After nearly three straight years of monthly updates, Rare is moving Sea of Thieves to a seasonal calendar much like Fortnite and other live-service games. Here's what to expect for Sea of Thieves Season One.
Sea of Thieves Season One sets sail on Thursday, January 28 - that's tomorrow if you're reading this the day it was published. It will come as a free title update and for the first time ever offer players a paid seasonal cosmetic content pass, appropriately called the Plunder Pass.
Each season will introduce new live events, rewards, and challenges. To move up through the many tiers of the Plunder Pass, players earn Renown, a new in-game measurable that will co-exist with Doubloons, Gold, and Ancient Coins. Think of Renown as a seasonal XP level that resets after the season ends. Rare expects each season to run about three months long. In total, 100 levels across ten tiers are available to level up, with rewards coming every step of the way.
Cosmetic rewards have always been Sea of Thieves' prime motivation, so the new Plunder Pass fits right in, it would seem. Players need not buy into the Plunder Pass to earn some rewards, but like other live-service games, the game will offer many more rewards for those who do buy into the seasonal pass.
In Season One, Sea of Thieves adds a new type of Merchant Alliance Voyage, which involves new ways to discover and explore shipwrecks becomes a permanent addition to the game. The game's adoption of Daily, Weekly, and Seasonal Challenges will be found as "Deeds" in the game, the fastest way to earn Renown.
Rare added that monthly updates will continue for Sea of Thieves, but the major content updates will come with these seasonal changeovers, with smaller updates dedicated to supplementing and bug-fixing as each season unfolds. Each monthly update will also restock the Pirate Emporium, the game's real-money shop where some of the game's most desired cosmetics sit on display.
Sea of Thieves lowers the sails and raises anchor for new horizons: seasonal content updates beginning on January 28..
