Sea of Thieves dev announces The Quest for the Golden Bananas treasure hunt

High-seas plunder-’em-up Sea of Thieves is launching on March 20 for Xbox One and PC, and Microsoft’s teamed up with developer Rare to celebrate in style by announcing a digital treasure hunting adventure, The Quest for the Golden Bananas. 

Budding treasure seekers will be tasked with cracking 15 cryptic clues to find the hidden booty, which takes the form of four golden bananas each worth a whopping £20,000. Shiver me timbers! Participating countries include the UK, US, Australia, Germany, France, and Canada. 

Kicking off at 8.00am GMT on March 19, when the first riddle will be placed for players to solve, The Quest will the continue for the next three days as you and your team put your collective Thinking Caps on in an attempt to solve each puzzle. Come Wednesday, you’ll be able to enter you answers to all 15 riddles on this website; you’ll have to get your skates on though, as you’ll only have seven hours post them.

The grand prize itself was cobbled together by Smith & Harry of London’s Hatton Garden jewellery quarter. Runners up meanwhile will receive limited edition Sea of Thieves golden coin ‘doubloons’ worth £300.  

‘A very unusual commission, something that both Smith and Harris are accustomed to undertaking, given their history in the manufacture of unique pieces, traditional and contemporary art. A Caribbean pirates treasure; gold bananas hand-fabricated from sheet gold, using skills both ancient and modern,’ commented the National Association of Jewellers, Institute of Registered Valuer. 

‘Due to this level of craftsmanship involved and the uniqueness of the golden bananas, we expect them to be valued at Facsimile Value of at least £20,000 per banana.’

If you fancy gawking at the grand prize in all its shiny glory, the golden bananas will be displayed at the National Maritime Museum’s Neptune Court on March 14.