Ubisoft Reportedly Spent $650 to $850 Million on Skull and Bones

At this point, it's clear that no matter what the final three months of the passing year bring, 2024 will, unfortunately, be remembered by many as one of the saddest years in the history of gaming, with once-idolized studios disappointing many of their fans time and time again with their uninspiring game titles. One studio that felt that in particular, both financially and reputation-wise, is Ubisoft, which throughout the year has seemingly been digging itself deeper and deeper with each game release.

With Ubisoft's Star Wars Outlaws and Assassin's Creed Shadows dominating the current conversation, many have already forgotten the game that largely kicked off the studio's 2024 L-taking adventure, a "AAAA" pirate simulator with over 10 years of development behind it, Skull and Bones. Recently, a YouTuber known as Endymion put the game in the spotlight once again, revealing that the figure Ubisoft has allegedly invested into Skull and Bones easily puts Concord with its $50-$400 million to shame.

According to Endymion, Ubisoft has spent an astonishing $650 to $850 million on Skull and Bones during its more than a decade of development, a figure significantly higher than the previously reported $200 million. Reportedly, the game went through several completely different versions over the years, leading to the exorbitant costs, which are said to be the primary reason for Ubisoft's current struggles – not Outlaws and Shadows as many assume.

As is always the case with "anonymous insider reports," there's no way to fully confirm or deny the claims, so take everything with a grain of salt. However, given how long Ubisoft has spent developing the game, and the fact that the studio still had successful franchises like Far Cry and Assassin's Creed to support its financials, it's easy to believe that they have indeed invested far more than $200 million into Skull and Bones – a sum they are very unlikely to ever recoup through sales.

In retrospect, it seems that Ubisoft's current situation could have been easily predicted as early as February-March 2024, when it was revealed that only around 850,000 people played Skull and Bones during its first week, many of whom were trying the free trial, and the game experienced a sharp price decline shortly afterward.

The most disheartening part wasn't just that the developer's "AAAA game" was mediocre (which it certainly was, currently sitting at 3.3/10 on Metacritic) but rather that it failed to generate any lasting interest and quickly faded into obscurity shortly after its release, with Ubisoft barely mentioning it in financial reports or official statements.

While exact sales figures remain unknown, with Ubisoft remaining tight-lipped, Skull and Bones currently averages around 350-400 concurrent daily players on Steam. Even though the game is also available on Xbox and PlayStation, those 400 players serve as a telling figure, representing one word and one word only: disaster. Taking all of that into consideration, it seems that the only way for Ubisoft to rebound is to succeed with Assassin's Creed Shadows, however, given that the game has just been postponed to 2025, it becomes crystal clear why many believe Ubisoft will soon be acquired by a larger developer.

So, what do you think about Skull and Bones' alleged budget? Is it closer to $200 or $850 million? Share your thoughts down in the comments below!

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