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Pirates of the Burning Sea isn't the World of Warcraft killer some have said it is, but it is by far the most pleasant online distraction from WoW to come along in a while.

WoW has too much of a head start, what with about 10 million players after more than three years of availability. Would-be usurpers have come and, mostly, gone. But Pirates could hang around for a while.

The sea battles, fought on the gloriously gorgeous waters of a virtual 1720s Caribbean, are going to give the game its longevity. Where WoW has players battling elite monsters for epic weapons and armor, the tasty lure of Pirates lies in the ability to strategically blast other ships from the water -- or claim them as your own. Collecting bigger and better ships -- that's what'll drive you to play more and more Pirates.

You'll start the game by creating a character. And while there's plenty to like about pirating, the other factions allow more diversity in terms of subclass. As a British, French or Spanish captain, you can specialize as a freetrader, naval officer or privateer. That last option is basically the same thing as being a pirate, but backed by a nation, and likely will appeal to many players.

Quest-giving characters at the 100 or so ports in the game have that familiar question mark above their heads. But unlike the quest givers in WoW, the ones in Pirates will rarely ask you to kill 10 bears or gather 15 serpent scales. Missions in Pirates are much more closely tied to the overall story, a story that has you building your own port and learning to gather and prepare market-worthy materials such as gunpowder, sugar, timber and rum.

As your character gains higher levels (50 is the current player cap), you'll be able to spend your collected doubloons on expanding your home base to make it more profitable. Establish yourself with your chosen faction by doing sword-fight or sea-battle quests.

Ship-to-ship battles, whether against the computer or other players, are intensely strategic affairs and could have been sold as a game of their own. On the open sea, you'll have to monitor wind speed and direction to help you edge up next to an enemy ship. Then it's usually wise to use special ammunition to damage/destroy masts and sails and slow down the vessel. Switch to heavy cannonballs if you want to sink the ship. Or use anti-personnel ammo to lower the enemy's crew numbers, then employ the grapple command to pull the ships together for boarding. If you choose to board, the scene will switch to a frantic (and somewhat scrambled) third-person sword battle. When you and your crew take down the enemy captain, you win and can claim the ship's booty.

My biggest gripe about the game is that the swordplay starts off sloppy. It does get better as you learn more skills, but it's clunky at first, especially when you and your crew swarm an enemy ship. .

But Pirates of the Burning Sea has so much to offer out on the open water that I'll forgive its foibles and happily focus on manufacturing rum for my hardworking crew, ship-jacking royal navies and the general yo-ho-hoing that comes with the territory.

Pirates of the Burning Sea

PC; rated T for Teen; $50 (and $15 per month subscription)

**** out of 5 stars

-- Bill Hutchens, The (Tacoma, Wash.) News Tribune

SNEAK PEEK

A goombah good time

The long-awaited Mafia II (coming this year for next-gen consoles and PC) follows a young second-generation Italian-American named Vito Scalleta. Driven to rise above the poverty of his youth, Vito sees a bright future for himself in the mob. But Vito isn't alone in his introduction to organized crime. His childhood friend Joe, who is already acclimated to hustling and thievery, is also along for the ride. The sequel ventures from the Chicago-esque city of Lost Haven to the slightly larger 1950s Empire City. As you might have guessed, this vertically impressive metropolis draws great inspiration from New York City. The original game didn't allow much in terms of freedom outside of the story missions, but with subplots and numerous activities being added, you'll now have great reason to explore the city and veer off the critical path.

-- Game Informer magazine

GAMER BRIEFS

SimCity DS (for Nintendo DS; rated E for Everyone; $20) This kind of got lost amid the summer flood. But if you're into the series at all, or if you just enjoy micromanaging things, this portable installment is worth a look. Managing your city is easy with the stylus and touch-sensitive DS screen, and developers haven't shortchanged us on the options just because this is a hand-held game. And, via the DS Wi-Fi capability, you can easily connect with other players to compare and trade landmarks you've unlocked. *** out of 5 stars

-- Bill Hutchens, The (Tacoma, Wash.) News Tribune

Soldier of Fortune: Payback (for Xbox 360, PS3; rated M for Mature; $60) In present-day Middle East, you are a mercenary hired for an escort mission. When your client ends up dead, it's time for revenge against the mysterious group that betrayed you. The route to revenge, alas, is a series of uninspired missions through lackluster settings. Each level is extremely linear: You move forward, kill a bunch of people, then repeat. Payback has one distinguishing feature: It's much gorier than most of the competition. But the thrill of seeing severed body parts doesn't make up for careless game design. * out of 5 stars

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