It seems that the launch of Skull and Bones is far from a success, especially for a big-budget project branded as a “AAAA game.” Ubisoft has yet to reveal any figures, but we can take a look at how it performed in terms of physical sales.
Skull and Bones debuted at #4 on GfK’s UK Boxed charts, selling fewer physical copies than last week’s other new release, Mario vs. Donkey Kong, which ranked 1st.
According to GamesIndustry.biz’s Christopher Dring, the sales of Ubisoft’s pirate action title were “less than a quarter of Sea of Thieves’ launch.” However, it is worth noting that digital distribution has become more dominant since 2018, so a direct comparison is not 100% fair.
Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden, an action adventure title from Don’t Nod and Focus Entertainment, debuted at #16, posting poor physical sales despite good reviews from both critics and players.
Helldivers 2 remained in 7th place, while Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League dropped from 3rd to 13th place.
Below are GfK’s top 10 best-selling physical games in the UK of the past week:
- Mario vs. Donkey Kong;
- Hogwarts Legacy;
- EA Sports FC 24;
- Skull and Bones;
- Super Mario Bros. Wonder;
- Mario Kart 8 Deluxe;
- Helldivers 2;
- Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate;
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III;
- Minecraft (Nintendo Switch).
Skull and Bones is a really troubled project for Ubisoft. Its development began more than a decade ago, with its direction and scope changing several times over the years. The French company even received subsidies from the Singapore government and, according to recent reports, spent roughly $200 million to produce the game.
After what seemed like a never-ending development and multiple delays, Skull and Bones finally launched on February 16, 2024. It received mixed reviews on Metacritic, with an average score of 64. Its user rating is even lower at 3.1/10.
Prior to the game’s release, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot told investors that Skull and Bonese is a “fully-fledged game” and defended its $70 price tag ($100 for the Premium edition) by saying that it is a “really full, triple… quadruple-A game, that will deliver in the long run.”
However, users who have played the beta disagreed with the company’s leader, with some players stating that “there is absolutely no way I’d pay $70 (or $90) for this game.”