Ubisoft is going through uncertain times. Beyond ongoing controversies about the behavior of higher-ups at Ubisoft, many of its recent releases have failed to meet expectations, which has led to the company canceling and delaying various projects. Skull and Bones is one such game that sits on shaky ground, as while Ubisoft has put a lot of resources into it, the game has been delayed for years on end and currently has no release date set. This investment may end up not being worth it, as Skull and Bones doesn't show any particular signs of being a trendsetter.
Although the game drew attention when it was revealed, a lot of the initial hype has been lost in a sea of delays. Furthermore, outside its setting, many of the title's gameplay mechanics aren't very different from what plenty of other games have done. This doesn't mean that Skull and Bones is doomed to fail, though it likely won't be a trailblazer for future pirate-themed adventures.
There Isn't Much Hype Behind Skull and Bones
Skull and Bones was first revealed in 2017, though the game has been in development for much longer. The game was conceived in 2013 when Ubisoft Singapore was planning on an expansion to Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag. However, ideas for the game grew larger until it became a full-fledged title all its own. As development has continued, ideas have changed and the game's direction has shifted. According to a recent report by Kotaku, the game's development cost Ubisoft over $120 million as of 2021. It was originally slated for a 2018 release on PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
Delays are not an anomaly in the gaming world, and they can be good if they result in a better overall product. However, when there are too many delays, it can result in all the hype for a game dying down. This seems to be the case with Skull and Bones, where discussions surrounding the game seems to revolve entirely around what could be coming out on the tail end of such a messy dev cycle. Although all this development time may result in a masterpiece being produced, it may come a little too late.
Many of Skull and Bones' Ideas Are No Longer New
One of the downsides of delaying the game for so long is that many of its ideas which may have been novel at first have since been thoroughly explored. Although Black Flag stood out when it released in 2013, the ideas of Skull and Bones are no longer unique. The ship crew management mechanics has been done in several games, and it will be explored once again by Starfield - which allows players to manage crews and customize spaceships. Similarly, having players work together to take on others in multiplayer has also been explored thoroughly by games like New World (not to mention pirate-themed titles like Sea of Thieves).
Skull and Bones' uniqueness primarily comes from its setting, but in terms of gameplay, developers have yet to reveal groundbreaking mechanics. This does not guarantee that Skull and Bones will be a bad game, though it does reduce the odds of the game becoming a trendsetter in its niche - or the gaming industry as a whole.
Skull and Bones is in development for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
Source: Kotaku
