E3 2017: Skull and Bones Preview
One of the biggest surprises of E3 2017 is Ubisoft Singapore’s gem of a new pirate game called Skull & Bones. The game was debuted at the Ubisoft E3 press conference this past week and I was lucky enough to get some hands-on time at an Ubisoft event.
There is no denying the game looks and feels like a continuation of the naval combat in Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag. Despite the similarities, this is a completely new IP that allows folks to team up in some frantic multiplayer action or play through a single player campaign. While at E3 we never managed to get a glimpse (or get any details) of the single player campaign but we did get a chance to play a couple of matches of 5 v 5.
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“Visually, Skull and Bones is a stunner. The detail of the ships, water effects, and just the overall atmosphere was spot on.”
After a handy and comprehensive tutorial which showed all of us everything you need to know to become a badass pirate, we were ready to start up the match.
As you would guess, we were all tasked with taking control of our own pirate ship where we had to select one of the available classes. I used two classes during my play time. The first I used was a marksmen whose purpose is to essentially sit back a little and use the long-ranged attacks. The second ship I used was a brigantine, which is a bruiser of a ship that can take a beating and ram other ships into the sea. My preference was the marksmen class because it wasn’t long before I realized I completely stink trying to battle other pirate ships up close.
Our team’s objective in the match was simple, collect as much loot as possible and make your escape before your opponent sinks your ships. Things start out rather peacefully as you easily destroy unsuspecting AI boats carrying loot while bantering back and forth with your teammates. Then all hell brakes loose when the other team starts to appear from around the corner.
It isn’t long before you realize communication is the key to your survival. Knowing the whereabouts of your teammates is extremely difficult if you aren’t communicating, frequently. Not to mention controlling and steering a giant pirate ship is cumbersome as well. Control wise everything is laid out quite clearly, just don’t expect to get out of a mess unless you have teammates nearby to save your tail. Skull & Bones also has a heavy emphasis on positioning. I learned that when it was too late…
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“It isn’t long before you realize communication is the key to your survival.”
Visually, Skull and Bones is a stunner. The detail of the ships, water effects, and just the overall atmosphere was spot on. Everything looked great and the game had a level of immersion I did not expect. I found myself tensing up when ships were bombing each other and the action kicked up another level with the timer dropped and your team only had so much time to escape with the loot.
Both teams cheered and yelled. It was amazing, intense and I haven’t felt that way playing a multiplayer game in quite some time. I didn’t think I would ever enjoy a PvP sea naval combat game but Skull & Bones was quite easily one of my highlights from E3 2017.
