The potential audience looked good. The Microsoft Xbox is a great system, and it's growing in popularity; clearly there is a large enough fanbase. Further, no pirate game like ours had yet been released for Xbox, so the field was wide open. With Atari and Microsoft marketing might behind us, there was great potential for the game's success − but only if the game itself was right for the Xbox platform.

Here too the auspices looked good. Of all of my most popular games, "Sid Meier's Pirates!" is the most action-oriented. The game has sword duels, ship to ship battles, land combat, dance sequences, and a sneak through town mini-game − enough action and excitement for any console game. And there's plenty of upgrades available for the player's pirate and ships, allowing for customization and improvement over time − a must for any Xbox title!

Further, the action is tied together with cool open-ended role-playing and adventure sequences, allowing the player to fully shape his pirate's career as he sails the Caribbean attacking enemy ships and towns, discovering buried treasure, romancing the governor's daughter, fighting evil villains and battling his way up the "Top Ten Pirates" list. Since the game is different each time you play, it offers Xbox gamers infinite replayability¡Kso the fun never ends ƒº And, the game looks and sounds great too!

In a nut shell, "Sid Meier's Pirates!" seemed like a perfect fit for the Xbox, so we went for it.