Summary
After more than a decade in development hell,Captain Bloodis finally getting a release. Publisher SNEG and developers Seawolf Studio and General Arcade announced the game to be coming to current-gen consoles, such as theXbox Series, this Fall. The development of theCaptain Bloodstarted in 2003 with one of the subsidiaries of the Russian software company Akella, which was one of the most popular publishers in the region at the time.
In 2000, Akella started one of Russia’s most prominent video game franchises,Sea Dogs, to whichCaptain Bloodcould be considered a spiritual successor. The first sequel,Sea Dogs 2, later became known asPirates of the Caribbeanafter Disney acquired rights to the game as a marketing tie-in to the film franchise. Bouchon and Ulrich developedCaptain Bloodalongside the Exxos team, while Atari SA (formerly Infogrames) handled publishing responsibilities. Rather than being a standalone concept,Captain Bloodwas intended to be a spin-off of theSea Dogsfranchise, set to be titledAge of Pirates: Captain Bloodand scheduled for release in 2006, but the project never got off the ground. It resurfaced again more recently in 2010 becausethe gaming community still wants more games about pirates, butCaptain Bloodstill remained underdeveloped for years after.
Numerous delays and legal issues pushedAge of Pirates: Captain Bloodfurther into development hell, but althoughthe spin-off suffered the fate of many games, the long-lost swashbuckling adventure is finding a new home on modern-era platforms. Courtesy of IGN, a new trailer has revealed visual improvements toCaptain Blood’s game capture and cinematics,while also confirming the release to be available on all current-gen consoles this Fall. Players will be able to enjoyCaptain Bloodwith HD graphics on the PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Switch, and Steam.
Seawolf Studio, the main driving force behind the release, appears to be a relatively new studio. As for General Arcade, the self-proclaimed video game engineering specialist worked onBaldur’s Gate 3, theEndless Spacefranchise,Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine, and theAlien: Isolation Collection, among other A-list titles. SNEG has released manyvideo games fashioned after theDungeons and Dragonstabletop game, but also published theClose Combatfranchise and lent a helping hand to other indie games.
