Shiver me timbers me ol' matey! Sid Meier's Pirates ahoy! Pirate-based games have been notable by their absence over the last few years but, thankfully, swashbuckling on the high seas is coming back into fashion. In typical Meier fashion, Pirates won't be representative of any single genre, preferring instead an open structured cocktail of strategy, exploration and role-playing. Such is the life of a pirate.

Pirates will sail across a real-time 3D world, allowing the player to create their own tale of maritime mischief as they go. As your character's beard grows ever bigger and as his limbs are gradually replaced by pegs and hooks, your ranking in the books of pirate history will steadily climb. When you are eventually forced to walk the plank, you'll be presented with your final result. Sounds ace.

Hopefully the new arrangement between Sid Meier and Atari will mean plenty more games of this ilk. In fact, an expansion pack for Civilisation III is already on the way. Civilisation Conquest - a collection of scenarios for the existing game - should be available in December. Perhaps updates to other Meier classics like Colonization and F15 Strike eagle might follow.