This looks really interesting.
"The Inner Sea is a sandbox like game with RPG elements set in the XVII century in a mysterious archipelago. You'll build up your fleet from a single ship, hire crew, engage in naval battles, embark on missions and trade your heart's content away!"
Comes out tomorrow on Steam Early Access:
http://store.steampowered.com/app/443700/ (http://store.steampowered.com/app/443700/)
Interesting....seems like the price will only be $12 as well...might be worth a shot.
I'm not sure. The gameplay looks a bit thin and repetitive. If walrus trading is the big hook, then frankly I can think of better games. That all said, I've not played it, so would like to hear from someone who has.