Skull & Bones Delayed Yet Again, This Time To 2023

Ubisoft has delayed Skull & Bones once more. Rather than launching in November, just a day before God of War: Ragnarok, it will now release on March 9, 2023, the company announced today.

"While the game development is finished at this stage, the extra time will be used to further polish and balance the experience using players' feedback from our Technical tests and Insider Program which happened over the past two weeks," Ubisoft said in a statement. "This is the right decision both for our players and for the long-term success of the game as March 9, 2023 provides for a suitable release window for this very unique new brand."

An ppen beta will be held ahead of launch next year, which Ubisoft says will provide players with an opportunity to discover the game's piracy fantasy, naval combat, and Indian Ocean locale.

This isn't the first time that Skull & Bones has been delayed, as the game has navigated some rough seas since it was first announced in 2017. Spinning out of Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag's well-received naval combat, the Ubisoft Singapore project essentially went dark in 2018 and resurfaced earlier this year.

In September 2020, Ubisoft confirmed that its developers were working on a "new vision" for the game, following reports that claimed the title was getting rebooted, and it eventually got a grand re-reveal alongside a November 2022 release date. Since then, Ubisoft has shown off more of the pirate game and its features, such as its impressive graphics on PC, smuggling networks for players to trade goods in, and the option to touch grass with your sea-legs.

Ubisoft will be ending 2022 with just two releases for the holiday season, Just Dance 2022 and Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope. 2023 will see bigger tentpole games arrive, including Assassin's Creed Mirage and Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, which have been tentatively scheduled for next year.