New Horizons is one of the longest-running total overhaul mods in PC gaming history, rebuilding Akella’s 2003 Pirates of the Caribbean game into “the deepest colonial Caribbean simulator ever made”. Now, its Refined Edition is making it a fully standalone experience that doesn’t require the original game.
Originally developed as a Sea Dogs sequel by developer Akella, Pirates of the Caribbean was rebranded at the last minute to become a movie tie-in of Disney’s first Pirates movie.
New Horizons: Refined Edition is the successor to New Horizons Build 14, but it’s a standalone which requires no copy of the 2003 base game. For reference, the original mod’s Build 14 still worked with the original engine and was installed on top of Pirates of the Caribbean. There’s also the Beyond New Horizons standalone mod, based on the open-source Storm Engine but limited to Build 14’s features, without any of the new ones.
New Horizons is defined by its seven main quests and a customisable Free Play mode, historically accurate eras (from 1500 to 1820) with “dozens of recreated islands and cities”, and an optional Realism Mode that offers a greater level of depth and challenge.
But of course, its raw numbers can be more eye-catching and highlight the work done over 20 years: 194 new ships and 632 character models added over the years, “drawing from both the films and historical sources”. When coupled with reputation, national relations, and crew systems that embrace RPG design, it’s easy to see why New Horizons has endured and kept growing as a pirate-themed sandbox.
On the tech front, New Horizons: Refined Edition is a fascinating standalone overhaul too, as it runs on a “heavily modified” Storm Engine 2.8 (the source is published here) with DirectX 9 rendering and MSA support, both of which were optimised for the mod and the original game specifically.
Moreover, development on New Horizons: Refined Edition isn’t over yet. At the time of writing, Version 70 is live, with WIP content as part of the latest package.
You can download (and support) the New Horizons: Refined Edition mod via the Captain’s Haven itch.io page. Make sure to join and follow its Discord channel for official updates on the ongoing development, too.
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