Ubisoft CEO defends $70 Skull and Bones Premium, insists it's 'AAAA' quality

Despite being delayed six times so far, Ubisoft co-founder and CEO Yves Guillemot is so confident in Skull and Bones that he's tempting fate, invoking the dreaded “AAAA” moniker. The last developer we can remember doing this was the ill-fated Striking Distance Studios with The Callisto Protocol, a game with a sad ending.

Guillemot made the comment during a phone question-and-answer session (thanks, VGC), discussing the company's third-quarter fiscal 2024 sales. One knowledgeable caller suggested that Skull and Bones appears to be following a live-service format (recently revealing a roadmap for year one) and asked why Ubisoft insists on charging $70 when the release is free. A play model may be more appropriate.

Guillemot asserted that the size, complete nature, level of polish and quality are worth the $70 price tag, which may be the most arrogant we've seen from a CEO recently. He proudly announced: “You'll see that Skull and Bones is a complete game. It's a very big game, and we feel like people will really see how expansive and complete this game is. It's really a complete triple…quadruple game – it's a game that will deliver results in the long run.”

It remains to be seen how Skull and Bones will fare in these uncharted waters, but the open beta will be running this weekend, ahead of the game's full launch next week, on February 16 on PS5. Either way, we won't have much longer to wait to find out how true Guillemot's claim is.