Special Pirate101 Interview with Tom Purdue!

Ahoy Pirates!

I have a nice surprise interview for all of ye pirates today. I interviewed Tom Purdue, our Pirate101 community manager, again through email! I'm a very happy pirate today because Tom accepted another interview I wanted to have with him. This interview is based on the new books/worlds (book 13) Marleybone and (book 14) Aquila. I hope all of ye enjoy this special interview.

 Question 1: Pirate101 has two new books/worlds now. I was wondering if it was difficult releasing such a big update to the game. Wizard101 usually releases one new world each huge world update. Was it difficult releasing such a big update on Pirate101? 

Tom Purdue: It was extremely difficult and extremely fun at the same time! We are incredibly proud of this accomplishment and likewise happy that our players are enjoying all of the new content and game improvements. I did like how impressed players were with our hard work. We love hearing feedback from our awesome players.

Question 2: Out of the two new worlds, which one do you like the best. Marleybone or Aquila?

Tom Purdue: Hmmm, isn't that like asking if I like the Peanut Butter more or the Jelly in a Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich? ;) But since I haven't really experienced Aquila to its fullest (I've only dipped my foot into the Aquila content so far and sunk a few ships there), I can't really fairly answer that question yet. Ask me again in a couple of weeks. ;)

Question 3: I've noticed there's been a lot of questions about the recent new Wizard101 bundles. Will Pirate101 get a new bundle based on one of our worlds?

Tom Purdue: There will be new Pirate101 bundles in the future, but I can't speak to any specific plans. World-themed bundles have proven to be a lot of fun in Wizard101, but you never know what kind of creativity our team is possible of. 

Question 4: There are a lot of pirates entering Marleybone for the first time. Do you have any advice to give any pirates getting ready to enter this new world?

Tom Purdue: From what I've seen on the forums and from my own play through the content, make sure you remember to level your companions! It's been a long time since some pirates have even had to think about pressing that "Train" buttons on their companions; you may accidentally let five levels slip by without even considering the power curves of your companions. Beyond that, there is a lot of fantastic advice as well on our amazing fan sites, and if a player is genuinely stuck, it's nice to know they have some helpful players to turn to with strategy guides and even direct quest assistance.

Question 5: Have you tried out Marleybone or Aquila yet? 

Tom Purdue: I'm currently working on Aquila content with my Witchdoctor, but I have plans to play through the new content twice immediately, and then pick back up with my buccaneer in Cool Ranch to finish up the game a third time... then it'll be time to think about my Musketeer or Swashbuckler. I have plans to play through the entire game with each class... and when that's done, I'll do it again (or finally finish off all those side quests I've been sitting on)!

Question 6: There has been so many updates with Pirate101.. one of which being new crown shop items! Do you think we'll ever be ever to gift on Pirate101?

Tom Purdue: Yes! Crown Shop gifting is a highly requested feature, and we continue making strides to bring this to Pirate101.

Question 7: You've been the Pirate101 Community Manager over a year now, out of your days there at Kingsisle, which one would you pick that was your favorite? What did you do that day?

Tom Purdue: My favorite day was back in Beta when we had a party and invited everyone to quest through the entry zones for a few hours, and I was able to have a little fun with the in game messaging system. Although that particular point in time will never be recreated, I just had a blast, and we (as a company) finally were able to see the world as what it would look like on opening day (which was another fine day on the job too). I hope people still remember that event. It was a lot of fun. Any day where I can help players improve their experience or celebrate their successes, I feel I have done a good day's work.

Question 8: Before I post the question, I wanted to tell you I remember that day. It was a lot of fun and of course, you were very funny when you tested out the messaging system! -- When creating the bazaar, why did you choose a rabbit instead of a human merchant? (I love the Rabbit).

Tom Purdue: I'm not sure, and that choice wasn't mine to make, but it was fun watching the artist who sits behind me bring Harvey Deuce to life! I will say one thing, no humanoid quite wears a gold tooth like Harvey!

Question 9: Can you do me a favor and tell everyone at Kingsisle that I love the two new world updates on Pirate101? Also tell them I can't wait to see all of the future worlds/ success on Pirate101!

Tom Purdue: Done and done! Thank you so much for your support of Pirate101 for an official fan site. I know it can be tough work running a fan site and sometimes it can feel like you're putting in a lot of effort, but we truly appreciate your words, and it helps fuel our fire to bring more and better content to Pirate101. To you and all the fans out there, keep up the good work!

Final Question: Thank you so much for accepting this interview! Its great to see you interact so much with Pirate101 players! Do you have anything you would like to say about the rest of the year with Pirate101? 

Tom Purdue: I think that's best summed up by The FrogFather's recent Producer's letter: "... the Team remains fast at work on lots of brand new advanced content, additional improvements, and some pet projects we'll fill you in on a bit later- it should be a banner year and we're very excited about what's in store."

Thank you again Tom, One-Eyed Jack, for this great interview. I'm very glad you accepted and I'm pretty sure a lot of pirates out there in the skyways will enjoy reading this interview! All of you at Kingsisle are the best and I hope you know I love being a fansite owner for the best game ever and can't wait to see all of the great things you have planned for us pirates!