Updated March 14, 2019: Sea of Thieves will get mouse and keyboard supports on March 20.
Sea of Thieves is an exploration-based pirate game that features great sailing mechanics, but the open-ended plot doesn't appeal to everyone. You have to find your own path and that doesn't sit well with those who prefer single-player experiences. Luckily, developer Rare is aware of these problems and Executive Producer Joe Neate promised a substantial overhaul of the quest system at the Fun & Serious Festival in Bilbao, Spain.
That's not all though. Recently, Neate stated that the combat system was also getting substantially tweaked. Parameters like knockback, how swords work, how bullets work, and other intricate mechanics will be improved for a smoother experience. Today, Neate discussed cross-play as well as mouse and keyboard support.
Many Sea of Thieves players feel that playing with gamers on PC — especially though who have higher frame rates or mice and keyboards — puts them at a disadvantage. Even on Xbox One X, Sea of Thieves doesn't achieve 60 FPS. Aiming is clunky, especially when it comes to the sniper rifle. Higher frame rates also mean less input lag so everything is just that much more precise. PC gamers definitely have an advantage here.
Beforehand, the game didn't give you the option of turning off cross-play. Luckily, an upcoming patch will allow you to turn it off so you'll only play with other gamers who have controllers. However, Neate added that mouse and keyboard support was coming to Sea of Thieves, but those who chose to use a mouse and keyboard on Xbox One would be lumped into the cross-play category. If you turn off the option to enable cross-play on Xbox One, you won't be able to play with anyone who uses a mouse and keyboard, too.
Using a mouse and keyboard to aim on a 30 FPS game is torture to be honest, so I'm not sure how that imbalancing between PC and Xbox One will work. The easiest solution would be to add a 60 FPS option to the game by lowering the resolution and graphical settings. Those who choose to play it with better visuals can, and those who like a better frame rate are also satisfied. We'll just have to wait and see how this plays out. Until then, just rejoice at the fact that players will be given the option to disable cross-play and that the game is getting more and keyboard support!
Sea of Thieves is currently available for $59.99 through various retailers, but it's free for Xbox Game Pass subscribers. The game started off as a rather barebones experience when it first launch, but due to excellent post-launch support, Rare has managed to turn it around. Keep in mind that on February 6, 2019, you'll have to download the game again because the overall file size is being reduced by fifty percent.
