, since all he seems to want to do is mock her. Leaving in frustration, Kat heads back to her ship, where a crew member, it sounds like Old Salty, tells her that an old voodoo man living somewhere in the islands may hold the key to defeating the voodoo boss. So Kat (albeit the gameplayer) does a little island hopping, and uses a variety of teleporters located among the islands to finally meet the old headhunter. She must return to him an ancient headhunter mask (didn’t she collect a whole bunch of these earlier?) and in return, he will give her a voodoo doll so the curses won’t work. Sure, the boss monster throws tons of skeletons at her, but he is rather susceptible to sword strikes – unlike a giant blue crab that could be mentioned.

As for the ship: Kat starts in a four-cannon small ship, but can upgrade to a 12-cannon monster that can take some damage, but deal out even more. And there are power-ups for the ship as well. You will find a Ram’s head, which improves the ship’s (what else?) ramming power, or a Neptune figure, which will add lightning to the special cannon attacks. Kat will also get a variety of power-ups – including tiki heads, which invoke a variety of elemental damage; vampire masks, which will return some of the defeated’s life force to her; improved swords; a crystal heart, which increases her hit points; and a wide range of charms and spells, which will come in handy as she battles her way across the 26 islands in the game.

The control elements are well designed, and similar for both ship control and controlling Kat as she travels and battles through the islands.

The sound of the game is excellent, from the great musical score, to the special effects and voice acting. Some of the dialogue is justifiably campy. Get used to the ringing sound of steel on steel, because you will hear it a lot, as well as the boom from the cannon shots and the explosions of ships hit in the magazine hold (all of them seem to get hit there – no lazy scuttling, or ship drowning here).

The graphical portion of the game does have some minor clipping problems, and the ship tends to handle unlike any sea-going vessel ever seen – turning on a dime, et cetera. But when it comes to the look of the ship, there is absolute joy in watching the finely detailed vessel sail toward a setting sun, or outlined against a huge moon. The animation is terrific, from Kat’s whirling dervish swordplay to the cannon ball seemingly whizzing past your ear as you bounce the camera around to get a better look at the sea battle.

There have been a few ‘pirate’-themed games that have featured on-land swordplay, and a few that have concentrated on ocean adventures. Few have managed to combine the two into such an enjoyable ride. Pirates: The Legend of Black Kat overcomes some minor flaws to deliver addictive adventure and solid entertainment.

This program is rated Teen for suggestive themes and violence.

Gameplay: 8
There are some load times, but Westwood has circumnavigated long ocean rides with a point and click map that delivers your ship to the island you wish to visit. The island adventures are flawless – unless Kat stumbles upon a teleporter that delivers her to another location. The sea battles are a combination of actual adventure and cutscenes in which players are treated to up close explosions.

Graphics: 9
This game is graphically amazing. The ocean adventures are absolutely stunning. This is three-dimensional rendering at its finest. There are moments when you are navigating the Wind Dancer (Kat’s ship) that you will swear you are actually watching a real ship on a real ocean. The island adventures are a little more sedate, but still wonderful for the variety of environments and the exceptional animation.

Sound: 9
The groaning of the ship as it lists on the currents can get a little old, but the overall audio impression is excellent – from the musical score to the vocal acting and battle sounds.

Difficulty: 7.5
Legend of Black Kat features several difficulty levels, and a tutorial screen that you can keep open to offer hints and tips as you travel around the islands. The game controls have a learning curve of, perhaps, 15-20 minutes. This is a game that will challenge rookies and veterans alike. The rotating camera will also take some time to get used to.

Concept: 8
From the high seas to island battles, this is a well-designed program. It features a variety of mental puzzles (mostly in trying to figure out boss monsters’ weaknesses), and challenge.

Multiplayer: 6.5
This is a disappointing aspect of the game. Pirates’ multiplayer is a sea battle between two ships.

Overall: 8
This game looks terrific, sounds terrific and plays well. There is action; there is adventure; there is entertainment. Pirates: The Legend of Black Kat has some small quirks, but manages to overcome those and provides a great gameplaying time.