The Game of LIFE - Pirates of the Caribbean Edition

Yo Ho! Yo Ho! A Pirate's LIFE for Me.

Just like recent versions of Monopoly and Clue, this is another great Disney-themed game. I was really excited to see The Game of LIFE - Pirates of the Caribbean Edition.

I remember playing the original game of LIFE. I always wanted a carload of kids and I always wanted to be a doctor or a lawyer. So when I opened the instructions to the Pirates version of LIFE, I was overwhelmed. You cannot have a carload of kids. There are actually no kids. As far as professions, you choose being either a deck hand or a sailor (your decision will affect your share of the loot and potentially the amount of money you have to pay out when you land on LIFE spaces throughout the game).

Upon removing the game board from its metal container, you have to unfold it to set it up -- snapping the mountains into place and adding the spin wheel. Unfortunately, you have to disassemble all of the pieces and fold up the board to put them back in the tin. Instead of different colored cars, like in the original version of the game, player's pieces are ships with different colored flags.

I opened the board and it is awesome. There are hidden Mickeys and subtle Disney references. The players' pieces are pirate ships. The money is pirate money. The first time I played the game, I had to keep the instructions out and even then it was difficult to understand how the game was supposed to be played. Some parts were similar to the original game. Other parts were different.

Not golden doubloons but the skull and crossbones made the "loot" fun to collect. You have to try to get as much of it as you can so that you have more than other players upon reaching Treasure Island.

The second time I played, it was a lot more fun. I did not have to rely on the instruction manual. I really got to enjoy the game. A lot of the pictures on the cards are related to the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction, and to a lesser extent, the feature film. For example, one of the cards has a picture of the jail scene with the dog with the key in his mouth.

Some of the game cards used in The Game of LIFE - Pirates of the Caribbean Edition. There are spaces on the board that require you to select a mascot (left), a captain (center) or a LIFE card (right). The cards are well themed to Disney's pirate worlds, with mascots being various animals throughout the attraction or from the movie, captains are famous pirates, and LIFE cards featuring artist's renderings of favorite ride scenes.

The one negative thing about this game is the clean up. I had to take the mountains off the board. All in all, Pirates of the Caribbean LIFE was a fun game. The design of the board and pieces are great. The game moves smoothly once you get a firm understanding of the rules. It's another fun game for everyone.

There are a ton of Disney references and honors on the game board, from pictures of Ariel from The Little Mermaid and Monstro from Pinocchio to the names of nautical-themed attractions like Typhoon Lagoon and the Seven Seas Lagoon. This picture of the Isla de Miguelito (Mickey Island) features the names of several Imagineers who worked on the attraction, as well as the date of the opening of Walt Disney World.

-Story by Kathy Walker; Graphics ©Disney and Milton Bradley.
Posted October 29, 2004

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