20 Disastrous Gaming Launches Everyone Saw Coming

20. Skull & Bones

It frankly would've been shocking if Ubisoft's open world pirate-themed action-adventure game Skull and Bones enjoyed a successful launch, considering the utter minefield that was its path to release.

Originally announced at E3 2017, the game was continually delayed until finally releasing almost 7 years later at the start of 2024. 

During this period many reports were made of the game's troubled development, said to be a result of scope creep and project mismanagement, causing its budget to balloon to an eye-watering $200 million.

By the time a poorly received closed beta took place in 2023, it seemed nigh-on impossible that Skull and Bones could weather the storm of bad PR and somehow launch in a manner that satisfied players, critics, and Ubisoft themselves.

Ultimately the game bowed to aggressively mediocre reviews, most feeling that its empty, repetitive gameplay wasn't worth the $70 price tag nor Ubisoft's widely-mocked decision to label it a "AAAA" title.

Though Skull and Bones didn't have major server issues on launch compared to many games on this list, the utter lack of interesting things to do made it a coma-inducingly dull experience that surely left those few who actually bought it with weapons-grade buyers' remorse.