An open-world, single-player pirate RPG that you may soon be able to try for free – provided luck is on your side. NetEase has announced the first closed beta of Sea of Remnants, though access will be anything but straightforward.

There are many projects announced during late-night events that we then hear little or nothing about for years, and Sea of Remnants is one of them. NetEase Games’ project was unveiled in 2025 during a State of Play presentation, featuring a highly intriguing concept: an open-world pirate game with a cartoonish, almost puppet-like aesthetic, yet with a strong focus on RPG mechanics and turn-based combat. It is an exceptionally promising title that will soon be playable, as the Chinese team plans to launch its first closed beta next February.

The Wanderer Alpha Test will be a closed, limited trial designed as a prologue to the full experience. According to the developers, it will be available exclusively on PC via Steam and will support Japanese, Chinese, and English languages, a factor that may complicate access for many players.

Getting into the test will not be easy either. The registration period opens on January 8, 2026, and closes on January 23, while the test itself will run from February 5 to 12. NetEase will be highly selective when choosing participants. Players can request access via X through a lottery-style system that requires following and commenting on a specific post. Access can also be requested through the official website, Discord, or Reddit, although the process is somewhat more complex through these channels.

What Is Sea of Remnants?

In any case, it is worth explaining what the project is actually about. Although the game features an open-world structure similar to Sea of Thieves, Sea of Remnants is built on a strong narrative foundation. Players take on the role of a sailor who awakens without memories in the Sea of Oblivion and sets out to recover the lost fragments of his past. While the tone and themes may evoke Rare’s title, this game is neither cooperative nor multiplayer – it is a purely single-player role-playing adventure.

The game offers a vast oceanic world where players can freely sail, explore uncharted islands, and engage in combat both on land and at sea. Beyond the main storyline and key encounters on the high seas, a variety of minigames are included, designed to be enjoyed between voyages, offering a glimpse into the everyday side of pirate life and enhancing the game world’s atmosphere.

The most striking aspect lies in its gameplay approach. Sea of Remnants moves away from real-time action – although this remains present against certain low-level enemies – and, unlike many of its contemporaries, adopts a turn-based tactical combat system reminiscent of titles like Persona. There is no free movement around the battlefield to seek better positioning; instead, combat consists of classic head-to-head encounters, featuring skills, dynamic attack sequences, and fluid animations.

This is a project well worth keeping an eye on, even if its first test does not make access easy. Whether players manage to enter the alpha or not, Joker Studio, known for Identity V, has confirmed that Sea of Remnants will be released at some point in 2026, although a specific release date has yet to be announced.

Source: 3djuegos