Ports of Call

Each player founds his own shipping company, with a starting capital of $4 million to buy ships. Freight and ports of call can be chosen continuously from offers on the market. Then the captain chooses an economic travelling speed and casts off to encounter many adventures on the high seas.
After unloading his cargo, the captain is credited with the agreed payment. Then he may refuel, make necessary repairs, and so on. The next job is to find a new, lucrative cargo, buy further ships, and/or repay his mortgages; in other words, he must have a more productive company than his competitors.
The strategy of the game is flexible. A rogue will try to make a quick buck by using cheap ships and juggling the freight rates to force his competitors into bankruptcy. The careful player, in contrast, will build a solid financial foundation. The superior speed of his high-tech fleet will enable him to snap up the more lucrative contracts.
Any strategy is deemed to fail if you don't have a good captain to bring your ship across the world's stormy seas.
The formulas for ship movement have been calculated so that ships respond to changes in speed and movements of the rudder as in the real world. It is recommended that the beginner does not start with ships that are too large. These are slow to respond and, as such, require a more experienced captain. The ship's movement at sea is accelerated. The captain, however, must select the correct speed. Fuel consumption depends on the time at sea and the weather conditions. Determination of the economic travelling speed depends on fuel prices and freight rates. Hence, you can see that a captain's decisions also have an influence on the success of the company.
The credit rating of an enterprise is very dependent on its social status. The more ports served by a line, the higher the status. And an owner who is operating modern, expensive ships has a naturally better standing than the owner of a rusty, floating wreck. The captain's conduct also affects a company's credit.
A player's chances of success improve the more he knows about international shipping. All data for the game originated from actual developments in the maritime world: the fluctuation of freight rates, refueling costs, port charges, and ship operating costs. The ship operating costs include amounts payable for tax, management, crew expenses, safety precautions, and other costs_these vary significantly from country to country. These general costs are calculated for each individual ship and are reduced in accordance with the subsidies, tax reductions, etc., that are valid in the country of registration. The accounts are then automatically debited periodically, without on screen display to the owner.
Ship prices are the same for all ship owners. However, in reality, ship building is subsidized differently in each country; therefore, a compensatory figure is included in the basic costs.
In summary, Ports of Call has been developed with this motto in mind: "Software with Hard Facts."

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