Uncharted Waters

Uncharted Waters (大航海時代, Daikoukai Jidai) is the first game of the Uncharted Waters series. Its Super Nintendo port in Japan is called Super Daikoukai Jidai.

Kou Shibusawa's goal for this game was to let players re-enact the romance and adventure of the Age of Exploration. Noriyoshi Ourai illustrated the game's cover. Music was composed by Yoko Kanno.

Gameplay

 * See also Uncharted Waters/Legend

The game starts on February 21, 1502. The protagonist is a 16th century Portuguese navigator. The player can name him, re-roll his starting stats, and name their flagship. Default names will be used if the player declines to input their own.

His goal is to restore his family's lost prestige. The player is free to accomplish this by exploring new lands, trading goods, or fighting other fleets to gain Fame.

Fame increases by investing in ally ports, fulfilling requests at the Guild, sinking ships from Spain or the Ottoman Empire, or carrying out royal commands from the King of Portugal; it drops if the player fails missions, loses battles or refuses a royal command. Fame affects the protagonist's rank which broadens his political and trading influences. The max cap for Fame is 50,000.

Higher ranked protagonist can gradually befriend the Portuguese royalty. Marrying Princess Christiana will then become the main goal for winning the game.

Ports
Before the player can set sail, they are expected to prepare at least one ship and a seaworthy crew.

Gold is required for funding the protagonist's adventures. It can be earned by selling goods that are in demand at other ports, as random loot while sailing, or winning Blackjack in the port's Inn. Up to 60,000 Gold can be held at a time.

The four essential consumables for sailing are: Food, Water, Crew, and Lumber. Crew can be recruited in Inns with a gold fee and can affect the effectiveness of a ship's performance. Food and Water maintain the crew while sailing. Lumber is used for emergency repairs for damaged ships at sea. These supplies can be restored at most ports.

Ships can be named, purchased, sold, and repaired at the port's Harbor. Cargo and crew can also be transferred between docked ships. As the player gains more Gold and Fame, they can assign their personal fleet.

If the player wishes to play like a merchant, they will need to visit the Marketplace for goods. Haggling can potentially slice purchasing costs, but the discount is reliant on the protagonist's current rank. Current market trends can be checked at the Lodge.

Investing in a port's trade economy or ship industry raises the protagonist's affinity with Portugal and lowers his ties with Spain and the Ottoman Empire. If the protagonist is considered an enemy to a particular nation, they may be barred from entering that nation's port unless they bribe the guard with Gold. Hostility gradually decreases over time.

Most ports have other facilities that provide the player with services for maintaining the protagonist's fleet, though a supply port has no other facilities other than the harbor.

Lisbon is the protagonist's home and their initial starting point. This port has a bank which is open to Gold withdrawals or deposits; it's advised to store excess Gold here before facing enemy waters. Higher ranked protagonists will be given royal commands from the King of Portugal such as importing certain goods, delivering letters, finding randomly generated treasures, or eliminating specific fleets.

Treasures are acquired in two ways: finding them on the map or defeating their current owners. Information on their whereabouts can be gathered at the Inn, though some backtracking may occur especially if the treasure is in the hands of roving pirates.

Exploration
Port departures transitions to the open seas. The player is free to navigate their ship/fleet anywhere they desire; prior knowledge of history and geography can be helpful for remembering the locations of ports. Navigation takes up time and resources; even an idle ship will drain away supplies. It's advised to prepare with a surplus of supplies for long journeys.

When sailing, the player must constantly be aware of their surroundings. Water currents vary between regions and may entrap unwary fleets. Wind direction change yearly, and may speed up or slow down ships. The model of a ship affects its durability, cargo space, and sailing speed.

Three types of oceans in the game: temperate, arctic, and tropical. Temperate oceans are commonplace in Europe and have little to no currents. Arctic oceans reside at the very ends of the world map, have dangerous currents, and offer few ports to sustain the player's ship(s). Tropical oceans have the strongest currents and are rife with natural disasters.

Weather conditions are randomized and may play a hand in hampering ships.
 * Typhoons - Ships lose control and drift in random directions until the storm ends. Results in ship damage and loss crewmen. Often occurs in tropical waters.
 * Seaweed - Ships will get stuck to seaweed and receive damage. In the worst case scenario, the player may be forced to scuttle the entangled ship in order to move out. Common in East Asia or the Arctic.
 * Mysterious Disappearance - Ships sailing near the Bermuda Triangle will suddenly disappear, taking their entire crew and cargo with them. The effects of this disaster are irreversible.

Sailing and discovering new ports increases the protagonist's levels. A single day of sailing is worth 10 experience points. Higher levels grants a bonus increase to the ship's overall endurance and performance. Other navigators can be hired at the Inn to perform similar feats.

Battle
Battles occur if aggression is declared between the protagonist's fleet and an enemy fleet; either side may proclaim conflict. Ambushing enemy fleets will always have the preemptive strike whereas an ambushing protagonist's fleet has a 50-50 chance to do the same.

The battle screen is set on a grid-shaped map. Each side can deploy up to five vessels including the flagship. The protagonist's fleet is green while the enemy is red. Ships are sunk if their crewmen count or hull durability hits zero. Conflict can only occur during the day, giving combatants a limited number of turns to declare a victor before sundown.

Victory is obtained by sinking the enemy' flagship or forcing the enemy retreat. Defeat occurs if the protagonist's fleet is forced to retreat; the game prematurely ends if the protagonist's flagship is sunk.

Terrain has an impact on the flow of battle and varies depending on the current vicinity.


 * Deep Sea - Default. No obstructions.
 * Sand Bar - A shallow bank of water. Obstructs movement for large ships.
 * Coral Reef and/or Island- Obstructs movement for all ships.

The supplies and booty of defeated enemy fleets goes to the protagonist's fleet, as long as the ship(s) have enough cargo space. There are two types of enemy fleets: merchant fleets and warships. Merchant fleets are smaller and easier to dispatch, but offer slim rewards. Warships are harder to sink yet have a higher chance of carrying precious cargo that can be sold at Guilds.

A disgruntled ally navigator may defect and take their vessel with them. The most effective methods of preventing this is by winning battles and treating the crew to a round of drinks at Inns. Resting at ports at regular intervals keeps crew loyalty high.

If the player keeps attacking vessels owned by the three major powers, they will eventually be deemed a pirate and become a target for constant retaliation.

Characters

 * Leon Franco
 * Rocco Alemkel
 * King of Portugal (王マヌエル, King Manuel) - Leon's liege and the ruler of Lisbon. He becomes the player's patron once they earn a proper rank for the first time.
 * Princess Christiana (クリス, Chris) - Leon's love interest who 14 years old. Originally betrothed to a prince from Spain, she may choose to marry the protagonist if they have courted her repeatedly. Near the game's finale, she is kidnapped by Turkish pirates and must be rescued for the story to end..

Differences between ports

 * The PC version includes a more detailed interface for navigation. This trend would be applied to the sequel and it spin-off.
 * Event stills for port facilities are found in the PC and Genesis versions.
 * Voice acting is included in the X68000 port.
 * The mobile port keeps the protagonist's stats fixed while giving two of the recruitable mates, Fernando and Marco, their own scenarios.
 * The Classic Game version has updated graphics for character portraits, areas, and event stills.

Expansions/Spin-offs

 * Mobile Daikoukai Jidai

Related Media
One guidebook for the game was published by KOEI on February 1991. A soundtrack CD includes game music and an original image song. This vocal song was reprinted onto Koei Soundware Vocal Collections Vol. 1.

Image Song

 * PRINCESS CHRIS
 * Performed by Keiko


 * Nanatsu no Umi he (SEVEN SEAS)
 * Performed by Kumi Sano