Ubisoft Delays Skull & Bones Again

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Ubisoft announced on Wednesday that Skull and Bones would be delayed yet again, this time to "early" in the publisher's next fiscal year. The announcement came as part of a post on Ubisoft's investor relations website, which also confirmed that the company was canceling three previously-unannounced games, alongside the delay for the continuously-postponed Skull & Bones.

Originally announced in 2017, information about Skull and Bones has generally seemed to be about the game being delayed more than it has any updates on its actual content. The game was set to be a multiplayer-based iteration of the naval combat from Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed series. Since that original announcement, and a notable absence of appearances, the game was delayed both internally and with irregular public announcements. The last update on the game saw Ubisoft claim its new release date would be March 9, 2023.

Two months ahead of that intended launch, the release date for Skull and Bones has slipped again. Pointedly, no official public announcement on the game itself has actually been made by the company as of yet. The detail is simply buried on the second page of an investor update, noting that the game's beta phase is "upcoming", and forgoing any specific updated release date for that general "early 2023-24" listing.

That same update also notes that Ubisoft will be canceling three unannounced projects. Per the report, this is to "ensure all our energy is focused on building our brands and live services". It's noted that this is in addition to the projects confirmed as canceled in July 2022, which included Splinter Cell VR, Ghost Recon Frontline, and two other unannounced games.

This activity, and the language used in the report, indicate a publisher that, in its own words, is "facing major challenges". Yves Guillemot, CEO of the company, specifically cited Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope as a title that underperformed in 2022, alongside Just Dance 2023. These delays and cancelations were thus framed as strategies to adapt Ubisoft's output to the shifting gaming market.

What this means overall for Ubisoft, and specifically Skull and Bones going forward will remain to be seen. Skull and Bones would seem primed to tap into continued audience appreciation for the Assassin's Creed games. Its sailing-and-piracy-focused gameplay could allow it to successfully compete with the continuously popular Sea of Thieves. It's an example of the trends Ubisoft has spent the last few years chasing in attempting to shore up its performance. Hopefully, it can have Skull and Bones ready sooner, rather than later, so it doesn't miss that particular boat.