Skull And Bones prepares to set sail
The game’s creative director Elisabeth Pellen looks back on the journey so far
Once you’ve sunk the opposition, you’ve got to find a way to extract your booty.
Pirates are about to have a big moment. This year has seen the success of TV series Our Flag Means Death, and the long-running manga One Piece is staring down its final story arc. On top of all that, people are still yelling from the crow’s nest about how fantastic Black Sails was. As such, it’s no surprise to see Ubisoft riding that wave, with Skull And Bones coming to PS5 on 8 November.
As hot as pirates are right now, the fires of this project’s story were first lit all the way back in 2013. Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag had been released to widespread acclaim, and Ubisoft sought to capitalise on that success. Beginning development as an Assassin’s Creed expansion before becoming an online multiplayer experience, Skull And Bones is now very much its own thing.
Creative director Elisabeth Pellen talks us through part of that journey, explaining, “After E3 2018, [...] we saw an opportunity to give more space to the player for more interesting combat manoeuvres with these gigantic ships, so we pivoted towards creating a multiplayer naval combat game in an immersive open world.”
Rather than banding together with other players on deck, you captain your own vessel and crew from the jump. From there you can team up with other player captains, go your own way in seeking out booty, or snatch up someone else’s treasure in PvP combat. Pellen adds, “Players can easily switch to a PvE-only [server], with no loss in progression depending on the session they would want to have on that day.”
Whether you’re taking on convoys, rich NPC merchants, or other players, naval combat is all about getting your ship into position and making the most of your onboard weapons. Once you’ve sunk the opposition, you’ve then got to find a way to extract your booty, and haul it back to port – hopefully without scattering it along the ocean floor. There are specialised cargo ships for this, and that’s one reason banding together with other players and making the most of each vessel type’s unique abilities is worth considering.
LAND AHOY!
Besides shifting gameplay gears, the project also swapped scenery more than once before setting sail on the Indian Ocean. Pellen explains that, after no small amount of historical research, this was the obvious choice: “The Indian Ocean during the Second Golden Age Of Piracy was considered the most dangerous sea. It was like an Eldorado for young pirates to become billionaires in one day with the right knowledge and attitude. Instead of
spending their spoils, some invested their gold in outposts and smuggling routes to build their own secret trading networks.
“The pirates of the Indian Ocean were also more diverse – some became experts in scavenging wrecks, while others became hunters and buccaneers selling illegal goods, or even logwood cutters when they were not out at sea. They were some of the deadliest [in] pirate history, because they would organise gangs to raid fortresses [...] The Indian Ocean was an endless source of inspiration.”
The team did take some liberties with history. “We took inspiration from what was real for the grittiness and flavour […] but we did not [restrict] ourselves to the historical events,” Pellen shares. “For instance, we have torpedoes in the game to provide more depth to our naval combat.”
Speaking of tall tales, there’s no standard story campaign to follow, with the narrative focus instead on giving you the space to soak in the world’s details and write your own legend in its waves.
“You might get a different experience depending on when you visit [a particular outpost],” Pellen elaborates, “and this encourages players to interact with one another, and share information […] We don’t have one story but multiple stories that will evolve over time.”
MOST WANTED
‘Opportunistic rover to kingpin’ (pirate royalty) is the journey central to Skull And Bones. Notoriety fuelled much of the real-world pirates’ power, and you’ll find a mechanical expression of that here.
Pellen explains, “Game director Ryan Barnard [was inspired to] create a system of progression based on the ability to score the biggest heist, and gain more resources to build your reputation. The Infamy system is elastic. Players gain [and] lose some points based on the risk and reward. At a higher level, you become a middleman and eventually [...] an entrepreneur where you can craft your own contraband for the most influential brokers in the world.”
But not everyone loves a girlboss pirate, least of all your crew if you don’t keep them happy. “We wanted the deck of our own ship to behave like a living theatre which changes depending on your actions,” Pellen says. “We also wanted it to have an impact on your gameplay, so we developed a morale gauge that will go down if [for instance] you don’t feed your crew. At the other extreme, if you manage to galvanise your crew, the more enthusiastic your crew will be.”
If you neglect your crew they could even force you off your ship. Pellen says, “If your crew does mutiny against you, you will be marooned on an island with a basic ship. When you manage to head back to [dry land], the pirates waiting on the dock are aware of the mutiny, and will jeer at you.”
But this isn’t the end – it’s a new beginning as you start climbing the rigging towards kingpin status once more. Pass the grog, we’re diving back in!
The champagne will smash on Skull And Bones’ hull on 8 November.
The Indian Ocean during the Second Golden Age Of Piracy was considered the most dangerous sea.