While many pirates are real-life historical figures that have appeared throughout history since ancient times, fictional versions of pirates have been appearing in video games for several decades. Whether they be protagonists, antagonists, somehow both, allies, common enemies, or something in between, there's no shortage of pirates appearing in video games.
Their space-faring counterparts, understandably known as space pirates, have appeared in plenty of video games as well. These days, space pirates seem to appear a bit more often due to many recently released games belonging to the science fiction and science fantasy genres, taking place in expansive fictional galaxies.
10 Cosmic Pirate
Possibly one of the first games to revolve around space piracy, Cosmic Pirate launched for the Amiga, Atari 8-Bit, Atari ST, Commodore 64, and the ZX Spectrum. Cosmic Pirate is a top-down shooter where the player's goal is to seize control of a space truck and its cargo. Unlike later similar games, Cosmic Pirate only has one ship for players to use, and it looks a bit more like a futuristic hockey punk than an actual spaceship. Other than shooting with the equipped guns, players can also pick up bombs and shields from enemies, which they can then use to help them fight against other enemies.
9 Ratchet & Clank Future: Quest For Booty
The sixth Ratchet & Clank game and the second to use the Ratchet & Clank Future name, Ratchet & Clank: Quest For Booty, sees Ratchet and Talwyn seeking out a space pirate named Captain Angstrom Darkwater, so they can get information on how to get in touch with a mysterious alien species known as the Zoni, who had taken Clank with them at the end of the previous game, Ratchet & Clank: Tools Of Destruction. Quest For Booty is also a notably shorter experience than the games in the main series that preceded it and only had a physical release in Europe and Australia.
8 Chronicles Of Riddick: Assault On Dark Athena
A spin-off based on the Chronicles Of Riddick film series and the sequel to Escape From Butcher Bay, Assault On Dark Athena is a first-person shooter where Riddick must escape a mercenary vessel known as the Athena, which has been taken over by a character named Gale Revas, who has the crew engage in space piracy. Like the previous game, Vin Diesel once again reprises his role as Riddick, and the game also features Michelle Forbes and Lance Henriksen playing original characters. The game also had a multiplayer mode, likely due to the rising popularity of first-person shooters at the time of release.
7 Rayman 2: The Great Escape
The sequel to the original Rayman, Rayman 2: The Great Escape, switches from a 2D platformer to a 3D platformer. Rayman 2 sees Rayan's world invaded by the Robo-pirates, a group of space pirates who have a track record of destroying planets and enslaving their citizens. The leader of the Robo-Pirates, Admiral Razorbeard, also appears alongside Henchman 800 as playable characters in Rayman Arena. Rayman 2: The Great Escape also had several remakes that all go by different names, such as Rayman Revolution for the PlayStation 2, Rayman DS for the Nintendo DS, and Rayman 3D for the Nintendo 3DS.
6 No Man's Sky
No Man's Sky, the procedurally generated space-faring survival game from Hello Games known for its botched launch and redemption story through the various post-release updates it has received, features space pirates that will attack the player when they're using their ship to fly around the galaxy. Players can also engage in space piracy themselves by taking down non-hostile ships and stealing their cargo, although ships themselves cannot be stolen.
Players don't have to face other ships alone either, as No Man's Sky features co-op where players can team up to shoot down other ships and hopefully avoid their own demise.
5 Rebel Galaxy Outlaw
Rebel Galaxy Outlaw, a prequel to the sci-fi space simulator Rebel Galaxy, sees the aunt of the player character from the first game, Juno Markev, deal with numerous individuals around the seedy underworld of the galaxy. The gameplay differs from its predecessor in that outlaw in that players have more control of their ship and can engage in dogfights from a first-person perspective. A key feature that helps Rebel Galaxy Outlaw stand out among other games in the genre is that all ships can use an auto pursuit mode which will automatically follow the player's target so that they don't lose sight of it.
4 Metroid: Zero Mission
While the Space Pirates of the Metroid series first appeared in Super Metroid, they were also included in Metroid: Zero Mission, a remake of the first Metroid that replaced its predecessor in terms of canon and also borrowed some aspects of its story from a Japan-exclusive gamebook called Metroid: Zebes Invasion Order.
The Space Pirates from this series may be less conventional than what most players would expect space pirates to be like, but they still engage in space piracy from time to time. Zero Mission marks not only the first time Samus herself encountered the Space Pirates in canon but also the first time she defeated them.
3 Flinthook
Flinthook is an indie title with roguelike elements that has players controlling the titular character and adventuring through various procedurally generated enemy ships across the Mermaidon Galaxy while fighting against other pirates and finding treasure along the way. While Captain Flinthook doesn't wield a cutlass or any kind of traditional or laser sword, he has a blaster pistol that can shoot in any direction and the power to slow down time temporarily. Captain Flinthook also has a grappling hook that can help him speedily traverse around each room as well as allow him to enter any other room that has been unlocked.
2 Rogue Galaxy
Level-5's PlayStation exclusive JRPG Rogue Galaxy has several similarities to the Disney animated film Treasure Planet, the most apparent of which is that both feature spaceships with the appearance of nautical ships. Rogue Galaxy also has some similarities to the main series of Star Wars films in that the main character Jaster Rogue lives on a desert planet and wishes to leave it so he can explore the galaxy. Although he aspires to be a space pirate rather than a Jedi, he still helps fight against an empire alongside the crew of quirky characters he gathers throughout the course of the game.
1 Treasure Planet: Battle At Procyon
While Treasure Planet isn't the most successful animated Disney film, it did spawn several video games. The first two, both titled Treasure Planet, are based on the movie's events, while the PC exclusive third game Treasure Planet: Battle At Procyon, serves as a sequel that takes place five years later. In Battle At Procyon, the main character Jim Hawkins is now a Navy cadet, who helps the navy face-off against the Procyon Fleet, a dangerous group of space pirates. Battle At Procyon is also an excellent pick for fans of the world-building in the film since it expands on the universe that it introduced.