
Players begin the game by creating a character with limited skills in the areas of ship control, trading, fighting, and various other traits. Those with a taste for blood and vengeance can become a bounty hunter, or the true freedom of a pirate's life can be enjoyed with no strings attached. Players can work for a European power to lead a squadron, or forgo the pillage and plundering altogether for merchant sailing.

The player's career is not locked into one path, however.

Blending role-playing elements with the strategy of ship-to-ship combat, Pirates of the Caribbean offers players a chance to set sail on the high seas as a treasure-hunting pirate.
