Screenshots & trailers
Review sentiment over time
Weekly positive-review rate (green) and review volume (bars). Dashed lines mark significant patches; the amber line is the start of the current scoring window. Hover the dots to see what drove a dip or a jump.
How this score was computed
The VGC Score is a weighted blend on a press-comparable 0-100 quality scale. Steam approval rates are first calibrated (95% positive on Steam ≈ 89.5 quality, since Steam approval skews high). Press and tracked creator reviews each count ~2x a player review and share one cap against player evidence (creator buy/skip calls pool into an approval rate, calibrated like Steam approval); all-time sentiment is capped and halved (it's context, not verdict); reviews of the current build carry the most weight when a fresh patch anchors the window; and a 'typical game' prior keeps small samples from pegging the scale. Because press reviews and Metacritic user aggregates describe the launch build, their weight decays as the game ages (3-year half-life after a 1-year grace). That's how a game that launched rough can outgrow its old reception once updates win players over. Reviews under 2h playtime (the refund window), non-Steam activations, and free copies are downweighted.
| Component | Positive | Quality (0-100) | Weight (pseudo-reviews) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Press reviews (OpenCritic) | – | 64 | 36 |
| All-time Steam reviews | 59% | 59 | 389 |
| Metacritic user ratings | – | – | 0 |
| Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted) | 100% | 97 | 1 |
| Calibration prior (typical game) | – | 72 | 50 |
Scoring window: last 30 days (no significant patch detected) · 2 reviews sampled · 3 total reviews in window · weighted 1.3 up / 0 down · computed 3h ago · full methodology →
Press & Creators reviews (48)
Individual verdicts from outlets we track: scored reviews first, most trusted outlets first among them. The small badge is each outlet's trust score: how well its scoring history aligns with players.
- 40
“Superficial and dull, King of Seas is more like a "get through the boredom" challenge than fine adventure game.”
read full review ↗ - 50
“King of Seas gets off to a pretty decent start with a promising story and combat mechanics that are initially fun to engage with. However, the repetition isn't long creeping in. This is a game that's seriously lacking in any sort of depth, jettisoning much of its early promise in favour of a bog-standard narrative, hugely repetitive side quests, overly punitive combat that thinks nothing of wasting your time and a constant, mind-numbing grind that very quickly becomes a tedious waste of effort. If you're absolutely desperate for a high seas adventure, there's still a measure fun to be had with the combat in brief stints here but, beyond that, this one really is more of a Sir Francis Drag than a Sir Francis Drake.”
read full review ↗ - 40
“King of Seas is akin to a reputably strong pirate now maligned with scurvy. You can easily see how this pirate game could be a great success, but so many deleterious design issues turn it into something cursed.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Whenever you embark on a journey while raising your Jolly Roger on the high seas, pretty well everyone out there is going to evaluate the experience against the genre-defining Sid Meier’s Pirates...”
read full review ↗ - 70
“Think of King of Seas as yet another spiritual successor to Sid Meier's Pirates! It has all the tools needed to keep you entertained for many hours. Unfortunately, it's also lacking in certain departments, leading to a more streamlined approach that can't compare to the classic.”
read full review ↗ - 60
“The RPG elements mean you'll nearly always be making some forward momentum. Finding treasure, sinking ships, and completing missions rewards you with XP, and you can upgrade and customise various parts of your boat to ensure your vessel is ship-shape. What's more, each town has its own side missions to tackle, and a market where you can trade goods in a shifting economy. These parts of the game are its strengths, but working through somewhat confusing menus and engaging in predictable battles take the wind out of its sails.”
read full review ↗ - 50
“In short, King of Seas is a very promising effort, but it is betrayed by the choices of its creators, mainly in the field of history, but also its mechanisms.”
read full review ↗ - 73
“King of Seas more than earns its keep given its price-point (it comes in at a very respectable $25 USD on the Xbox/Microsoft store) as it is an enjoyable, casual gaming experience with combat that is easy to grasp, isn’t tedious, and has numerous diversions, from trading to resource gathering and exploration. Even with the minimal issues that I personally had with some of the design choices, King of Seas is still a wonderful and worthy title in the ever-growing pantheon of indie games that are sweeping the market in lieu of standout AAA-titles.”
read full review ↗ - 65
“In theory, a pleasant and relaxing game. However, king of seas' subsequent story events are blocked behind higher levels of experience and gold. So you have to take the time to get them. In addition, there are repetitive side quests, little music and not fully thought out gameplay.”
read full review ↗ - 67
“Overall, King of Seas is a serviceable action-RPG with a pirates theme that is intended for a more casual audience. Its mechanics are solid, and the title is entertaining enough for short bursts of gameplay, but its grindy and repetitive nature quickly takes the wind out of its sails. Some of my complaints are certainly fixable in future updates, at which point I imagine the game to be a solid option for those who yearn for a decent but simplistic pirate life simulator. For now, I'd steer clear until some changes are implemented, or you can wait for a substantial sale.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“King of Seas is a delightfully chill and humorous title that’s best experienced on a Sunday afternoon as you wish you were a swashbuckling pirate taking down warships with enormous cannons. Whilst the combat can be fiddly and the procedural nature may play with your sense of direction somewhat, there’s plenty to enjoy in this light-hearted sea tale.”
read full review ↗ - 60
“Small pirate adventure for modest sailors. Possible for casual and young players.”
read full review ↗
3DNews
Nintendo Life
VGChartz
Nindie Spotlight
PC Invasion
Push Square
Enternity.gr
Chalgyr's Game Room
PPE.pl
Worth Playing
FingerGuns
SECTOR.sk…and 36 more tracked reviews.
Patch history
- King of Seas Monsters Update now playable!Nov 18, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- Mouse support coming soon with new content update!Nov 11, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- King of Seas Update - Ready, Aim, Fire!Jul 29, 2021significant · resets scoring window
- King of Seas PC Tech Update is now live!Jun 23, 2021significant · resets scoring window