Caribbean Legend - Happy New Year!

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A dev update for Caribbean Legend:

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GD Notes #1. Ships.

Balance, nerfs, blood & tears - everything you need to feel the game as a new one

Happy New Year!

Ahoy! I could write a whole scroll about this year's results: discuss the number of copies sold, deliberate on the future of unlocking the code and modding support, share our global roadmap that already partially covers not just 2025, but 2026 and 2027 as well.

But that probably wouldn't interest anyone.

So instead, I simply want to wish us all not just a happy new year, but also that despite all the crazy things happening in the real world, we still find the strength to play and enjoy good games. BlackMark Studio will sincerely do its best to ensure there are more such games in the world.

We're fortunate to have already accomplished our main goal for 2024: we've assembled an amazing team of professionals, each knowing their role and expertise perfectly. Armed with your feedback, a clear vision for the future, and supported by excellent sales figures, we're ready to grow further and achieve even more next year.

Modern control system. Localizations. Engine and graphics improvements. Less RNG and frustration - more fun and meaningful choices. Tons of new content.

And today, our new team member, Game Designer Kirill Gaidar, will share our vision for ship balance - this will be the first piece in a large series of design notes we're preparing for you.

Happy New Year! Kirill, break a leg!
-Joruba, BlackMark Studio Game Director

Don't mind the frog. It has a crucial lore behind it and has earned every right to be here.

Hoist the topsails! Setting course for the Gulf of Creativity!

In today's debut chapter of the game designer's notes, we'll discuss the most controversial and dangerous topic - ship rebalancing.

I kindly ask all fans of overpowered quest ships to step away from their screens - there will be no mercy.

Let's begin with a brief intro.

The ship balance system, which is meant to create excitement for exploration and necessitate decision-making through complex trade-offs, currently falls short of its goals. All non-quest ships lack character and are largely useless, while quest ships are excessively powerful, making it pointless to use anything else in story mode.

Players face no meaningful compromises or interesting choices - they simply progress from one quest ship to another in search of the most unbalanced option, depriving themselves of the pleasure of choice and discovery.

This also impacts mechanics surrounding ships - for example, upgrades using strategic resources are only needed a couple of times throughout the entire game.

The ship rebalance is designed to address or mitigate these issues and restore interest in capturing new vessels and changing flagships, while also rewarding players for using ships according to their intended game purpose and/or historical role. Let's break it down step by step.

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