I wrote a review of Pirate’s Cove (in Finnish; review number 92!).
I like Pirate’s Cove. I like the fancy bits (I think it’s one of the prettiest games I’ve ever seen), the theme is great and the game is simply a blast to play.
However, I’m still rating it as 7. The game’s main elements don’t completely agree with me. There’s double guessing and bluffing and lots of random chaos. I’m not allergic to dice and they certainly make the battles exciting, but still…
In the end I guess it all comes down on whether one likes games as an intellectual challenge or a way to spend good time with friends. Pirate’s Cove is an excellent game for a social gamer. There’s fun action, possibilities of role-playing, fairly simple rules, gorgeous looks… However, while the game can be fun, but as more serious gamer, I’m missing something.
Games like this are also very dependant on the people you play then with. I wouldn’t probably like the game that much with strangers. For me Pirate’s Cove is a fun diversion maybe once a year, played using someone else’s copy. I guess that means I should probably get around and sell my copy…