AstraWare’s original, pirate-themed TradeWinds game brought a fresh twist to “travel-and-trade” games…most of them were set up in a space environment before. AstraWare’s just-released successor is said to add more depth to the game…can it stack up?
TradeWinds is centered around “ports”, which are arranged on a map. Your task is sailing from port to port with goods which can then be sold for a profit:
Each port looks different, but contains more-less the same buildings(some aren’t available in every port):
For example, a marketplace allows you to buy and sell goods(the exchange rates vary from port to port):
The money gained in trading can be invested into your ship’s armament at the shipyard. Alternatively, you can use it to buy more goods and get even richer(:)):
While traveling, pirates can attack you. The battles happen in “real-time”, you just click the target that shall be attacked:
Special ammunition can be fired by clicking its icon in the “toolbar”:
In Story mode, “tasks” are assigned to you that must be completed in order to unlock new characters, ships and ports. Additionally, completing a task gets you a nice cash bonus:
This review focussed on version 1.00 of the program on a Palm TX. The program needs approx 4600k of memory and was stable in the reviewing period!
Overall, TradeWinds 2 is a must-have for everyone who loves “turn-based” strategy games. One can’t imagine how much fun trading and fighting can be…until one has played this game. The first version of TradeWinds was a bit “shallow” to play, but TradeWinds 2 is much more challenging and less repetitive. It’s graphics and background music are quite nice, too – the price of 19.95$ is a bit steep but justified!
Use the discount code TRADEWINDSPALM to get 20% off the purchase price at the TamsShop
Related posts:
So, the same as SpaceTrader, but costs 20$ and 4300kB more.
But what is the final goal of the Story Mode?…because after playing for a long time, I have reached to the stage where there are no tasks being assigned..lots of amount in the bank and in hand. Now just moving from one port ot another..buying and selling, fighting with pirates but no new task by any governer of any port.
At which stage the story mode would be considered as completed or Won?
Hi,
IMHO, the game ends after having beaten the final mission…
All the best
Tam Hanna
Looks worth a try, I think it is available on Windows Mobile as well.