Puzzle Pirates
Kevin installed it last night because it’s all innovative with micropayments and stuff. He played it almost all night. It’s like Bejeweled on top of an MMO, with houses and clothes and stuff and a little tiny cartoony interface. So I was in a whiny mood last night, all rambunctious and persnickety and I played a few of the little puzzle games and late last night when I was trying to convince Kevin it was time for bed, I sat down at his computer while waiting for him to get his act together. I was reading about the micropayments. That’s all.
Kevin came over and I asked him about how the micropayment system worked and he decided he had to log in to show me the money trading house, where status-buying-money (purchased for real world money) can be traded for in-game money (used for clothes and furniture and stuff) and vice versa. You earn in-game money for playing games, see. Anyhow, since he’d already logged in, I decided to try out the two ship-operation games I hadn’t played yet: carpenting and sailing. Kevin was surprisingly gracious about this, practically insisting I play the sailing game when I finished the carpenting game.
When the sailing game was done and I was complaining about how the tutorial journey had ended before I was satisfied with the game, I found out why Kevin had been so generous. He’d installed Puzzle Pirates on my laptop in the time it took me to play two puzzle games.
He should make up his mind on whether he wants me to write or play games!
kevin, 
Chrysoula, and 
Neil are discussing.
Neil 1:19 pm on January 10, 2006 Permalink
Cool! I’ve been curious about Puzzle Pirates for a long time. I think Joe introduced Stacy and I to the guy behind it, even, during one of his GDW visits to San Jose. If the two of you find it sticky, I’d love a tour at some point.
kevin 4:27 pm on January 10, 2006 Permalink
I dunno if it’s sticky, yet, but it has the lowest barriers to entry I’ve ever seen.
Well, except for the part where I can’t make it run at work.
But other than that, it’s shockingly simple to install and play and get into a group with random strangers.
Chrysoula 4:31 pm on January 10, 2006 Permalink
It sounds like somebody needs to own a ship for friends to actually play together, though. And the ‘play together’ is ‘everybody working together makes stuff happen’ without too much time for social interaction. Well, typed social interaction.
kevin 4:52 pm on January 10, 2006 Permalink
There’s a whole lot of other goofy more-social stuff, though. Parties, group party games, running a store together, etc. It’s not all hectic ship combat.
Or at least, that’s what I think; I haven’t played *that* much of it.