Pirates: The Treasure Swamp is a card game with playing pieces. The cards are laid out in a rectangle face down to become the game board, or, the dark swamp.

On each turn you flip over a card on the board searching for waterway cards that connect creating a course through the swamp that your pirate playing piece moves along to find hidden treasure. Your pirate will encounter obstacles to be overcome or blown up, bands of brigands which could be useful or dangerous, and various items that will assist you in your search for treasure. Once you get the treasure you will need to defend it against all the other pirate players who will attack you relentlessly to take it. The winner is the pirate who gets all five treasure chests at once.

An intriguing characteristic of Pirates: The Treasure Swamp is that its nature changes during the course of the game. In the beginning the player is simply searching the maze of swampy waterways filled with alligators, sunken ships, and skeletons, for treasure. As the game progresses the players need to pay closer attention to what the other pirates are up to. In the end the game evolves into a high stakes slug fest as the pirates battle it out for all the treasure. This is when all of your previous planning can really pay off.