Sea Of Thieves Roadmap: Update Schedule & Content

Developer Rare premiered their Preview Event, which detailed a roadmap for their action-adventure sandbox game Sea of Thieves. Season 12 is about to dock later this month, as new players will join the adventures on PlayStation 5 consoles; much more awaits across the horizons in 2024. 

The developer has outlined some key gameplay content, including events, new weapons, tools, features, and plenty of lore coming in the forthcoming Season 13 and 14. We've compiled all the information in this guide on the roadmap for Sea of Thieves, highlighting key content that players can anticipate in 2024.

Sea Of Thieves Roadmap 2024: Schedule & Content

The 2024 Preview Event livestream unpacked some new content in the upcoming update, Season 12, which will be released in April 2024, along with the game's PlayStation 5 port. While Season 12 will add new weapons, equipment, and features to the game, Seasons 13 and 14 have plenty of content and features in store.

As Season 12 will arrive on 30th April 2024, it's unclear to determine the exact release dates for the forthcoming seasons. Given that each season releases approximately every three months, we could anticipate Season 13 around early August and Season 14 possibly in early December 2024.

The developer has also revealed that they have set up a dedicated team focusing on the "health" of the existing game. This team will directly address ongoing and core issues, features, and player experiences by delivering bug fixes and improvements more efficiently.

As mentioned in the 2024 Preview Event, these bug fixes and improvements are to be available to players on a more regular basis, which will be included in the game's monthly updates. This allows their Features team to have time restored to work on developing new gaming content, including events, features, weapons, cosmetics, and more, for Sea of Thieves.

Sea Of Thieves Roadmap 2024: Season 13 & 14 Content & Features

One of the forthcoming features that will be brought to the game this year is Loadout Choices, which could heighten encounters between players to "more dynamic and fun." This feature will only become available in-game once the team has stabilized the game's existing combat system, which they're hard at work to achieve.

Season 13 will primarily be centered around the return of Captain Flameheart and the Burning Blade ship in a revamped World Event; Season 14 will be themed on pirates causing mischief across the Sea of Thieves. The developer will look for ways and improvements for players to "stealth" and "cause mischief" in the open-world sandbox environment.

Players may be able to employ stealth gameplay mechanics like crouching, moving as quietly as possible, or "the ability to hang off the side of an enemy ship." Some of the ideas passed around include hiding and moving inside chests, akin to the cardboard box from Metal Gear Solid, and adding a new tool, the Blowdart, to neutralize enemies aboard ships quietly or to track them.

Traps may be introduced to Sea of Thieves this year, potentially in Season 14, to entrap skeletons or prevent enemy players from boarding their ships. Additionally, the Grapple Gun will be coming soon in-game, which can be utilized for traversal purposes, allowing players to evade enemies or reach inaccessible areas more efficiently and quickly.

The Grapple Gun can also harpoon chests and players or propel themselves to board ships after being fired from cannons. However, it will have unique ammo to use, which, once they've successfully harpooned themselves, the Arrowhead will break off and need to reload the weapon before using it again.

Sea Of Thieves Roadmap 2024: Special Events

The developer confirmed that Captain Flameheart will return to Sea of Thieves for its Season 13 update. Along with the fiery captain's return, the Burning Blade ship will also return as part of a new themed World Event.

Previously, players would have to defeat several waves of enemy Ghost Grunt and Captain Ships before facing the Burning Blade and collecting rewards. In this revamped iteration of the rotating World Event, once they've defeated the Burning Blade ship, they can board the fleet and become a crewmate of the Burning Blade for "a player-created World Event."

The Burning Blade has undergone some reworking as the ship now sports ten cannons, a statue room, a balcony, and a flamethrower attached to the front of the ship. They won't be alone aboard the Burning Blade as they'll have skeleton crews who'll answer their call and help them defeat other player ships or make repairs as they must follow and complete Captain Flameheart's orders.

One of those orders is acquiring the Secrets of the Ancients, for which there'll be Skeleton Camps littered across the islands. Players will engage in new gameplay content like puzzles, exploring temples, and finding treasures, specifically the Orb of Secrets; collecting this new artifact will contribute to their Tribute for the Burning Blade and add more value aboard, which they'll have to defend against enemies.