Metascore
52 out of 100

Mixed or average reviews - based on 34 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 34
  2. Negative: 15 out of 34
  1. 85
    One of the few film-based games I have not been able to put down. A love for the films aside, this game is excellent and despite its one or two faults (basic enemies, and occasionally sluggish frame rates) it is certainly one you will have to play.
  2. The game is combat-intensive which is the least fun part of the game. The multiplayer is splendid, though.
  3. A straightforward hack-and-slash adventure, and not a very clever one at that.
  4. 70
    Despite the wacky camera and the must-have-at-all-costs treasures, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dean Man's Chest is a game worthy of a few stolen hours while sitting on a deck sunning yourself as you listen to the waves roll by.
  5. It's simpler than a deck swabber what's spent too much time in the sun, but this one is surprisingly fun and charming for a game-to-movie tie-in.
  6. Easily one of the biggest problems with Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest is the fact that the game is way too short. The game can easily be completed in less than six hours of playtime, and there really is no reason for a replay, either-- no unlockables or anything.
  7. It's most successful at emulating the film's atmosphere, particularly with wise-cracking Jack Sparrow taking centre stage, but the gameplay feels unambitious and ultimately stuck in a rut.
  8. The spirit of the source material is there in the presentation, and the multiplayer is a pleasant surprise, but the single-player experience is too stiflingly repetitive to ignore.
  9. While the sword-slashing provies a bit of fun, glitchy graphics and repetitive action sever any lasting appeal. [Sept 2006, p.68]
  10. Predictable and repetitive adventuring that's rescued by an engaging lead character and excellent mini-games. [Sept 2006, p.84]
  11. 60
    Dead Man's Chest had the makings of a good, maybe even great, portable pirate adventure. Unfortunately, poor execution and shoddy control sabotages much of the experience.
  12. The PSP version of Dead Man's Chest is quite literally a game of two halves, with fairly satisfying (if frustrating) single-player experience, and quite frankly abysmal multiplayer experience. The combat system is quite an interesting idea that staves off repetition for a little while, but ultimately it's a game that doesn't offer any real chance for replayability.
  13. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest has all the components of a great game and a movie tie-in, but with such a heavy focus on combat, the designers really needed to polish the combat engine and balance things out for the overwhelming odds they throw at you.
  14. Enjoyable in short doses, but too repetitive an annoying to really succeed. [Sept 2006, p.69]
  15. Although the world is fresh and visually enjoying they stick to the basics and wrap this movie adaptation into an average hack n' slash package.
  16. It's surprising that none of the developers noticed the glaring issues in the game. This is really too bad as the multiplayer is actually a lot of fun and a bright spot in this otherwise piece of garbage.
  17. 52
    The multi-player will amuse you for a while, if you've got the patience to load it, but otherwise you'd be better off getting soused on rum. [Issue 143, p.88]
  18. At best it is a mediocre few hours of play and at worst it is a slap in the face of Goldeneye on the Nintendo 64.
  19. Ultimately, it's a good, pirate-heavy distraction but, thanks to the game's repetitiveness, it won't do much to keep your attention past the first few levels. [Oct. 2006, p.91]
  20. There simply aren't enough positive elements to the presentation of this game to compensate for the repetitive battle and wonky camera.
  21. A cool multiplayer can't make up for the rest of this totally uninspired, cookie-cutter rush job masquerading as a pirate adventure. Alone, this pirate is a dud. But find some fellow captains and a few pints o' Jack's rum, and you've got yourself a parrrty, mate.
  22. Aside from the brief diversion of the multiplayer mode there's little to enjoy here. Dead Man's Chest is the very definition of a lazy licence - so routine, clunky and mechanical that it's as soulless as a ghost pirate.
  23. The repetition of the combat means that sore thumbs – and an underused brain – are the main enemy of Dead Man's Chest.
  24. The ship battling multiplayer game is a lot more fun than I had imagined it would be, but this alone isn't worth shelling out for.
  25. Keep your coffers shut and do not contemplate putting this in your UMD drive – tis utter rubbish, for sure.
  26. You should be able to beat the game in an afternoon. [Oct 2006, p.84]
  27. 40
    A poor movie to game adaptation (yes, another one) that has repetitive gameplay and no redeeming features. Johnny Depp has never been in anything so boring.
  28. Multiplayer is better, but it'd be the scurvy dog indeed that talked his friends into buying this cash-in.
  29. 40
    A feature-rich mediocre game. I can't really recommend it to anyone other than people with a scary obsession over Mr. Depp and fans of the movie that are willing to bear any hardship to play as Jack Sparrow.
  30. Sparrow is capable of light and heavy sword swipes, but specific enemies are damaged only if you use the "correct" combination of moves on them. It's a restrictive and highly repetitious system that drains much of the fun out of combat.
  31. Does almost everything wrong including bad execution, a weak combat system that isn't very engaging, object interaction that isn't very responsive, uninspired enemies, framerates that stutter, a total lack of presentation, a camera system that sometimes interferes with gameplay. The only real redeeming qualities of this PSP title is multiplayer.
  32. It's Dragon's Lair disguised as a brawler. There are a few extraneous bits like endurance arenas (beat them all to unlock the final boss!) and ship-based multiplayer combat (also not terribly well thought-out) but they can't distract from the fact that the core brawling gameplay is an absolute mess.
  33. Like a waterlogged corpse afloat in a handheld sea, Jack Sparrow's PSP adventure stinks. [Sept. 2006, p.100]
  34. You'll hope developers like Amaze don't go within 100 miles of a movie license ever again, and pray that BVG has the good sense to try harder next time. Consider yourself warned.
User Score

Generally favorable reviews- based on 14 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 4
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 4
  3. Negative: 1 out of 4
  1. ZemZega
    8
    A suprisingly fun game, it's not very deep, but tons of fun. definetaly worth a purches now that it's price is so low thanks to at worlds end. Full Review »
  2. LeeU.
    9
    Pirates of the Caribbean (POTC) for the PSP is a great game. I found the graphics for the game beautiful; it’s easily one of the better looking games on the psp platform. Jack Sparrow looks great, his animations are well done and they even managed to get his silly walk and mannerisms in. The sword fighting is fun, easy to figure out and still challenging, especially when so many enemies keep coming at you. Plus you get some really cool pirate moves like head butts, kicks to the groin, smashing bottles over the heads of enemies and throwing molotov **** (did they have those then?). All of which made for a very satisfying experience. Too top it all off, the game has a really cool multiplayer game that is completely different from the single player. Instead of playing Jack Sparrow in some strange multiplayer fighting experience. The people who made the game went with a ship-to-ship cannon battle at sea challenge. You get to pick one of five ships (I saw something that says you can even get the Black Pearl, not sure though). You can then sail your ship around the sea and attack your opponents (both real or Ai). There are some really fun pickups to use. One even turns your ship invisible! Depending the game mode you choose, at the end of each round you can upgrade your ship with the points you earned sinking the other ships. You can increase your speed; add more cannons, more armor and so on. The multiplayer version allows you to play with up to four players in game share mode (game share allow you to have up to four psp's playing the game, but you only need one copy of the game, very cool feature!!) While most movie based games suffer from a host of bad game mechanics and short play times. This game does pretty well to avoid that. It doesn’t succeed 100% in avoiding this problem, but it appears the makers of the game worked hard to find a way to avoid this pitfall. Overall, I think this game is a pretty solid title and worth picking up if you have any interest in pirate fighting and ship battles with cannons. Full Review »
  3. PhilJ.
    10
    The multiplayer portion of this game is absolutely fantastic! The action is fast paced and "Plunder the Flag" is incredibly fun with four players. The full game works over gameshare, so you can play a four player game with only one copy of the game! (IF you can find 3 other people with PSPs) The single player is good, too, with challenging puzzles and Johnny Depp really shines through in the voice acting. The enemies were unique and offer a glimpse into what the movie will have to offer, and the end boss battle was awesome! The graphics work really well for the game and you find yourself getting emerged in the game play a lot. Full Review »