While many believed the wait for Dead Island 2 felt like an eternity just now releasing earlier this winter, many now consider the prolonged launch for Ubisoft Skull and Bones might just take the cake fairly soon. Announced back in 2017 after riding the continuous praise of Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, the publisher centered around a whole game more centralized on piracy without a story involving the Assassins & Templars.
However, in July 2020 the project faced restructuring as a refocus on the goal for the project formed. This was later followed by additional Ubisoft studios also hopping aboard. By 2022, November was the official release date. But then that was ushered to March 2023. And by then, Ubisoft delayed the game once more with no release window in sight.
But at Ubisoft Forward on Monday, Skull and Bones is to face a closed beta later this summer. Ubisoft addresses the decision to host a closed test and discusses the response from continued Insider Program sessions.
We are pushing ahead towards our game’s release, which is set for this fiscal year, but we wanted to build on the lessons we’ve learned from the community since our comeback a year ago. So we’re getting the game into the hands of a wider group of players with a public-facing Closed Beta, which is aligned with our ethos: to create a game for the community, with the community.
Over the past several months, we have gathered valuable insights from hundreds of players worldwide over multiple closed, live tests, and through our Insider Program. Crafting something new and original takes time, and we want to continue this journey with our players to create a space where they can have fun for years to come.
Neven Dravinski, Skull and Bones Producer
“Sure – for one our game’s naval combat stood out the most to the community, and we’re doubling down on this,” Dravinski answers on the response from its insiders. “We are creating even more depth to the combat by increasing the number of ship and weapon variants available at launch, allowing players to build customized playstyles to make the game experience their own.
“This depth in combat also extends to other aspects of the game. For example, improved naval navigation and the addition of an external ship camera are some of the ways that the community has made this experience better through our Insider Program. Answering another community request, we’ve ensured that the entire game can be played in co-op, with shareable contracts and rewards; a ‘call for help”’ feature should you run into trouble; multiple chat functions; and other gameplay mechanics.
“As we’ve always said, our game is best played with friends. This feedback helped us bring more focus to the social experience. Our servers will be able to host up to 20 players with crossplay functionality across PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and Luna. So those who want to play in co-op can form groups of up to three seamlessly by finding and inviting others to join their fleet.
“Our community has also constantly pushed for more variety in activities, and we’re really excited for players to discover some of the surprises we have in store during the Closed Beta. Lastly, We’ll also continue to refine our endgame, which you’ll hear more about in the coming months.” You can sign-up for the closed beta by heading here.
Do you plan to sign-up for the Skull and Bones closed beta?
The Skull and Bones Closed Beta will go live on August 25, 2023 for Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, and PC.
Source: Ubisoft
