Sea of Thieves: Lessons in UX from a pirate’s perspective
Introduction
Released in 2018 by Rare and Microsoft Studios, Sea of Thieves is an action-adventure game set in a shared pirate world. What makes it unique is not just the theme, but how it approaches user experience, often avoiding traditional interfaces for immersive, contextual interactions.
As a product designer, I have spent over a year exploring and, of course, playing Sea of Thieves. This article is my personal analysis of the game design and its connection to UX principles.
Disclaimer: I am not sponsored by Rare and do not receive compensation. All opinions are based on personal experience as both a player and a UX professional.
First steps on the open sea
A year ago, I stepped onto my first ship in Sea of Thieves. I began with Tall Tales, story-driven PvE missions filled with puzzles, exploration, and narrative depth. Standing on a sunlit shore, map in hand, I realized how the game reinforced many UX principles I already value: environmental cues, audio feedback, social collaboration, and emergent storytelling.
- Spatial design: Outposts guide new players toward essential gameplay elements without explicit tutorials.
- Visual affordances: Interactive objects, like the ship’s wheel, clearly suggest their function.
- Progressive complexity: Early voyages introduce core mechanics before gradually adding complexity.
Later, I focused on Hourglass PvP, where every small decision mattered. Coordinating sails, firing cannons, and responding to boarding events required precision and teamwork. These experiences highlighted how UX can orchestrate perception, collaboration, and emotional engagement at the same time.
Minimalist and meaningful design
One of the most striking aspects of Sea of Thieves is its commitment to minimalist UI design. Unlike many modern games cluttered with heads-up displays (HUDs), quest markers, and constant on-screen prompts, Sea of Thieves embraces a “show, don’t tell” philosophy:
- Physical maps instead of mini-maps: Players must physically pull out and read actual maps rather than relying on a corner mini-map with a convenient “you are here” indicator.
- Contextual interactions: Most game mechanics are represented through physical objects in the world rather than menu systems.
- Environmental storytelling: The game communicates through the environment rather than exposition dumps or lengthy tutorials.
- UX writing: Any in-game text is concise, clear, and supports understanding without interrupting immersion.
- Accessibility considerations: Options for colorblind players, readable text, and customizable controls enhance inclusivity without cluttering the interface.
Players navigate using physical maps, compasses, and landmarks. Raising the anchor, steering, and adjusting sails are tactile interactions that feel deliberate and meaningful. Mistakes carry weight. Misjudging a turn or failing to manage sails can cost treasure or the ship itself. The game demonstrates that friction, when designed intentionally, enhances learning and engagement.
Sound design: Guiding emotion & action
Audio in Sea of Thieves is not just background; It is a core part of the user experience. It communicates, guides, and evokes emotion, showing how UX extends beyond visuals and interfaces.
- Feedback cues: Megalodon encounters trigger dramatic music, signaling danger and prompting immediate player action. Boarding events have distinct sounds that alert the crew, encouraging coordination. Sinking ships produce creaking, splashing, and groaning, giving a visceral sense of threat without visual indicators.
- Immersion cues: Environmental sounds like waves, wind, and storms enhance the feeling of being at sea.
- Tension and release: Audio shifts during high-stakes moments such as storms, PvP battles, or unexpected attacks, creating tension that resolves when the threat passes or the crew succeeds.
- Guiding attention: Critical events are paired with clear audio cues so players can respond without needing intrusive HUD alerts.
Through these principles, Sea of Thieves shows that sound can communicate risk, guide behavior, and enhance emotional engagement, making each moment more memorable.
Social systems and player interactions
The ship itself is a collaborative interface. Crew members take on roles like steering, adjusting sails, lookout, and firing cannons.
- The open crew mode connects you with random players worldwide, creating unpredictable social dynamics. Coordination can be challenging, but moments of teamwork can be deeply satisfying.
- The safer seas mode removes random players from the world, allowing you to play only with invited friends, showing how UX adapts to different social preferences.
- The insider program allows players to test unreleased features. This mode is an excellent example of how UX research can be integrated directly into gameplay, helping teams observe behavior, gather feedback, and refine mechanics before wide release.
These systems show that UX includes designing for collaboration, shared responsibility, and emotional connection. Players can form meaningful relationships, communicate across languages, and even find safe spaces for social interaction.
Inclusive and expressive character design
Character customization in Sea of Thieves is surprisingly diverse and creative. Pirates come in all shapes, sizes, and styles, and the game offers endless combinations of clothing, hairstyles, facial features, and accessories. Players can mix and match items freely, creating pirates that feel personal, unique, and even unconventional.
This design encourages players to express themselves in ways that go beyond typical game standards. Pirates can be quirky, exaggerated, or non-stereotypical, breaking the mold of “perfect” characters that are often expected in video games. By allowing this freedom, Sea of Thieves shows that UX is not only about usability or navigation; It is also about supporting identity, creativity, and connection.
Customization also adds emotional depth to the gameplay. Seeing your character sail the seas, fully outfitted according to your choices, reinforces ownership and engagement. Players can feel represented and recognized, which strengthens their attachment to the game world. In social interactions, diverse characters create conversation starters, inspire laughter, and further enhance the shared experience.
By embracing inclusive design, Sea of Thieves makes a subtle yet powerful statement: UX should allow players to feel comfortable exploring the world as who they want to be, rather than being limited by stereotypes or expectations.
Community management and player support
Open multiplayer environments naturally face social challenges. Sea of Thieves allows anyone from around the world to join your crew, which can lead to unpredictable interactions. Some players are disrespectful or harass others based on identity, expression, or simply because of chaotic behavior.
Rare provides reporting tools, but moderation is still developing. In practice, it is sometimes difficult to act immediately. You may not know when a player will misbehave, and capturing evidence or recording the incident can be tricky in the moment. This creates a gap between experiencing the issue and reporting it effectively.
UX in this context extends beyond menus and controls. Inclusive design only works when the community feels safe. Reporting tools, moderation, and clear processes are essential to maintain trust, engagement, and participation. Without them, players may feel vulnerable or hesitant to interact socially, which undermines the very collaborative design the game promotes.
This challenge shows that UX is also about social systems and emotional safety. A well-designed interface for reporting, combined with proactive moderation, could dramatically improve the experience for all players, making the world more welcoming without reducing the freedom and fun that make this game unique.
Bugs, seasons, & player forgiveness
The game delivers seasonal updates, new quests, and cosmetic rewards, keeping the world fresh. Yet major bugs persist, especially on consoles.
Some examples include:
- Infinite dark loading screens that require quitting and rejoining, with the risk that your ship has sunk.
- Microphone-related freezes on PlayStation during battle, forcing a full restart.
- Various glitches that are fixed and then return in the next updates.
Despite these issues, the community often forgives them. The immersive world, emergent stories, and social connections outweigh frustration. Still, this highlights a UX lesson: engaging systems must be paired with reliability to maintain long-term trust and player retention.
Emotional engagement & storytelling
This pirate game creates a range of emotions through gameplay, sound, and social interactions. Players feel excitement when discovering treasure or coordinating a PvP attack. Tension builds during storms, Megalodon encounters, or boarding events. Frustration may appear when plans fail or bugs interfere, and relief follows when challenges are overcome.
The key lesson is that UX is not only about completing tasks efficiently. It is about designing moments that players care about and remember. Every mechanic, audio cue, and social interaction contributes to an emotional narrative that strengthens player engagement.
This game encourages players to create their own stories through its open-world design and emergent gameplay. Every voyage can unfold differently depending on choices, interactions, and unexpected events. The game nudges players toward discovery and improvisation rather than following strict instructions.
Moments like coordinating a complex boarding maneuver, navigating tricky waters, or deciding whether to pursue treasure or assist another ship create tension, problem-solving, and teamwork. These experiences feel personal and memorable, leaving players with stories they carry beyond the game session.
Through this design, Sea of Thieves demonstrates that UX is not just about usability or interface clarity. It is about creating spaces where players can generate meaning, make decisions that matter, and have experiences that feel uniquely their own.
