Unless you've been living under a rock, you've surely heard of #ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot calling #skullandbones the "world's first Quadruple A game". Confidently signalling to people around the globe that this game will break records, set new standards, and push the industry forward.
But let's get back to #gaming reality here. This is Ubisoft we're talking about, and throughout the years I've been careful to make sure I don't get my hopes up just to get disappointed again. Fast forward to today, and Skull and Bones singlehandedly wiped millions of dollars off Ubisoft's stock value, tarnished the legacy of its predecessor (the far superior
Assassin's Creed: Black Flag), and continued to disappoint gamers all around the globe.
The most ironic thing is that Yves Guillemot's statement was immediately torpedoed after the game (allegedly) performed so poorly that "Skull and Bones" was changed to include a "free trial" in a desperate attempt to get people to pick up the game.
I’ve been following the development of Skull and Bones for a while now. After 11 painful years of development, the game was finally released in a sorry state in February of 2024, with little fanfare and reportedly terrible sales worldwide.
Across those 11 long years, I began to lose interest in the project as its development process became marred by a rotating cast of creative directors, numerous delays, and a stakeholder Ubisoft had to appease at all costs.
The writing was on the wall, and I knew that the project that I was so excited about all those years ago was likely dead in the water.
This video will examine the numerous shortfalls of Skull and Bones, analyse the game’s troubled #development cycle, and finally how the involvement of the Singaporean Government forced Ubisoft to push out the ill-fated game at any cost.
Credits:
‪@MrEdxwx‬ for the Black Flag Gameplay
‪@MKIceAndFire‬ for the Skull and Bones Gameplay
‪@LAKEYINSPIRED‬ , ‪@escapism....‬ and ‪@UCq_RIvSF60v8fwrEang3DgA‬ for the great tunes