PlayStation 5 Critic Reviews

I will reiterate that the game has a "debt" to settle until the deferred melee combat is dispatched, if ever. Naval combat is great and customization is compelling. But considering the element of being an outlaw of the sea, without the drama and adventure that matches the bravado and flamboyance of the clothes my pirate is wearing, the Swash just ain't gonna Buckle. Skull and Bones is plainly a 'pirate ship game' more than it is about pirates, for now. Fair Winds and Following Seas until that changes.

Skull and Bones is a very unusual game that will have its own niche and will be a classic "love it or hate it" title. This happens due to the complexity of its gameplay, which can alienate newcomers, and the bugs that, at least on the PS5, appeared constantly.

If not the ultimate pirate game, Skull and Bones is a good naval battle game that has arguments to make you want to get involved. So no, here, no third-person action phases: the adventure takes place almost exclusively on the waves, and once the element of surprise has passed, the qualities of Ubisoft's service game are revealed. The seven seas of the Indian Ocean are the subject of a solid atmosphere and technique, and the battles on the open sea are a real success. So, you may be struggling to get to the endgame, due to a fairly redundant progression, but believe us, the price is worth it. In short, a good surprise, far from the shipwreck that some saw on the horizon.

Despite its long and circuitous course to arrive at port, Skull and Bones is the type of game that may change significantly in the coming months. But to evaluate it as it stands, fellow pirate enthusiasts may discover what I did – a flawed but beautifully presented historical fantasy in which one can take to the water and make a fortune, even if absolutely everything about the pirate life isn’t always pretty.

Skull and Bones isn't incredible, but neither is it a nameless wreck. For those who didn't play Black Flag back in the day, it's still a good experience to have as a pirate, with then some pretty memorable battles and also the pleasure of customizing your ship and equipping it with the best weapons. But if you've ever had an experience with the opus released in 2013, it's clear that this title will certainly leave a bitter taste in your mouth. While the sea battles are a real highlight, the rest of the game seems bland, with redundant missions and a feeling of limited exploration. Despite this, the whole game remains pleasant to play, with a campaign lasting between 25 and 30 hours.

While it is not the AAAA production Ubisoft envisioned, as well as ultimately a project with in many ways untapped potential, Skull and Bones can rely on a number of tremendously solid aspects: the rendering of navigation and the sea, with its wonderful charm and the myriad discoveries that can be made; the combat system, surprisingly multifaceted and engaging; and the progression, very solid and well balanced, with so much still to be said. Sure, there are several things the developers could have done differently, the plot is glaringly inconsistent, and the long traversals are tough to deal with, but the chest we unearthed after so much waiting did not prove empty, quite the contrary.

Skull and Bones delivers boatloads of explosive tactical action, with players playing the part of pirates in an impressive oceanic world. Its 17th-century naval battles are best-in-class, with developer Ubisoft Singapore building a firm foundation for future voyages. But with no real story to speak of and little in the way of variation, repetition inevitably sets in. While not the spiritual successor to Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag as some might have been hoping for, Skull and Bones is never-the-less an incredibly unique, reactive game well worth checking out.

It can be difficult to square the decade-plus Skull and Bones development cycle with its lack of features in some areas, but this isn’t the wreck many expected it to be. The game’s naval combat is simple yet engaging, its world is striking, ship customization is satisfying, and there are plenty of varied things to do, even if most of them don’t involve getting off your ship. Skull and Bones can be repetitive and it doesn’t exactly capture that devil-may-care pirate lifestyle, but keep expectations in check and there’s fun to be had sailing these pleasantly predictable seas.

Skull and Bones proved to have a stable enough structure to stay afloat and not sink as long as the French publisher decides to support one of its most controversial projects ever. With more profound and enveloping gameplay, we would be talking about a worthy rival to Sea of Thieves. Still, Ubisoft Singapore's pirate-based adventure is just a decent video game experience more likely to be appreciated for the management aspect and the considerable amount of playable content.

The risk of being repetitive or boring in some situations, the insipid narrative and a perfectible technical sector work against it, yet not everything is to be thrown away because Skull and Bones has potential, I can perceive it while I sail its seas juggling between PVE clashes and other players who, like me, aspire to the title of pirate king. Unfortunately, the problems during development end up being reflected in a live service which, despite the intriguing pirate setting, in the current state of things appears incapable of standing out from the crowd to rival the giants of the genre.