It’s been several months since we’ve gotten a concrete development update on Ubisoft’s Skull & Bones. Originally planned for a 2018 launch, the seafaring pirate title has been delayed multiple times. According to reputable Battlefield and Call of Duty leaker Tom Henderson, however, it may finally be gearing up for launch within the next year or two. Henderson claims that internal beta testing on the project begins during the first quarter of 2022.
If this claim turns out to be true, this information would line up with Ubisoft’s previous official statement. Skull & Bones has gone through various revisions and changes in direction since development began, which has forced them to reassess the amount of development time needed. The project has evolved to the point that they delayed their previous 2021-22 estimate to 2022-23.
For those unfamiliar with the project, Skull & Bones was initially conceived as an answer to the positive sentiments surrounding Assassin Creed 4’s ship combat. This portion of the game was so successful that Ubisoft saw potential in expanding the concept into a fully-fledged title. Rather than making ship combat a portion of the experience, it would be front and center of Skull & Bones. Because of the state of its development cycle, it’s unclear how much of the original vision remains at this point in time.
