What does the pirate adventure game Skull and Bones taking place during the Golden Age of Piracy on the Indian Ocean mean for the game?
Pirating adventure game Skull and Bones recently received a new gameplay trailer in anticipation of its release this fall, and it’s given many new details, including the fact that the game takes place during the Golden Age of Piracy. Despite frequent rumors that Skull and Bones‘ development was permanently stalled, a release date of November 8 of this year has assuaged players’ fears and led to renewed curiosity about what the game has in store. The game aims to offer a unique and detailed swashbuckling experience that draws from both fantasy and real pirating history.
Skull and Bones is set in an open world that’s based around that of the Indian Ocean during the Golden Age of Piracy. Players can explore an expansive environment that includes pirate dens and outposts where they can stop to build new ships and weapons, buy provisions, hunt for treasure, and sell plundered goods. Other teased features revealed in previews of Skull and Bones include large amounts of customization through an array of weapon and ship combinations, as well as extensive multiplayer options where players can band together to take on conquests or fight amongst themselves.
An infamy system plays a large role in Skull and Bones, as players work to become the most renowned pirate of the seven seas. Players can earn infamy through things like completing contracts and discovering treasure, which in turn will let them unlock better ships, weapons, and armor. It sounds as though players will be able to make the most of the Golden Age of Piracy, just as real-life pirates did in centuries past.
Skull and Bones’ Golden Age of Piracy era took place from the mid-1600s into the first few decades of the 18th century. The open world of Skull and Bones is specifically based on the Indian Ocean region during that time period, which was an especially busy hotbed for pirate activity. The Indian Ocean was home to some of the busiest trade routes in the world at that time, used by large corporations like the East India Company to transport valuable goods.
Just as infamy plays a large part in Skull and Bones, some of the most well-known pirates of all time were active during the Golden Age of Piracy. According to World History Encyclopedia, famous pirates like Blackbeard and Black Bart Roberts were prevalent pirates of the time period, and used their infamy to their advantage. The new Skull and Bones trailer teased that players can intimidate enemies and reflect their pirate’s legacy through clothing, much like pirates did at that time. Black Bart was known for wearing “a scarlet silk coat, a matching damask waistcoat, and a diamond necklace,” and Blackbeard’s namesake stemmed from the black ribbons he sported in his beard.
The two main locations it seems players will travel to in Skull and Bones are pirate dens and outposts. The former is where players will craft and purchase supplies and acquire contracts, while the latter is where they can sell good and discover riches outlined by treasure maps. The Golden Age of Piracy’s historical influence can be seen in these locations, which both stem from what were called pirate havens. These strategic locations were an amalgam of the two in-game places – they served as business and social hubs just as havens and outposts do for those playing Skull and Bones online multiplayer, and were located close to trade routes yet a safe distance away from the authorities. One of the main known pirate havens was in Madagascar, which the world of Skull and Bones is likely based on.
Although elements from the Golden Age of Piracy permeate most areas of Skull and Bones, there are a few changes that help add to the fantasy of being a pirate. One of these main areas has to do with the common pirate ships of the time period. While Skull and Bones teases the ability to garner larger, more powerful ships, smaller ships were much more practical during the real-life era – sloop ships, which were “fast, highly maneuverable, and capable of sailing through shallows where larger naval ships could not follow,” were some of the most common vessels. The only exceptions to this were famous pirates who used their ships as a status symbol, captaining the more illustrious style of ship seen in Skull and Bones gameplay footage, such as Blackbeard’s, which was called The Queen Anne’s Revenge – a ship that players were able to briefly control during another Ubisoft pirate game: Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag.
The other main difference comes from how combat was conducted in the Golden Age of Piracy. While Skull and Bones portrays epic cannon battles that do huge amounts of damage to enemy ships, this was not typically a practical goal for pirates of the time. The reason behind that is simple: weapons like cannons could do significant damage to a target’s cargo, which was more often than not was pirates were seeking. Pirates of the time used cannons more as a method of intimidation, as a way to encourage other ships to simply surrender their goods. If they were denied, combat would commence through the use of weapons like cutlasses, muskets, flintocks, and maces, not cannons.
However, it’s a good thing that Skull and Bones doesn’t bear a completely accurate resemblance to the Golden Age of Piracy. It’s important for an epic swashbuckling pirate video game to include the more fantastical elements that players imagine the pirate life to be, while also taking influence from the most interesting parts of history, similar to the way the setting was approached in the Assassin’s Creed franchise. While the Golden Age of Piracy across the Indian Ocean was undoubtedly an exciting time, most players want to be able to experience the infamy and grandeur of being one of the most famous pirates in the world without being tied down by logistical constraints. Skull and Bones appears to have created an interesting blend of history and fantasy that will give players a unique pirate experience when the title sets sail this fall.
Source: World History Encyclopedia
Deven McClure is a Senior Gaming Writer covering news, reviews, features, and interviews for Screen Rant, specializing in the simulation genre. A lifelong lover of video games, she began writing for Screen Rant in 2021. When she’s not working, you can undoubtedly find her playing her latest video game obsession – most likely something with farming and crafting. She’s been playing games since early childhood, first becoming obsessed with Animal Crossing for the Gamecube at 8 years old, and has loved learning about them ever since. Originally from California where she studied arts and child development, Deven moved to New York in 2017. After her move, she attended Gotham Writing School with a focus on article and television writing. She now lives in Brooklyn with her boyfriend and cats, Timmy and Tommy – named after the two adorable Animal Crossing characters, of course.
