Mario Bautista
In one way or another, Ubisoft had been working towards Skull and Bones ever since 2012, and the launch of Assassin’s Creed 3. The sailing and naval combat sequences of Connor Kenway’s adventure were easily the strongest, and made even better in AC4 Black Flag, which remains to this day the best entry in the entire stealth RPG series. It was only natural that a full, sea-based pirate game would arrive from Ubisoft eventually, but Skull and Bones – at launch, at least – wasn’t quite what players wanted. Some middling review scores and troubling player numbers have threatened to demote the swashbuckling epic to the depths of gaming history. But if you’ve stayed away from Skull and Bones so far, thanks to a generous Steam sale, now is the time to give it a swing.
Our own Skull and Bones review was pretty critical of the pirate game, citing a thin story, empty world, and some repetitive gameplay loops. But it’s been almost seven months since Skull and Bones first set sail, and Ubisoft has been diligent in delivering updates and overhauls to try and bring its online maritime sim up to scratch.
As it stands, Skull and Bones is in a better position on Steam – overall, players reviews are still officially ‘mixed,’ but an admirable 65% are positive. The player count is still pretty low – a mere 373 people have logged into Valve’s platform to concurrently play Skull and Bones in the last 24 hours – but the foundations for a solid pirate adventure remain strong.
And now there’s a perfect excuse to finally give Skull and Bones a chance. Less than two months since it was released on Steam, Skull and Bones is now available at a significant 60% discount, knocking the price of the base game down from $59.99 / £49.99 to a historical low of $23.99 / £19.99.
Both the Deluxe and Premium editions are also on sale, and if you log into Skull and Bones between now and Friday November 1, you’ll receive a multitude of crafting ingredients and other in-game resources absolutely free. You can get Skull and Bones on Steam right here.
Alternatively, try some of the other best RPGs available right now, or maybe the best multiplayer games ever made.
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