Skull & Bones - Preview, Ubisoft pirates prepare to board

Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag was, according to many, one of the most exciting chapters in the entire franchise. One of the reasons for its success was certainly the naval battles which, in addition to the possibility of sinking enemy vessels, allowed them to board, conquer and steal their resources. This mechanic worked so well that most users requested something similar even in anticipation of future chapters, only to be disappointed. Last year, however, during E3 2017, here came out of nowhere Skull & Bones, a title that inevitably winks at the fourth episode of the assassins saga but which, obviously, maintains unique elements that inevitably differentiate it from Kenway's adventure.

Set the sails!

Unfortunately, as far as the plot is concerned, we don't really know anything, only that, in all probability, you will be at the head of a circle of bandits who live on an island, the hub of the game and, above all, the rare opportunity you will have to go down and touch the ground. In this area you can customize or modify your ship at any time and down to the smallest detail. For some missions, in fact, you will need a certain type of crew, or of cannons or even of a particular model of vessel. The variety made available by Ubisoft is really great, so as to be able to give each player the boat that best suits his style of play. Many users could safely trade Skull & Bones with Sea of ​​Thieves, but the Ubisoft production is totally different from the Rare one except for what concerns the maritime and pirate locations. The thing that stands out at first glance, if we compare what we saw to the 2017 video, is a higher quality of the textures, as well as a much more defined gameplay and a more defined game structure which winks at MMORPGs.

The videogame is mainly focused on team PvP, with a modality that takes the name of "Hunting Territories". This last feature is composed of simple and revolutionary rules at the same time, since mixes cooperative and competitive multiplayer. Within a map, the system will insert elements that are in a certain sense unique, corresponding to quests and dangers. Players will have to choose whether to team up to defeat the various threats, overcome them together and divide the loot, or clash with each other right from the start. To collect the various treasures you will have to complete the main objective before your opponents. To create a coalition, just point the telescope at one of the ships, so you can send out the invitation to join the group. Another strategy seen in the trailer is to let your "friends" do all the work and then betray them at the right moment and grab all the rewards. Given the possibility of being involved in multiple battles, the title provides a sort of repair kit for the ship, which can be purchased in the various outposts present in the game. Unfortunately, however, all the tasks that will involve you outside the ship will be carried out by your crew. You will be a full-fledged captain, so you must direct and command all of your subordinates.

Mr. yes, Mr. Captain!

First of all, as mentioned at the beginning, personalization will be a fundamental part of the experience of Skull & Bones. Even if you play with a few friends, each of you will have your own ship that will be impossible to abandon. The title will certainly be marketed with three different types of vessels, but Ubisoft has promised that the contents will be added slowly, a bit in the style of For Honor, so to speak. Each boat will therefore have its own specialty, how it works with the class system for various classic RPGs. Once the mission is completed, the game will give you a reward translated in terms of gold coins, useful for buying the different aesthetic variants. As for the actual gameplay, do not expect it to be complex, indeed, to make it simpler, the one from Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag was taken, so as not to confuse the players. and give him some familiarity with the controls right away.

On a technical level, the game takes full advantage of the power of consoles, with a very realistic and aesthetically satisfying water physics. The gameplay was not the only element taken from the fourth episode of the assassins saga, but music, songs, noises and much more, it was all teleported inside Skull & Bones. As for the glance, the work is undoubtedly very showy, we hope to see how the final product will fare.

In conclusion we can say that Skull & Bones it almost seems to be the title that all pirate fans have always wanted. Unfortunately, however, from the content side we are a bit worried, also because Ubisoft with the post launch elements has always done a great job, even if at a high price. Having said that, however, we wait for the complete work before we can have our say, also because, in the current state of things, the title was able to exalt us but up to a certain point. The few vessels available could give monotony to the games, but the elements inserted randomly risk giving a nice sense of unpredictability. The customization of the vessel remains the thing that struck us the most, also because the gameplay, also due to the strong inspiration to Assassin's Creed, has a lot the flavor of already seen. Only the final product can make us abandon doubts in favor of concrete certainty.