Sandbox games turns always in the most toxic experience when devs decide to put zero rules.
Sandbox doesn't necessary mean that everyone must be completely free to do what they want, but that the game is designed with no stricted limits that usually force you to follow certains paths. And this is not the case here.
How can I have fun if at the outpost a 4players galleon appears out of nowhere and destroy my 2 hours grind? For which damned reason PVP is enabled in the outposts and what's the fun factor that made devs to not disable it there? Is being farmed by 4 players, who made your 2 hours grind a complete waste of time, a very good and fun experience that keeps you playing over and over? And in case, how should I fight them back alone? But most of all, as a solo player for which game design reason I am matched in the same server with 4players parties?
This game sadly has the power to completely waste your time because everything is in the hands of strangers who decide if you can have fun or not, mainly if you are an unexperienced player in a game that's built for a minimum of 2 players.
Why there is no PVE content with PVP disabled? Why my enjoyment and game progression must be 100% dependent on the players I'm matched with?
I bet there were tons of feedbacks about this issue that got ignored during the years at a point that only a certain type of players are still playing the game. That doesn't mean devs took the right decisions putting not limits to PVP and giving players the power to ruin other players experience.
It's a PVP game, if you suck just practice untill you learn and succeed, I got that but that's not the point. The point is that other players should not have the power to ruin your gamestyle. Sometimes you to to just chill and do some PVE and you should be free to do it.
I was fighting the megalodon and at some point a Galleon destroyed me just becasue ye why not, they neither looted my stuff, they destroyed my ship and went away. I was fighting vs an army of ghost ships in an event and at some point another Sloop came and joined them to fight me... another very fun situation I want to experience again. I mean, there is absolutely no respect to the others. I like the game I like the content but my gosh other players are not letting me to enjoy what I've paid for. I knew this game was fully PVP, I didnt know that other players were always so toxic, becasue when you kill other players without a reason that the game gives you, yeah.... you are a toxic player and NOT a pirate.
During first years people were used to report in voice chat their intention. Today none use it and no matter what you say or do, they just charge and soemtimes even offend you while you were just f..... fishing at the sunset. That's insane.
I'm struggling now and I have less and less desire to play. This is the first time it happens something like this in a videogame to me and I'm very sad as I'd like to really enjoy this game. I've played other sandbox games but there were always basic rules to protect players and give everybody a reason to play, while this game has nothing.
There should be PVP and PVE zones, rotating daily in some parts of the maps where big loot is, so the noobs can at least do something outside of there.
There should be PVE events where you can't attack other players and must all play together as stealthy collecting chests in the isles gets boring too soon. And PVP ones where you can attack who you want so you KNOW that someone could kill you there while doing stuff.
Good games, even good sandbox games, are always those one that can give you a CHOICE. Creating an open world game with ZERO rules and just saying to people to go there and make their own rules seem cool on paper, but it NEVER is in practice.
It's a shame this game is not for everyone, mainly if you play solo. It could have a lot more than a sandbox PVP game, map is there, content is there, unfortunately they were not able to fully see the potential of what they created and still think that naval battles are still the selling point of this game while they are not.
