Shop  •   Avatar  •   FAQ  •   Search  •   Memberlist  •   Usergroups  •   Profile  •   Log in to check private messages  •   Log in  •  Register 

buccaneer (1997)
Post new topic   Reply to topic     Forum Index -> Other Games
View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
corsair91
Sailing Master
Posts: 8047



206141 Gold -

PostPosted: Wed Oct 30, 2019 11:54 pm    Post subject: buccaneer (1997) Reply with quote

Noticed this old Pirate game - Buccaneer (1997)

Anyone here ever played it by any chance ?

Windows 95
640 by 480
DirectX 5
Supports 3D accelerators.

EDIT:
No longer Available as abandonware
GOG or Steam Release apparently forthcoming Q1 2024

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2702120/Buccaneer/
https://www.gog.com/en/game/buccaneer


Buccaneer (1997) Game Info

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buccaneer_(video_game)
https://www.mobygames.com/game/buccaneer
https://www.mobygames.com/game/4255/buccaneer/screenshots/
https://www.pcgamingwiki.com/wiki/Buccaneer

Buccaneer is a strategy game following in the footsteps of Sid Meier's Pirates!. Set during the Age of Sail, you have a choice of six campaigns with varying goals (rescue a relative, get buried treasure, etc.), or you can just engage in standalone ship-to-ship battles.

Good management skills are also required, as you must stock up on supplies and recruit men to join you on your missions.


This swashbuckling adventure packs a real-time 3-D punch!

A 3-D adventure game set in the 17th century Caribbean, BUCCANEER offers high-seas combat and elements of resource management. Choose a "cut-to-the-chase" combat-only option, fight ship-to-ship, or watch as your crew boards enemy vessels to take them over! Immerse yourself in the wide-open world of the buccaneers by choosing the campaign option! To survive you'll have to obtain bigger and better ships, keeping crews happy and loyal! Complete individual missions. Fight and negotiate your way through 21 territories in the Caribbean. Capture enemy ships. Plunder ports and towns.


Captain and Plot selection screenshot
https://www.mobygames.com/game/windows/buccaneer/screenshots/gameShotId,338304/

Anne bonney - bottom right


Buccaneer (1997) - Intro and Gameplay
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWTOYn-rMoU

runtime 8:42


At a complete guess
Windows 10 may have poor backward old DirectX compatability
for anything DirectX7 or earlier.

Retail Disk Game, may need something like this
put any DLLs into the game folder as Windows system folder is
now off limits


dgVoodoo 2
http://dege.freeweb.hu/
http://dege.freeweb.hu/dgVoodoo2/dgVoodoo2/

gVoodoo 2 is set of old graphics API's for Windows Vista/7/8/10.

They are implemented on Direct3D 11 and they can use different device types as wrapping output:
- Hardware rendering at GPU feature level 11.0 (recommended)
- Hardware rendering at GPU feature level 10.1 (has a minor limitation for DX8/9)
- Hardware rendering at GPU feature level 10.0 (there are some restrictions)
- Software rendering through Microsoft WARP renderer

The following graphics API libraries are implemented:
- Glide 2.11, Glide 2.45, Glide 3.1 and Glide 3.1 Napalm
- DirectX 1-7 (all versions of DirectDraw and Direct3D up to version 7)
- Direct3D 8.1
- Direct3D 9


Last edited by corsair91 on Sat Feb 24, 2024 5:24 pm; edited 19 times in total
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
corsair91
Sailing Master
Posts: 8047



206141 Gold -

PostPosted: Thu Oct 31, 2019 12:13 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Buccaneer is an old DirectX game


For old Glide Games

nGlide wrapper is an alternate option


3Dfx Voodoo Glide api was the leading 3D Graphics accelerator until about 2001. They went bust and Nvidia bought the Tech.


As far as I can recall for example

Sierra Red Baron 3D 1998 game is sold by GOG
included in the Sierra Red Baron Game Pack with nGlide included
(may be an outdated version, replace with latest file from the website)


nGlide

Windows XP / Windows 7 / Windows 8 / Windows 10

http://www.zeus-software.com/downloads/nglide
http://www.zeus-software.com/downloads/nglide/compatibility


nGlide is a 3Dfx Voodoo Glide wrapper. It allows you to play games designed for 3Dfx Glide API without the need for having 3Dfx Voodoo graphics card.
All three API versions are supported, Glide 2.11 (glide.dll), Glide 2.60 (glide2x.dll) and Glide 3.10 (glide3x.dll). nGlide emulates Glide environment with Direct3D and Vulkan. Glide wrapper also supports high resolution modes.


Last edited by corsair91 on Sun Feb 18, 2024 6:41 pm; edited 5 times in total
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
corsair91
Sailing Master
Posts: 8047



206141 Gold -

PostPosted: Sat Nov 02, 2019 12:53 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Buccaneer Review


Overall, Buccaneer feels like an unfinished work, and the fact that it offers a few really good features makes the overall package that much more disappointing.

By Michael E. on May 1, 2000

https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/buccaneer-review/1900-2538234/

We nautical buffs are always scanning the horizon for a good new fighting sail game. Unfortunately, we'll have to keep right on looking - SSI's Buccaneer is a disappointing entry into an already mediocre genre.

Don't get me wrong, this pirate-themed action/strategy game isn't terrible. In fact, Buccaneer boasts a good graphics engine and even a few gameplay innovations. The problem is that the game fails to live up to its potential and plays better as a kids game than it does as a simulation for serious O'Brian and Forester fans.

Buccaneer lets you take command of a pirate ship in the Caribbean during the 17th century. You can play single ship-to-ship battles or take part in a campaign. The battles are action-oriented and can be quite fun, particularly in multiplayer mode (the game supports TCP/IP, modem, and serial links). In single-player games, the computer-controlled ships are crafty and put up a fierce battle until sunk or boarded. Realism simply is not Buccaneer's strong point, however. For example, it's a bit too easy to turn your ship in combat - you can often veer quickly enough to avoid a broadside after it's been fired. Also, the only way to capture another vessel is to ram and board it even if the ship has already struck its colors. And I never quite figured out how a 20-man crew could fully man a 16-gun ship.

The six campaigns are disappointing, repetitive affairs in which you follow a seemingly random trail around the Spanish Main searching for a missing brother, fiance, treasure map, and the like. Most of these culminate in a ship-to-fort duel and the storming of a town. Ship-to-fort combat is quite a challenge, as the forts always have more powerful weaponry. Your only hope is to keep up a fast and furious fire and hope that your ship survives the pounding. Gameplay in the campaigns also includes a resource management element, as you must continually restock your food and water (and grog), put into port for repairs, and recruit new crewmembers where necessary.

The graphics are pretty good and are much better than the "Doom on the high seas" look of Virgin's Man of War, especially with a 3D accelerator (Buccaneer supports Direct 3D). All of the ships are reasonably well modeled, 3D objects and the visible damage effects, including shot-up rigging and lost masts, are quite nice. Some of the other cool 3D effects include ships that actually heel as they turn and impressive fogging effects. The game's sky and sea textures range from decent to stunning, but are ruined by the fact that you can clearly see the seams between graphic tiles. Also, splashes and cannon shots appear as blocky sprites even in 3D accelerated mode.

The gun-port view, which is pretty much necessary if you want to hit anything with your broadsides, is a pretty cool feature. You cannot vary your shot selection (round shot only), but you can fire bow chasers and adjust your aim for the rigging, gun decks, or hull. Your best bet is to dismast an enemy, then move in to board. Unfortunately, the boarding combat seems like an afterthought. You end up as a helpless observer watching a battle that is eerily similar to the third-person fare in Sir-Tech's Realms of Arkania RPGs. Town combat is similarly disappointing, but with the added strangeness that you are often alone during the raid. Your supposedly loyal crew is often nowhere to be seen (this doesn't seem to affect the outcome of the battle, though - you almost always win).

On top of all this, the game suffers from an abundance of plain old cheesiness. Voice-overs for campaign intros and battle updates are bad, bad, bad. Sound effects throughout the game are poor (sails unfurling sound like white noise, cannons sound as if they're ratcheted into firing position), and the music is repetitive in the extreme. Finally, the developers seemed to feel that if they threw in enough random images of large-breasted pirate women, they could make up for the game's many shortcomings (so much for the "good game for kids" idea).

Overall, Buccaneer feels like an unfinished work, and the fact that it offers a few really good features makes the overall package that much more disappointing. If you long for a quality fighting sail game, you'll be better off loading up TalonSoft's Age of Sail, the lone bright light in a sea of mediocrity.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Display posts from previous:   
Post new topic   Reply to topic     Forum Index -> Other Games All times are GMT
Page 1 of 1

 
Jump to:  
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum


Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2005 phpBB Group