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As I’m sure you can imagine, when it comes to Sea of Thieves my days are full of numbers. Development costs, active servers, days until the next update… Sometimes, though, a truly extraordinary number stands out – a number like 40 million, which I’m incredibly pleased to say is the number of pirates who’ve now set sail in Sea of Thieves!

40 million players across Xbox, Windows 10 and Steam is an amazing milestone to be able to talk about, and of course it wouldn’t have happened without you – our brilliant, positive and welcoming community, who continue to surprise and impress us with your creativity and antics out on the waves.

That said, I also want to take this opportunity to offer heartfelt thanks to the team, who’ve worked so hard to deliver over a hundred free updates since launch and have plenty more excitement and innovation on the horizon. Season 12 is almost here, and the new additions like throwing knives and the Bone Caller are going to trans... Read more

Our From Concept to Cosmetic series has a somewhat storied history when it comes to talking about lanterns that capture the imagination of players. Indeed, the very first instalment covered the creation of the original lantern MVP: {LINK REMOVED}the mighty Orb. Since that first step into the world of cosmetic design, we’ve branched out into all kinds of wonders, from {LINK REMOVED}punk fashion and {LINK REMOVED}... Read more

As April showers clamour to make themselves known, we’ve realised it’s probably time to tick the Round-Up off our monthly to-do list and catch you up on all the major happenings of the last month. And thus, here we are! Settle in, obtain a beverage of your choosing and let’s get to it.

Content Update As always, a new month meant a new content update, complete with handy {LINK REMOVED}release notes containing all the details. This one was headlined by the arrival of the much-anticipated anti-cheat system, the ability for players with no live se... Read more

Six years! Who’d have thought it? It was on this day in 2018 that Sea of Thieves came crashing into the world and we’re still here cooking up new features, you’re still here playing them and we love you for that, and the seas are about to get busier than ever when PlayStation®5 players join in with our ungovernable shenanigans next month.

So how are we marking the anniversary this year? Mainly by letting you in on a whole treasure trove of secrets. We’ve got plenty planned for the next few Seasons and thought you might enjoy a taster of what’s on the horizon, which you can get simply by tuning in to the special 2024 Preview Event video on our ... Read more

As Season 11 bobs along, occasionally dipping below the waves so it can crash back above them in dramatic fashion, we’re slowly ticking off the usual Seasonal activities. But if there’s one thing that players keep asking about in our social replies that’s yet to make its debut, it’s Anti-Cheat. Good news you lot, that’s just arrived in the March update!

If there’s another thing we see the odd mention of (not so many it’s annoying, but just enough that it causes a little irritation right on the small of the back where you just can’t scratch no mat... Read more

Game Improvements Easy Anti-Cheat

• Sea of Thieves is now protected by Easy Anti-Cheat, the industry-leading anti-cheat solution designed by Epic Games to identify and address instances of hacking and cheating in multiplayer games.
  
• This anti-cheat solution will be updated outside of Sea of Thieves’ regular update schedule to keep in sync with cheat developers.

Updates Virtual Keyboard Support

• Players summoning the Virtual Keyboard inside the game will now find that a range of new languages are supported: Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Thai, Japanese, Korean and Russian.

Message of the Day

• Players will now experience a Message of the Day when arriving in the front end menu, highlighting curr...

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Spring is just starting to bloom here at Rare HQ, which means it’s time we got around to the brisk business of rounding up February’s developments! It was a briskly busy month that boasted some extremely exciting announcements, so let’s jump right into the recap…

Content Update As always, we had a monthly update ready to go, this time integrating Sea of Thieves with the latest Xbox Game Development Kit, making some visual and technical tweaks to various systems – and, most importantly, introducing the first Collector’s Pet fox as the Reaper’s Heart set expanded again in the month of love. For a full rundown of all February’s changes and additions, or just to find out what on earth GDK integration actually means, stop by the relevant {LINK REMOVED}releas... Read more

Game Improvements GDK Integration

• Sea of Thieves now operates on the latest Xbox GDK (Game Development Kit). Players on PC are encouraged to update to the latest graphics drivers to ensure the best compatibility and performance.
  
• Sea of Thieves now supports DirectX 11 and DirectX 12 where supported by the hardware. While the title will now auto-detect and optimise the experience, players can also choose within the game settings.
  
• General client performance improvements should be seen throughout the experience, with PC players seeing the largest improvements.

Updates Improved Athena’s Fortune Voyages

• The Voyage of Legends and Ashen Voyage of Legends have now been refreshed, providing a shorter session experience and c...

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The first month of 2024 is officially over, which means it’s once again time for us to huddle close around our lanterns and rake over the latest gossip on what’s been happening across the seas. Settle in and brace yourselves…

Content Update After the back-to-back content updates of Season Ten throughout the tail end of 2023, you might have expected a quiet few months while we recovered. But no! It was back into the fray upon our return to the office, hustling to deliver an entirely new Season straight out of the gate.

{LINK REMOVED}Season 11 swept in with a complete overhaul to how you choose your adventures, complementing the new Quest Table with a rework of reputation and loot across the game. Trying to break down all the changes involved would ... Read more

Hello sailors! With a new Season comes a new Community Weekend – and February’s event is jam-packed, ready to entertain you with lots of in-game and stream-based antics across the world wide web. If that sounds good to you, then congratulations, you are correct: it’s excellent news, and we’re here to tell you exactly what to expect from the latest 48-hour shindig we’re throwing in honour of you, our wonderful community.

But before we get into everything involved with this Season’s community-oriented shenanigans, we need to share the most crucial bit: the date and times of proceedings! Season 11’s Community Weekend will start on Saturday, February 24th 2024 at 11am UTC and will finish at the same time on Monday, February 26th – giving you two full days to collect your Twitch Drops, maximise your gold, rep and Renown gains and swipe some shiny treasures via Pop-Up Plunder.

The event also conveniently falls across {LINK REMOVED}... Read more

A new Season arrives on the shores of the Sea of Thieves! On January 23rd, Season 11 introduces
some exciting changes and improvements to how you sail the seas, enabling you to dive into adventure faster than ever before while vastly expanding the rewards and progression pathways on offer.

In this latest free update, multiple systems have been refreshed to streamline your experience as you sail or dive swiftly from one Voyage, Event or Tall Tale to the next. Onboarding has also been expanded with new in-game tutorials featuring the Pirate Lord, removing some of the hurdles for newer players seeking to get to grips with life on the seas!

Fundamental Improvements The primary feature of Season 11 is the revamp of the traditional Voyage loop, and that starts with the Quest Table. Rather than having to return to an Outpost to buy new Voyages from the Trading Companies, you’ll now be able to access all available Voyages and Tall Tales directly from your ship. Using th... Read more

Sea of Thieves on Demand Access all the adventure you crave more quickly than ever before with Season 11’s overhaul of Voyages and encounters! Explore a redesigned Quest system, major expansions to most Trading Companies and new rewards and Distinctions to earn as you progress.

On Demand

• With a Quest Table on board each ship now providing the ability to choose from all available outings and dive directly to the scene of a Voyage, Tall Tale or new Raid Voyage, players have unprecedented freedom to explore everything the seas can offer. The refreshed Discover Tab is also on hand with tailored suggestions!
  
• Raid Voyages are new Trading Company-themed versions of World Events with unique treasure types on offer, unlocked from the Quest Table as players climb the Company ra...

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Oh yes, that’s right, we’re not quite ready to be finished with 2023 just yet. Still one last round-up to squeeze in! Now, we might have been winding down for the end of the year in December, but that didn’t stop us from delivering a Community Weekend, two in-game Events and a monthly content update, did it? Of course not. So let’s take a look at everything you might have missed…

Content Update We wasted no time in kicking off the December excitements by hosting {LINK REMOVED}... Read more

Fixed Issues Gameplay

• Lost Shipments and Prized Merchant Alliance Commission Voyages are once again available for purchase.
  
• Crews taking on a Lost Shipments Voyage should now encounter the correct number of Merchant Crates when unlocking the Captain’s Cabin.

Guilds

• Players who are part of a Guild that has unlocked Guild clothing rewards are once again free to wear the rewards when sailing as part of any other Guild, or outside a Guild session.

Performance and Stability

• Improved server stability to avoid instances of players being disconnected from their session.

Known Issues To learn more about known issues in Sea of Thieves currently being tracked and their status, head over to our ... Read more

After two months of back-to-back content updates, Sea of Thieves completes the trio promised back at the start of Season Ten by introducing a brand new game mode for players to explore: Safer Seas! Allowing exploration and adventure on a single-crew server, either alone or with a crew of chosen friends, this update opens the door to an entirely new way of playing the game.

A Peaceful Voyage In Safer Seas, players can elect to sail solo or with a crew of up to three friends, with no other player-controlled crews present in the world. For fresh-faced pirates just starting their journey, this means a chance to learn the ropes without having to keep an eye out for hostile rivals, and an opportunity to understand the world and its key mechanics before diving into the traditional mayhem of the main Sea of Thieves game mode, now known as High Seas.

There’s no shortage of content in Safer Seas for players old or new to tackle. As in High Seas, a wide range of V... Read more

Safer Seas Following Guilds in October and the Skull of Siren Song Voyage in November comes Season Ten's third major feature update: Safer Seas, a new mode that offers a way to find your sea legs, immerse yourself in adventure and explore the world as you like with no other player crews present. Available now!

Welcome to Safer Seas

• Whenever you play, you can now choose to play on either Safer Seas, which gives you a private world in which to sail solo or with your own crew, or on High Seas, the traditional Sea of Thieves experience with other roaming player crews added to the mix.
  
• Safer Seas mode allows access to the vast majority of content in the game, including all our story-driven Tall Tales. Notable exceptions are PvP-focused elements such as The Reaper’s Bones and Fa...

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Sea of Thieves Season Ten is well underway, with its third feature, Safer Seas, due to arrive this very week, on December 7th. But if there’s one remaining activity that’s been on the mind of at least tens of pirates, it’s when they’ll get another chance to play dress-up for prizes in a fresh bout of Style of Thieves.

Well, good news, you fashion-hungry freebooters, because these words exist to tell you that Season Ten’s Style of Thieves contest – and your next opportunity to win a pair of the delectable Fashionista’s Finery Gloves – will be taking place from December 11th–14th!

While you’re more than welcome to rummage through your wardrobe and take your pictures in advance, these four days will each offer a 24-hour window in which to enter a different theme via social media channels. Once a theme opens for entry (you’ll know because we’ll make a post saying exactly that), it’s up to you to share your stylish screenshots, including the name of the theme you’re... Read more

Updates Skull of Siren Song Curse Balancing

• While all ships continue to be afflicted by a curse once the Skull of Siren Song is on board, Galleons and Brigantines will now be further slowed by its effects.

Fixed Issues Skull of Siren Song Voyage

• The Chest and Key recovered during the Voyage can now consistently be used together to unlock the Skull.
  
• Crews returning the Skull of Siren Song to Captain Briggsy should now consistently find that she is able to take the Skull and complete the Voyage.
  
• ‘Lords of the Sea’ – Players are now prevented from taking Skull of Siren Song Voyage items into the Siren Spire during this Tall Tale.
  
• Crews who have engaged in an Hourglass battle will now be able to participate in the Skull of Siren Song Voyage, but will experience a grace period after their battle before the note is delivered.
  
• Players in larger crews sho...

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The second major update in Sea of Thieves’ Season Ten has arrived! Building on the new content introduced with Guilds in October, this update unleashes a new type of World Event in the form of the Skull of Siren Song Voyage. This emergent, competitive Voyage pits crews against one another in a race to unearth and claim the titular artefact, all at the behest of the legendary Captain Briggsy.

Crew Vs Crew The hunt for the Skull of Siren Song introduces a new competitive event to Sea of Thieves. When a Voyage begins, all players on a server will find a ghostly note pinned to their ship’s mast, offering them the chance to set off in search of this ancient and potent prize. If they accept, they’ll find themselves in possession of two maps directing them to the Skull of Siren Song Key and Chest – but the catch is that every other crew joining the Voyage will receive the same maps.

From there, players will have to battle it out to locate the Key and Chest on... Read more

Skull of Siren Song Voyage Following on from Guilds in October, the second of Season Ten’s major features is this brand new competitive Voyage – delivered as a shared emergent World Event that can be joined by any or all crews on a server, triggering a dynamic race for the prize. Available now!

Seeking the Skull of Siren Song

• When a ghostly note appears pinned to the ship’s mast, accepting this Voyage will see Captain Briggsy bestow the crew with maps to the Key and Chest of Siren Song.
  
• With other crews in competition for the same Key and Chest, players must get their hands on both items by whatever means necessary to release the powerful Skull within – but possession of each item shows the crew’s location to other players!
  
• The Skull of Siren Song is a formidable ...

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