Ubisoft’s Skull and Bones will release on February 16, 2024, according to a new report by Insider Gaming’s Tom Henderson. Skull and Bones has had six major delays in its release roadmap, with its original release planned for 2018.
Skull and Bones is a third-person, tactical action, open-world game set during the golden age of piracy. Players take on the role of a nameless pirate and can climb up to be the most feared pirate overlord by completing the game’s many missions. Naval combat seems to be the highlight of the game, with Ubisoft focusing on realistic yet action-filled ship-to-ship combat.
Skull And Bones Pre-Orders Are Live At Ubisoft Store
Skull and Bones will be released in two editions – a standard edition that includes the base game, and a premium edition that consists of additional digital content. The pre-orders for the game are currently live on the Ubisoft Store website. However, the site doesn’t currently mention the release date reported by Insider Gaming.
The standard edition of Ubisoft’s Skull and Bones is priced at €59.99, while the premium edition will cost €89.99. According to Insider Gaming, the purchase of the premium edition will enable players to an early access version of the game, starting three days before the release i.e. on Feb 13, 2024.
Furthermore, Ubisoft has also announced that the game will be offered to subscribers of its Ubisoft+ service as a day-one offering on Feb 16, 2024. Subscription to this service is available for €14.99 per month.
Skull And Bones: History Of Delays
The game was first revealed by Ubisoft at E3 2017. It was reported, at the time, that the game had been in development since 2013. Initially, the development of this game started off as an expansion for Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag. The game still draws loads of inspiration from Black Flag. At the time, it was also considered that Skull and Bones, named ‘Black Flag Infinite’ at the time, would be released as an MMO title, still associated with Assassin’s Creed IV. However, before 2017, Ubisoft decided to develop the game as an independent title.
Over the years, the release of the game was delayed, over six times. Ubisoft Berlin was eventually associated with the game, alongside its original developer, Ubisoft Singapore. After the delays in 2018, 2019, and 2020, Ubisoft finally addressed the issue. While delaying the release of this game once again in 2021, Ubisoft claimed that there is a ‘new vision’ for the game, without offering any explanation as to what it is.
Down the line, the game kept getting delayed over and over. In July 2022, Ubisoft announced that Skull and Bones will be released in March 2023 for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, as opposed to its original release platforms – PS4 and Xbox One. The March 2023 release window was again pushed by the developer to the end of fiscal year 2023-24 in Jan 2023, citing the under-performance of recently launched titles. The developer launched a closed beta for the game in Aug 2023, allowing players to finally see and play the game.
The closed beta managed to garner much attention from gamers, generally receiving good reviews. Participants found the gameplay engaging, the naval battles smooth and entertaining, and the RPG progression systems deep and satisfying. In Oct 2023, Ubisoft announced that Skull and Bones would be released in early 2024.
It is unclear as to when Ubisoft will officially announce the release date for Skulls and Bones. However, a fair assumption can be made that if Insider Gaming’s information is true, gamers can expect an announcement trailer soon, probably during The Game Awards ceremony.
However, players should take this with a grain of salt. Even if the release date in February is to be believed, chances are that Ubisoft might not want to allow the release date revelation of its troubled, yet high-budget title to be buried under the hype created by the imminent GTA 6 trailer release.
Skull and Bones is anticipated to be released on Feb 16, 2024, for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S.
Source – Insider Gaming
