After an exhausting news cycle of Skull and Bones reveal rumors not too long ago, Ubisoft went ahead and confirmed its gameplay showcase for July 7th, 2022. And here we are! Skull and Bones was announced as far as five years ago and had been in development for even longer.
Many had begun to believe the title had been cancelled and quietly brushed under the table by Ubisoft, but it's clearer now more than ever that the open-world (or open-sea) pirate simulator was revitalized and is sailing our way. The livestream had interviews, cinematics and gameplay trailers, so here are all the most important details that were showcased during the stream.
The live gameplay showcase did show some fun and dynamic parts. The way you move between different points of view and control various weapons on all sides of your ship, all while trying to steer it, seems like an engagingly hectic vehicle-management experience. The weapons showcased were controlled with standard third-person aiming, as well as area-of-effect selection. Many fans expressed disappointment to learn that hand-to-hand combat is not present in any form. Even raiding an opposing ship just shows the one quick cutscene of your crew jumping over and slashing some folks. They showed a large variety of ships and weapons, each with their own pros and cons.
The game's central form of progression was referred to as Infamy; a fun little immersive nod to how famous pirates gained notoriety with their not-so-kind acts. Infamy is built up by taking up contracts (quests), which can be transporting illegal cargo through dangerous waters, raiding settlements, or sinking enemy ships. Higher Infamy gives you access to new items, blueprints for crafting, better ships and other upgrades.
Speaking of crafting, the presentation showed off how the game has a lot of different systems that work off of each other, seemingly to better fulfil this pirate lifestyle fantasy. Resource gathering, which you can do by cruising through small islands or killing sea creatures, is a necessity for crafting your upgrades. Resources even include ammo for your cannons. Once you're big enough you'll have a crew, but they won't always do as you tell them. They can mutiny, though the gameplay effect of this wasn't really explained. There are different in-world factions that if you attack, you won't be able to trade with, and there's a dynamic weather system that may have you facing stormy seas.
To the disappointment of some, the game is totally online with no single-player-only mode. The developers did, however, make the point to say that you can play this game by yourself if such is your preference. They also specifically mentioned PVP servers for multiplayer battles, giving the impression that there will be PVE servers as well, so you won't be bothered by other players if you don't want to.
You can't have a good pirate-fantasy-fulfilment game, without deep and varied visual customization, and it does appear as Skull and Bones will nail it. Besides having different types of ships which you can select depending on your preferred style of gameplay, the trailer showed off a slew of different multi-colored ships with diverse icons on their sales. The idea of crews having matching sails, and other players fearing them sounds really cool, at least in concept. There is also clothes customization, so you can express yourself with your outfit when exploring outposts.
Last but not least, how can you play this thing? The game comes out on November 8th, 2022, and will be available on next-gen platforms only; Xbox Series X/S, and PlayStation 5. It will also be available on PC, through the Epic Games Store, and on the Stadia and Amazon Luna streaming services. You can already pre-order the game here for $70 USD on console or $60 on PC. A live-service game releasing at full-price is a bold move these days. It's a large barrier of entry for a game that is meant to be played together, but maybe it will lure in enough players with its PVE gameplay.