In an upcoming update, Sea of Thieves will add a feature that charges players in-game money every time they die. The death tax is not live yet, but once it’s activated, players will owe gold to the Captain of the Ferry of the Damned upon death.
When news of the death tax first surfaced, many players took to Reddit on a couple threads to criticize the new feature, particularly in the context of “griefing,” which is a less-than-honorable tactic used by some players to seek out pointless fights and kill other players multiple times by waiting for them to respawn. Thankfully, Rare has assured players griefing in Sea of Thieves will not be inflamed by the death tax. In the release notes, Rare specified players will not be charged a fee for PvP-related deaths.
“We understand that this addition to the release notes was a little confusing, and in the future we will ensure that any future updates we discuss give you a better understanding of how and why we’re implementing it,” said Rare. “Sea of Thieves is constantly evolving, and any feature we will test, monitor data, and listen to your feedback to ensure we’re making the right decisions.”
So how much will the death tax cost you? No one knows yet, but the developers noted the Captain of the Ferry of the Damned will charge you more if the manner in which you died was particularly “avoidable.” Players like me who somehow die in the dumbest ways possible better be wary once this feature is enabled. Rare has not shared when the death tax will go live, but we will keep you posted.
Sea of Thieves is available now for Xbox One and PC.
