Update from January 13, 2023: A new date for Skull and Bones will be announced “very soon,” says publisher Ubisoft.
The recent shift is intended to allow for more fine-tuning, responding to feedback from previous playtests.
In addition to a new date, information on further test phases will also be announced.
Already today, January 13th, you can see her new gameplay. Tune in from 6 p.m. German time on the Twitch Channel from Ubisoft. The new footage focuses on the game’s lore and Ubisoft believes you will be “positively surprised by the development” of the game.
Skull and Bones has been in development since 2013. It was officially announced in 2017 and has since been postponed several times.
Original message:
After Ubisoft published its disappointing financial results for the last quarter on Wednesday, the developer is now taking action. Three unannounced games will be canceled and Skull and Bones will be postponed again. This time into the early fiscal year 2023, which begins in April and ends in March 2024.
Things are not looking rosy for Ubisoft
Ubisoft justifies this content reduction and shift by saying that the company “faces major challenges as the industry continues to shift towards mega-brands and long-lived titles”. Games like Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope and Just Dance 2023 didn’t get the desired results, putting Ubisoft under financial pressure.
“We are clearly disappointed with our recent performance,” said Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot on Wednesday. “We face opposing market dynamics as the industry continues to shift toward mega-brands and live-ever games, amid deteriorating economic conditions impacting consumer spending.
“Despite excellent ratings and player reception, as well as an ambitious marketing plan, we were surprised by Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope underperforming in the final weeks of 2022 and early January. Just Dance 2023 didn’t fare well either.” The official financial results you read here.
More on Skull and Bones:
Skull and Bones postponed to March 2023 – Open Beta announced
Skull and Bones: PC requirements and features confirmed
Skull & Bones is not a story-driven game
Nevertheless, the developer remains confident
The developer therefore wants to be more careful in the next few years and is therefore canceling some unannounced projects – in addition to the four games that were already put on hold in July. For the past four years, Ubisoft has already focused on strengthening and adapting its biggest brands – Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry, Ghost Recon, Rainbow Six and The Division – to the market that rewards live service titles and mega-brands .
Therefore, Guillemot is confident and considers the long-term prospects for the company “promising” and believes that “our strategy to develop long-lived live games and transform our biggest brands into truly global phenomena with diverse offerings across different platforms and business models , will ultimately lead to significant added value”.
Ubisoft also loses a few words about the additional development time for Skull and Bones. The pirate game was unveiled in 2017, has been in development since 2013 and has been postponed numerous times. After all, according to Ubisoft, players will be “positively surprised” at the results that the developer has achieved in the additional time. The recent delay helps Ubisoft “present a much more polished and balanced experience and increase awareness”.
