Sea of Thieves: 2026 Edition

Released Jun 2020

Sea of Thieves is a smash-hit pirate adventure game, offering the quintessential pirate experience of plundering lost treasures, intense battles, vanquishing sea monsters and more. Dive in with this revised edition of the game, which includes access to digital bonus media.

88% positive · 373K reviews

Not yet

Released, ongoing live service game

High confidence

Live Service

Not yet

Released, ongoing live service game

High confidence

Live Service

Where to buy

Steam Updated 12 Oct 2026 $39.99

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Evaluation

Sea of Thieves is a fully live-service pirate adventure game that has been continuously expanding since its Steam launch on June 3, 2020. The store description explicitly calls it "a service-based game that's still growing and evolving," with new Seasons bringing content every three months alongside regular in-game Events and a Season Pass featuring progression rewards. The seasonal cadence has continued without interruption: Season 18 launched December 12, 2025; Season 19 on March 19, 2026; and Season 20 on June 18, 2026. A March 2026 Community Direct confirmed the team was actively refining their content delivery approach — replacing the three-Act structure with a richer live Events calendar and custom server toolset called Custom Seas — framing these changes as improvements to better serve players, not a wind-down. The developers explicitly noted that Custom Seas is "a platform for us to build upon" and teased further updates to its features based on player feedback. Most recently, a patch (version 3.8.1) shipped on July 23, 2026, adding improvements to Custom Seas and gameplay systems, confirming the game remains under active development as of today's date (August 18, 2026). The July 23 patch also previewed upcoming in-game events scheduled for mid-August 2026, further confirming the live content cycle is ongoing. The 2026 Edition branding reflects a refreshed version of the base game released in April 2026, bundled with digital bonus content. All listed DLC items are released bonus media (soundtracks, an audiobook, and cosmetic bundles) consistent with the game's live-service model rather than a defined content endpoint. This game is designed to grow indefinitely through its seasonal model.

Evidence

Patch 3.8.1 shipped with Custom Seas improvements, gameplay balancing, commendation updates, and in-game events scheduled for August 2026, confirming active development as of late July 2026.

news post · Jul 23, 2026 source development ongoing

high

Season 20 launched with the Custom Seas toolset, an overhauled Season Pass, new Seasonal Deeds, and a packed live Events calendar. Developer noted Custom Seas is 'a platform for us to build upon' with ongoing feature work based on player feedback.

news post · Jun 18, 2026 source development ongoing

high

Content

6 of 6 released · no outstanding content

Released

Sea of Thieves: 2026 Deluxe Bundle

Apr 2026

Released

Sea of Thieves: 2026 Premium Bundle

Apr 2026

Media

Details

Developer

Rare Ltd

Publisher

Xbox Game Studios

Achievements

293

Platform

Windows

Controller

partial support

Steam Deck

Verified

Players

Multiplayer · Co-op · PvP

Open World Adventure Pirates Sailing Action First-Person Exploration Naval PvE Funny Massively Multiplayer FPS Atmospheric Swordplay Great Soundtrack

About this game

Sea of Thieves offers the essential pirate experience, from sailing and fighting to exploring and looting – everything you need to live the pirate life and become a legend in your own right. With no set roles, you have complete freedom to approach the world, and other players, however you choose.

Whether you’re voyaging as a group or sailing solo, you’re bound to encounter other crews in this shared world adventure – but will they be friends or foes, and how will you respond?

A Vast Open World

Explore a vast open world filled with unspoiled islands and underwater kingdoms. Take on quests to hunt for lost loot, forge a reputation with the Trading Companies and battle foes from Phantoms and Ocean Crawlers to Megalodons and the mighty Kraken. Try your hand at fishing, make maps to your own buried treasure or choose from hundreds of other optional goals and side-quests!

A Game That’s Always Growing

With each Season bringing in new game features every three months alongside regular in-game Events, Sea of Thieves is a service-based game that’s still growing and evolving. Check back regularly to see what free content has been newly added, and see how far you can climb through each Season’s 50 levels of Renown to earn special rewards.

Become Legend

On your journey to become a Pirate Legend you’ll amass loot, build a reputation and define a unique personal style with your hard-earned rewards. Adventurer. Explorer. Conqueror. What will your legend be?

Sea of Thieves: Premium Edition

The 2026 Premium Edition includes:

All the content in the Base and Deluxe Editions
Cardinal Lodestar Cat, Costume Set, Flag, Hull, Figurehead, Sails, Cannons, Cannon Flare, Capstan, Wheel, Collector’s Figurehead, Collector’s Sails and Ship’s Crest
1000 Ancient Coins for use in the Pirate Emporium

Sea of Thieves: Deluxe Edition

The 2026 Deluxe Edition includes:

All the content in the Base Edition
Sovereign Hat, Dress, Jacket, Boots, Belt, Trousers and Gloves
Cardinal Lodestar Pistol, Blunderbuss, Eye of Reach, Cutlass, Double Barrel Pistol, Throwing Knives, Grapple Gun and Blowpipe
10,000 gold to spend in the Outpost shops

Sea of Thieves

The 2026 Base Edition includes:

The full game

Additional digital bonuses* include access to the Sea of Thieves Original Soundtrack – 2026 Edition, the Sea of Thieves: Athena's Fortune audiobook and The Rough Guide to Sea of Thieves eBook

* Available to download from Sea of Thieves /bonuses (website login required) or via Steam.