Skull and Bonesis Ubisoft’s upcoming open sea adventure, where players take on the role of a shipwrecked sailor who grows into a kingpin among pirates. Players will be able to craft a fleet of ships, as they level up their infamy and unlock new ship types, abilities, blueprints, and more. Already, comparisons to itsprimary competitorSea of Thieves, but this is a much grittier take on the pirate genre.
Of course,Skull and Bonesis not Ubisoft’s first foray into the pirate space.Assassin’s Creed: Black Flagreleased in 2013, and players stepped into the shoes of Edward Kenway—a lowly, shipwrecked pirate who grows his name on the seas and becomes one of its leading pirates, as well as an important figure in the Assassin-Templar War.
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Because the idea forSkull and Bonesoriginally came fromAssassin’s Creed: Black Flag, much likeImmortals Fenyx Risingcame fromAssassin’s Creed Odyssey, comparisons between the two are inevitable. They do come with a few caveats, of course, such asSkull and Bonesbeing a multiplayer-first game andBlack Flagbeing a single-player game, but these distinctions giveBlack Flagone advantage.
Edward Kenway in AC Black Flag vs. The Kingpin of Skull and Bones
In short, it comes down to character.Skull and Bonesis not a narrative game, even if there are stories throughout it and an underlying theme, meaning Ubisoft has to hook players with combat and gameplay alone. That’s not a bad thing, but if someone wants a pirate narrative, they’re not going to find a strong and pressing one inSkull and Bones. Meanwhile,Assassin’s Creed: Black Flagcaptured the pirate fantasy through narrative and characters.
Edward Kenway is an interestingAssassin’s Creedprotagonist, as he was the first to reluctantly approach the Creed. Piracy was his thing, and yet, his charm alone is up there with Ezio and Arno in the franchise. Many loveBlack Flag,not necessarily because of the at-sea gameplay, but because Kenway’s character was enough for players to push through to the next land part. Combine this with characters likeBlackbeard, who does not appear inSkull and Bones, and others like Benjamin Hornigold, Mary Read, Anne Bonny, Jack Rackham, Charles Vane, and many more, and it’s clear thatSkull and Bonesis at a disadvantage here.
Black Flaglived the pirate fantasy (and Assassin one) through a take on history;Skull and Bonesuses history but is not directly inspired by it. Players will meet pirates, but they seem more functional mechanic-based NPCs than living, breathing characters.Skull and Bonesis relying heavily on post-launch support, ship combat, multiplayer, and infamy to build that fantasy.
One approach is not necessarily better than the other, and it’s going to come down to a matter of tastes. But putAssassin’s Creed: Black FlagandSkull and Bonesside-by-side, and the fantasy aspect of the pirate life is going to lean more than toward the former than the latter, as it stands now.
Skull and Bonesreleases November 8 for PC, PS5, Stadia, and Xbox Series X.
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