James Lynch 
Ubisoft have taken their experience in making the excellent Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag and applied it to new buccaneer simulator Skull and Bones. Showing off some pretty amazing looking ships and weather systems this really looks like it could be one to watch, despite the fact that the first video wasn’t a gameplay trailer. Set in the era of “greedy trading companies” Justin Farren, the Creative Director at Ubisoft Singapore previewed the game, where the player will roam the seas of Asia, stealing vast treasures from right under the nose of the British Empire.
The fortune system is used to understand how the game world has changed as you progress through. Every encounter matters, as trading routes, enemy activities and treasure ships dynamically change their patterns of behaviour. Crew and gear customisations will feature, so custom setups for different missions will be key. The second trailer showcased some of the combat, as you attack a convoy under the shadow of a heavily armed fort. Sneaking by the fortifications by raising false flags, the ships undergo a tense pass-by before the pirates catch the train of sailing ships off-guard and unleash a volley of cannon fire.
The naval combat does very much look like an updated version of that featured in Black Flag and, even at this early stage, Skull and Bones does look like the most complete game of this kind we have seen.
The Ubisoft conference is now well underway so make sure to tune into the coverage here, and don’t forget to follow the website for all the latest updates throughout E3.
