Fun facts

Funny references in the game. This page may contain spoilers.

BioShock

In the shop on March Harbor the auctioneer will say "Prices so low it's like a circus. A circus of value!" One of the vending machines in Bioshock is notorious for screaming the last part of this in an otherwise quiet atmosphere.

Balboa

In Carbaneras, there is an NPC called Morgan Balboa, who, when you talk to him, tells you "Yes, my name is Balboa. No, he was no relation." Now while some people might take this as a nod to the movie character Rocky Balboa, given the game's setting it's far more likely (although probably intentionally ambiguous) that he talks about the famous explorer Vasco Núñez de Balboa, who was the first European to cross the Isthmus of Panama and see the Pacific Ocean from the American continent.

Cast Away

Still during the mission Falling to Pieces you find yourself marooned on a small island. There's already a cast-away there, and his name is Wilson. This is very probably a reference to the movie "Cast Away" with Tom Hanks.

Crocodile Dundee

The Buccaneers Lv5 Mission offers a reward "Dundee's Dagger" with a description "It's not a knife. It's a shortsword", a play on the Dundee line of similar nature

Doctor Strangelove

The French Magistrate in the Musketeers Without Muskets says mission tells the player "we cannot abide a musket gap", echoing the "Mineshaft Gap" comment in the above movie.

Dune

During the Economy Tutorial early on in the game, you meet a character that utters the line "The goods must flow", which is a reference to Frank Herbert's Dune in which the phrase "The spice must flow" appears regularly.

Escape to Witch Mountain

The name of the mission Escape to Which Mountain? is probably a reference to the 70's Disney movie Escape to Witch Mountain

A Few Good Men

In the Level 50 Freetrader Mission, there is a courtroom scene in which one of the characaters mimics the famous "YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE TRUTH" line from this movie.

Fresh Prince of Bel Air

In the mission Quarantine, the first character is named Willem Schmilder (close name to Will Smith). In one line of text, Willem tells about how he met pirates on the beach, and when he told his mom, she "got scared. She said, 'You're moving in with your auntie and uncle in Bonaire!'" This is almost an exact quote from the theme song of the show.

Gaelic

In one of the early pirates missions (which has since been removed from the game) there's a ship you needed to capture named "Pogue Mahone". This is Gaelic for: "Kiss my arse". "Pogue Mahone" was also the orginal name of Irish band 'The Pogues' until their label forced a change.

General Hospital

In the dark alleys of Tortuga, you may happen across a Level 46 Naval Officer named Lorenzo Alcazar. Lorenzo Alcazar was a mob boss on the hit soap opera General Hospital; that character and his son Diego Alcazar are now deceased, killed by rival mobster Jason Morgan.

Goonies

As a reward for a low level mission (the pirate career mission We Accept You) you receive a pistol named One-Eyed William. When mousing over the item the text "Say hello, Willie", can be seen. This is a quote from Mikey from the 1985 movie "The Goonies". One-Eyed Willie is the fictional, long-dead, pirate who hid a ship full of "rich stuff" in a heavily trapped cave. The discovery of One Eye-Willie's map to the treasure ship is what prompts the Goonies entire adventure, which is the basis of the entire movie.

Hornblower

In the level 25 Naval Officer career mission, "The Examination for Lieutenant", you are asked the same question Horatio Hornblower fails to answer in Forester's "Mr. Midshipman Hornblower". "The Examination For Lieutenant" is also the title of a Hornblower movie.

Indiana Jones

A mission chain from the Academie Building in Pointe-à-Pitre is a spoof of the Indiana Jones film "Raiders of the Lost Ark" and has a similar title

Internet Memes

When you are in a shop if you listen closely you will hear a pirate say "All your ship ARRR belong to us!". This is a obvious reference to the meme "All your base are belong to us".

Latin Quotes

At the end of Get a Clue quest, one of the scholars says that their mentor always told them "Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum viditur". Which means, "Anything in Latin seems profound."
Another Get a Clue scholar's mentor always said "Per ardua ad astra" - "Through adversity (or hardship/struggle) to the stars." This one is interesting because it is the motto of the Royal Air Force and several schools[1].
Another latin quote their mentor always told them: "Quem di diligunt adulescens moritur" - "He whom the gods love dies young"
An incomplete latin phrase you hear from one of them is "Fere libenter homines id quod volunt ... (credunt)" - "As a rule, men willingly believe that which they wish to"
And the final latin quote one of the scholars has always heard from their mentor: "Prior tempore potior iure" - "Earlier in time, stronger in law". This refers to the legal principle that older laws take precedence over more recent ones.

The Man Who Would Be King

The mission The Seaman Who Would Be King is a reference to the film and short story 'The Man Who Would Be King' about two men aspiring to be kings who are afterwards thwarted. The mission is vaguely similar to the plot of the story and its title is word play on the original.

Monkey Island

Delilah Purcell in Port Royal tavern gives a mission line including "Island of the Monkeys" and "Escape from the Island of the Monkeys. The titles most likely reference the Lucas Arts games Monkey Island and Escape from Monkey Island.

Monty Python

In mission "In the Navy" After the fight between Inquisition and Templars, when the French officer boards ship, Your dialogue option say: " Your Guess is as good as mine. I come aboard to talk to Knights of St.John. I did not expect the Spanish Inquisition" and officer replies "of course not. Suprise is one of their main weapons." Its an allusion to Monty Pythons Inquisition skit ( None expects the Spanish inquisition! Our chief weapon is Fear. Fear and Suprise...)
In the port of Cat Island, just outside the shop a stall vendor and customer can be overheard having a conversation much like that which Brian and a stall vendor have in the film Life of Brian.

Musical References

During the naval officer mission Captain by Courtesy, the conversation between the player and the Naval Officer leads to the question of why you are interested in the navy. One of the text responses reads, "I hear that in the navy, you can sail the seven seas!" This is probably a reference to the famous song "In the Navy" by The Village People.
The mission Love is a Battlefield is a reference to the song of the same title popularized by Pat Benatar.
The mission Sympathy for the Demons is very likely a reference to the Rolling Stones song "Sympathy for the Devil" - and for that matter, so is probably the mission A Man of Wealth and Taste
In the mission In Like Flynn, you have to go and see a doctor for advice about romantic matters. This doctor is always called some variation of Philip Love (exact name depends on nationality; in Spain, he's called Felipe Amor). This whole scenario is reminiscent of the song Calling Dr. Love by the band Kiss.
The mission We Aren't the World references the song We Are the World by the charity project U.S.A. for Africa. The joke here being that this mission is the start of the gluttony mission line, while U.S.A. for Africa was formed during the 80s to drum up support for famine-relief efforts in Ethopia.
The mission It's Not Easy Being Green is named after a song Kermit the Frog originally performed during the first season of the T.V. show Sesame Street.

Napoleon Dynamite

In Marsh Harbor, the buccaneer trainer talks about his skills; in particular his "Beat up the navy" skills and how people only want captains with great skills

Patrick O'Brian

The inn in Port Royal is named The Grapes, which is where Stephen Maturin has his London lodgings in the Aubrey/Maturin series by O'Brian.

Peter Pan

Falling to Pieces: you will have to fight a Giant Saltwater Crocodile (a very tough lvl 15 Boss). Now consider that this is the mission where you lose a leg and gain a pegleg instead. This brings to mind the fate of a certain Captain Hook... :)
The Lost Boy is a mission in the RP storyline with a title referencing Peter Pan and/or the movie "The Lost Boys." Also, this quest is to find a character named "Kiefer Northlund" - a possible pun on the fact that Kiefer Sutherland played "David" in the movie.

Princess Bride

The lvl 15 Privateer career mission award, Montoya is a tribute to movie Princess Bride. In movie there is Character named Inigo Montoya, whose father was killed by a man with 6 fingers on his right hand. When he meets his nemesis, he says, "My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die." The sword description in game is "Prepare to die."

Robin Hood

In the mission Grand Turk, when you speak to Stephanus van Meel in the company office, he tells you that a character is "not the Robin of Locksley these simpletons proclaim him to be.

Robocop

The mission title Guns, Guns, Guns! is a direct quote from the movie Robocop when Clarence Bodicker attempts to strong arm a fellow drug dealer.

Shakespeare

In I'll Be Your Foil in Rosignol, you say 'Say you so? Come on' to the Fencing Master. This is from Hamlet (Act 5 Scene 2) where Hamlet fights Laertes.

Shaun Of The Dead

The Strong Drink mission in Villa Hermosa ends with the NPC saying "You appear to have some red on you". This is very similar to a oft-repeated line in the movie Shaun of the Dead, "You've got red on you".

The Simpsons

The Magistrate's Commendation has the following information in the summary: "Magistrates award this to Captains who show outstanding achievement in the field of excellence", the same award Homer Simpson wins in the episode Brother, Can You Spare Two Dimes?.
The Naval Officer mission The Dreaded Rear Admiral is named after a line in the Simpsons episode Treehouse of Horror IV, where Milhouse says "No way, Bart. If I lean over, I leave myself open to wedgies, wet willies, or even the dreaded rear admiral!".

South Park

During the mission "Unforseen Cargo", when you threaten the leader of the French mutineers, one of the mutineers named Remi Laroche will say, "I'll take care of him" and proceeds to attack you. When you kill him, the leader yells, "Oh my god, you killed Remi!", followed by "You bastard!".
When you turn in the mission World of War!, the bartender asks you "Did you save the World... of War! cards?" The dramatic pause is reminiscent of the line from the South Park "World of Warcraft" episode: "This could be the end of the World... of Warcraft."

With great risk comes great reward

When you greet the lady in Whitby for the mission Captains Wanted, she asks you if you're ready for the risk. And you reply with "With great risk comes great reward, or so I've heard.", which is an old saying.

Star Trek

In the mission Love is a Battlefield, when you speak to the Jailor, one of the options you have is "Is that a red shirt you're wearing? You've got no chance at all." This is a reference to the fact that in the original Star Trek, all security personnel wear red shirts, and whenever a security officer that has never been on the show before goes on a mission, that new security officer tends to die.
The Mission Chain of Command, where you interrogate a prisoner, is named, and is the same situation as the Star Trek episode also named Chain of Command. At the end of the mission, the prisoner says "THERE.... ARE.... FOUR.... LAMPS" the same way that picard said "There are four lights", although the situation is switched as Picard was stating the truth, whilst the Prisoner has been broken.

Star Wars

At the end of the mission "Just in Time", you're back in your cabin. You've captured the Ambassador and his crew. You're questioning part of the crew, there's a dialog option: "If this is a Consular ship, then where is the Ambassador!". Which is a reference to the Star Wars opening battle after the Empire captures Princess Leia's Consular ship.

Another likely Star Wars reference - in Port Royal, Shelia Barylett offeres a mission called Blue Harvest (a level 35 mission, meaning it's available from level 30 onwards), which was the fake name used during the production of the third Star Wars movie to disguise the genuine title of the film.

After you've been rescued at the end of Falling to Pieces, there's a final bit where you're in your cabin and have to talk to your ship's surgeon. He tells you that he had to amputate your leg and fit you with a prostetic. One of the dialog options at this point is "NOOOOOOoooooooooo!!". This is another Star Wars reference (end of episode 3).

At Port Royal, Marion Bedell in the tradehouse, says "You've never heard of the "Centennial Osprey"? It's the ship that made the Kingston run in less than twelve hours." an obvious mimicry of one of Han Solo's lines in A New Hope.

In the Freetrader career mission Follow the Money, you have to talk to a number of pirates at one point. With one of them, one of the conversation options is "Aren't you a little short for a pirate?". This is similar to one of Leia's lines in A New Hope.

A quest that Captain Kidd gives is called "Even I get boarded sometimes." This is another reference to Han Solo from A New Hope.

In the quest God's Wrath, Cristin Balino tells you to position your ship outside Tortuga, describing it as "A wretched hive of rum and villainy." This is a nod to the famous Obi-Wan Kenobi quote.

Terminator

In Gold Rushed, when you speak to one of the miners you're rescuing, a chat option is "Come with me if you want to live." This is the phrase said by several of the robots in Terminator who were sent back to help protect Sarah or John Conner.

They Live

In the mission Mano y Mano (in which you fight a duel against the dirty fighting master), your opponent greets you with the words "I came here [to] kick fundament an' drink rum -- and I be all outta rum!". This is a variation on the quote "I came here to kick ass and chew bubblegum - and I'm all out of bubblegum" from the movie They Live (this phrase was later also used in Duke Nukem 3D, which was itself a reference to this movie)
your character's reply to this is "Aye, is that so? Well, your mother's so fat, when she sits around the poopdeck, she sits AROUND the poopdeck!"

The X-Files

In the spanish port of Cartagena there's a french NPC by the name of Danielle Scoulliard (think about it for a bit...). She's investigating a series of rather strange occurrences, but refuses to see anything supernatural about it. Because as she puts it: "The human mind naturally seeks meaningful patterns and configurations in things that don't inherently have any. Or so I've heard."
All of her missions are direct references to a specific episode of the X-Files: Beyond the Sea, Lazarus and The List
She is also mentioning a colleague of hers stationed in Santo Domingo that is working on very similar cases. This colleague is Felipe Muldras, who is offering some X-Files related missions of his own, namely ones referencing the episodes Elegy and Millenium
The inspiration for Felipe Muldras' third mission line (Will O' the Wisp) is unclear at the moment, but it could possibly be a reference to an equally named episode of the TV series So Weird, which has been described as "X-Files for kids"

In Carbaneras there is a Bar that is called "The Skumm Bar" as a reference to the Scumm Bar in Monkey Island.