The sea is harsh, however game improvement may be harsher. Ubisoft’s pirate ’em up Skull and Bones has been delayed but once more, regardless of already having being delayed for the fifth time final September. It was due for March, however this newest delay pushes it again to “early” within the monetary yr 2023-24, which begins in July.
At least it is (sea)faring higher than three different unannounced Ubisoft games, which have been cancelled due to Ubisoft’s normal underperforming sails. Sorry, gross sales.
The information comes from Ubisoft’s extremely business-ey annoucement, which is actually an extended letter trying to reassure shareholders.
They declare they’re struggling due to a continued business shift “in the direction of mega-brands and long-lasting titles”, highlighting how the newest entries to their very own mega-brands (Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry and diverse Tom Clancys) have been invested in however have not come out but. They cite “worsening macroeconomic situations”, and appear guilty that shift in the direction of mega-brands for the monetary “underperformance” of Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope and Just Dance 2023.
They say all this requires “elevated cautiousness”, therefore the contemporary wave of cancellations. Those come on high of already cancelling Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Frontline, Splinter Cell VR and two unannounced games final July. The Splinter Cell remake continues to be coming, so far as I’m conscious.
The announcement additionally mentions “focused restructuring”, which suggests folks’s jobs are doubtless being chopped, too. Elsewhere, Ubisoft declare their “stability sheet is powerful with round €1.5 billion in money”.
A Skull & Bones beta continues to be on the horizon. Ubisoft say the game’s in nice form, however they’re delaying it once more so they have extra time to “showcase a way more polished and balanced expertise and to construct consciousness”. It was initially meant to launch in autumn 2018.