No need to panic: one of Xbox’s biggest open worlds isn’t going anywhere, but its most requested feature is locked behind a paywall. Yesterday, Sea of Thieves officially confirmed the arrival of private servers—but only with a premium subscription.

Rare, the legendary British studio, has found itself in the spotlight this July—and not for reasons it would have wished. Earlier this month, layoffs and cancellations hit Xbox Game Studios, forcing the team to say farewell to Everwild. Many feared this would spell trouble for Sea of Thieves, the studio’s beloved pirate sandbox. To reassure the community, the English team gathered fans for an event unveiling the game’s future and some exciting new features. While Rare avoided going into specifics, they teased promising developments like custom servers and a commitment to keep expanding the game, though the catch is that the most desired feature will only be available through a subscription model.

Custom Seas: Private Servers Only for Subscribers

The headline announcement is Custom Seas, a personalized server system coming in 2026 as part of a premium subscription, though pricing and exact release details are still unknown. With this, players will finally be able to craft their own private worlds in Sea of Thieves. Rare describes the new system as “a powerful yet accessible toolbox” that puts creative power directly into the hands of the community.

Diving deeper, these custom servers let users modify core aspects of the game, such as the weather, enemy difficulty, or player count per ship (up to 16 pirates on a single schooner). Objects, enemies, and environments can be spawned at will, and a cinematic photo mode—similar to the one used by Rare’s own video team—will be included. All of these tools are designed to support player-run events, themed matches, or even entirely new storylines.

This push for customization is part of Rare’s broader strategy to forge stronger community bonds. Among other changes, the studio has removed the Insider program’s NDA, letting members freely stream and discuss test builds. In addition, a new “Seasonal Big Listen” survey will be held to gather feedback on every aspect of the game, from performance and anti-cheat measures to bug fixes and beyond.

Seasons Evolve—More Content, More Momentum

The development team is also revamping the seasonal structure to deliver a more consistent flow of new content. Each three-month season will now open with a fresh world introduction, hit a major narrative event in month two, and wrap up with a renewed sandbox focus. While this shift will mean a brief pause for community events, Rare has confirmed that Community Weekend will return in Season 17 to mark the studio’s 40th anniversary.

Lastly, Custom Seas is being spun off from the standard seasonal schedule to become a standalone project, managed by a dedicated team focused on expanding the Sea of Thieves universe beyond regular content. Rare’s goal is for this feature to become a living, evolving part of the game, and they believe the subscription model is the best way to guarantee its future. “It’s like handing the keys to the world to the players,” the studio says. With that, they’re inviting everyone to imagine a Sea of Thieves with no limits.

Source: 3djuegos