Windward Released on Steam

Windward is now out. I know what you’re thinking, what? No pre-amble, no length prologue about how I covered Windward both here and here. Well, apparently, just a wee, little prologue then.

Well, Tasharan Entertainment have stuck to their promises and released windward on the 12^th May, (i.e. yesterday) as promised. That’s right. Windward has exited early access and launched on Steam for Windows, Mac and Linux, and this wouldn’t have been possible without the all those lovely Steam Early Access people.

For those who have managed to avoid my previous two posts, Windward is a naval, sandbox game where you begin with a small ocean-going vessel, and as you complete adventures and gain experience and gold, you can upgrade this ship, specialise in offense, defence or support. You can even create your own adventures. You even get the choice whether you want to go solo or join in the MMO experience.

In short, this game has…

• Naval Battles
• Pirates
• Gold!!!
• Deep Customisation
• Pirates
• More gold

What more do you need?

Well, as usual, if you do need more info you can check out the official site here, or the press release below. Then again if you want to just jump in and try it, you can get it directly from Steam here.

Windward’s High Seas Sandbox Adventures Launches for Windows, Mac, Linux

Windward, an action-packed sandbox game set on the open oceans, has dropped anchor on Steam for Windows, Mac and Linux for $14.99, but is currently on sale for $12.74.  Developed by Tasharen Entertainment, Windward has players captain a ship sailing the seas of a vast and beautiful procedurally-generated world.

Windward’s open-ended gameplay offers numerous possibilities. Players start with a small boat that can be upgraded into one of the most feared ships on the open oceans that specializes in offense, defense or support.  Windward offers epic MMO gameplay or a single player experience.  Gamers decide if they would like to sail the seas and create their own adventures or complete quests.

Some missions task players with peaceful assignments like dropping off cargo, ferrying passengers or establishing new towns.  Other assignments require gamers to defend their territory from pirates or become one themselves and raid other factions.  When this occurs players must employ strategy to avoid enemy fire while getting into position to set off volleys of cannon fire, fire bomb their enemies or one of the other various skills.

“Windward’s release is the culmination of years of hard work and valuable feedback from the Steam Early Access community,” said Michael Lyashenko, founder, Tasharen Entertainment. “I have put my heart and soul into this game and hope everyone who is just discovering Windward enjoys it as much as the players in beta did.”

Game Features:

• Thrilling Naval Combat – Battle pirates, NPCs and other players; raid the lands of rival factions and defend your own cities

• Relaxing Gameplay – Explore beautiful uncharted waters, become a master merchant or establish peace as a diplomat

• Cross-Platform Multiplayer – Form a fleet with friends for epic battles or peacefully sail the open seas together

• Beautiful Procedurally-Generated World – A unique experience during every campaign filled with tropical paradises and frigid icy waters

• Modifiable Map – Build new towns, disrupt stable regions and alter terrain

• Deep Customization – Three separate skill trees with 30 talents that players can put more than 100 talent points into

Windward is the first PC title by Tasharen Entertainment. The studio developed the Unity plugin — NGUI — a tool widely used for the past three and a half years by the majority of publishers and developers that create games using the engine.  NGUI was originally created to aid the development of Windward.