It has been an incredibly long road for Ubisoft's mysterious pirate naval game, Skull and Bones. Originally inspired by the ship battles of Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag, Ubisoft fully revealed the game at E3 2017 with an expected launch date a year later. However, Skull and Bones continued to get delayed, without much new information to go on. Since it's reveal, Skull and Bones has experienced development hardships, leadership changes, and plenty of controversy stemming from alleged workplace misconduct.
For all of the struggles and hardships, it seems that Skull and Bones could potentially be entering the home stretch of development. Following a confirmed shift in development and new vision for Skull and Bones, Ubisoft has been more open regarding the title, even revealing an insider program earlier this year that fans can join to get early access to the title. The company also confirmed plans to launch the title by March 2023 and expectation now is that the game could be officially revealed sometime next month during a summer update showcase.
In fact, Skull and Bones may be further along than most may have thought thanks to a recent update. Following a rating in Korea back in May, Skull and Bones was recently rated by the Entertainment Software Rating Board for the United States. This process is typically done once the game being rated is either complete or nearly finished so the ratings board can get an accurate assessment of suitability. Therefore, it seems Skull and Bones may be nearing a potential release.
Thanks to the ESRB rating, fans now have a bit more information regarding the title. As expected, Skull and Bones will be an M for Mature game, with blood, strong language, suggestive themes, use of drugs, and violence. Players take the role of a shipwrecked outcast on a journey to become a pirate captain through missions, exploring settlements, and engaging in naval combat. However, it seems Ubisoft may be ditching older gen consoles like the PS4 and Xbox One, as the ESRB listing only mentions PC, Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and Stadia as release platforms.
While the core concepts of what Skull and Bones originally was appears to be set, many fans remain curious to see how the rest of the game has evolved over the years, including the new vision Ubisoft had for the title a couple of years back. Thankfully it doesn't appear fans will have too much longer to wait as leaked information indicates a Skull and Bones reveal event is happening in July, with official gameplay, release date details, and more.
Skull and Bones is currently in development.
Source: ESRB