A few hours after Jolly Rogue drew its sword, two more rounds of changes have shipped to reefrunner.us. Jolly Rogue got richer, more forgiving and finally has an ending. Cloud Dancer went the other way: it was too easy, so it got tougher, but now you can fly with a whole squadron.

Cloud Dancer: build a squadron

The wingman used to be a little rust-red gyrocopter, and you could only have one. Now it’s a small pirate airship, a copy of your own, and the Sky Market sells up to four. They fly in formation behind you, two close above and below and two further back, each in its own colours (red, navy, black and gold) and each firing its own cannons. Every one costs more than the last, so a full squadron is something you save up for.

Cloud Dancer: the cream-and-wood pirate airship flying over a painted sea with four smaller pirate airships in formation around it, in red, navy, black and gold, all firing cannonballs ahead
The full squadron: four wingmen, four colours.

Cloud Dancer: tougher seas

After yesterday’s bigger rewards, Cloud Dancer got too easy. Every 100 gold was an extra life, and there was gold everywhere, so you could stack up lives and never really be in danger. So:

  • Every 200 gold is now an extra life, not every 100.
  • Zeppelins drop three coins instead of six, chests are worth 15 instead of 25 and turn up less, and bosses spill 20 coins instead of 40.
  • All the scores are halved, so a high score means more than it did.

You’ll earn extra lives about a quarter as often as before, which puts the danger back in the sky.

Jolly Rogue: more gold

Jolly Rogue had the opposite problem. Gold was so scarce you could barely enjoy the Black Market or the Captain’s Quarters. Now every coin is worth two, every sailor drops a coin or two, and chests, officers, crates and bosses spill about twice as much. That’s three to four times the gold per run. Extra lives now come every 200 gold, so the shops get richer without the game getting soft.

Jolly Rogue: Continue?

Losing your last life used to end the run and send you back to the start. Now you get the old arcade question.

Jolly Rogue: a wooden board over Palm Tree Island reading CONTINUE? Keep yer gold and gear and sail on with 3 fresh lives, with a green YES button and a NO button
Yes, obviously.

Yes puts you back where you fell with three fresh lives, your gold and your gun. No banks your gold into your chest like before. Continues are unlimited, and the game ignores the first half second so mashing jump while you die doesn’t answer for you.

Jolly Rogue: a proper ending

Jolly Rogue has four areas, each with a boss: Palm Tree Island, the Merchant Ship, the Hold and the Pirate Ship. After the fourth, the voyage used to just loop back to the start. Now sinking the Pirate Ship’s boss ends the voyage properly.

Jolly Rogue's ending: a wooden board reading THE SEVEN SEAS ARE YERS! Four areas, four bosses sunk, every port now knows yer name, captain, with the run's stats, a captain's share of 250 gold and buttons for SAIL ON and RETIRE, while gold coins rain down behind it
The end of the first voyage.

Gold rains down, you see your run, and you get a captain’s share: 250 gold for the first voyage, more for each one after. Then you choose. Sail On opens the Black Market and starts the next voyage, with tougher bosses and new crews. Retire banks your gold and takes you home. The title screen keeps count of how many voyages you’ve finished.

Where to play

All three games are free, play in your browser on a phone or computer, work with a game controller, and have no ads, no accounts and no tracking.