Developer: Ubisoft
Publisher: Ubisoft
Platform: PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S
Tested on: PS5
Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced – Review
One can’t help but feel old when realizing that Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag is already thirteen years old today. This iconic entry in the Assassin’s Creed franchise is beloved by many, not only because the adventure itself was extremely expansive but also thanks to the introduction of naval combat. Fans who have gone through the entire AC library may even consider the original Black Flag to be one of the best games in the series. This also brings us to the subject of today’s review, Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced, which is a remake of this classic title.
Story
Just like the original, Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced is all about Edward Kenway, a young, arrogant (and not so likable) pirate who thinks he can strike it big stealing from pretty much everyone in sight. The story follows Edward in his pursuit of riches, which leads him to many dangerous situations, including one where he takes over the identity of an assassin. While the latter initially opens doors for him, it also puts him in even more danger along the road. Truth be told, the story is nicely fleshed out the further you progress, with ‘famous’ characters also being thrown in for good measure, but the initial premise is a bit simple, to say the least. This isn’t a bad thing, as the narrative is interesting and even rather captivating. It does take a while before things get going though, but this is not that uncommon for Assassin’s Creed titles.
Graphics
We played most of the Black Flag Resynced in the performance mode, sacrificing a bit of the beautiful visuals the game otherwise has. We opted for performance over style, as the game did experience some frame drops otherwise. Nonetheless, even on the lower settings, the game looked gorgeous on our slightly dated original PS5 model. We absolutely loved the beautiful backdrops, the intricate details on our ship, and the small towns, which were also a lot of fun to explore. The kill animations looked delightfully brutal, but they did start to bore after a while, especially when you perform the same execution move five times in a row. Nonetheless, we were impressed by this great-looking remake. Some character movements and a few facial expressions did look a bit awkward, and we also encountered a few clipping issues.
Sound
In terms of sound design, Black Flag Resynced sounds great. The musical score is superb and manages to create an immersive atmosphere, which is further enhanced by the high-quality voice acting. Black Flag Resynced is filled to the brim with lengthy voiced dialogues, and even some of the chatter on the street does sound quite nice. Returning players might notice new dialogues as well, as the game does have more content than the original. Ubisoft really did its best to give this classic title a second lease on life. The sound effects are as good as always, with iconic SFX still being present.
Gameplay
Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced is still an action-adventure title with stealth elements. Like the 2013 original, you’ll explore the world around you via parcours and your trusty ship. The latter is also what made Black Flag unique, as the naval combat was top-notch and it provided a nice change of pace from the standard Assassin’s Creed formula. This is still the case here, even with everything in the Resynced version being built up from the ground again. While returning players will know what to expect in terms of story and missions, the game itself does play more like Assassin’s Creed Shadows when it comes to combat, climbing mechanics, and exploration. Your goal is still the same as always: you follow the story, get distracted by side content, and you will have the opportunity to perform a lot of impressive-looking assassinations.
Obviously, naval combat and boarding enemy ships makes its triumphant return. You’ll be in control of your own ship, the Jackdaw, very quickly, and from that point onwards, you’ll do a lot of exploring via boat. This does make it so that the pacing and flow feel a lot different than many other Assassin’s Creed titles, as it does take you a while longer to unlock fast travel points, as you’ll have to go from island to island to explore. We also found the introduction of the game was a bit slower than, for example, Shadows. Even so, the naval combat remains highly entertaining, and it’s quite cool to sink enemy vessels after boarding them. This is especially true when you start upgrading your ship with better weapons and more armor. The boarding process does remain the same most of the time, where you have to lower enemy moral and cut down their ship’s flag. While entertaining, after a while, these encounters did start to feel a bit ‘the same’.
All in all, this is a faithful remake with some new additions but also with a few cutbacks. Combat has been simplified to be smoother, for example, and DLC has not been included. New quests have been added though, so it does balance the scales again. For the most part, if you’re a fan of the original, you’ll probably still enjoy what Ubisoft has done with this new ‘version’ of Black Flag. Of course, we can understand some potential players being upset that original content has been scrapped, but even so, you’re still getting a proper bang for your buck here. You can still dive into the optional side content, which allows you to upgrade your gear or simply uncover the world’s secrets.
Conclusion
Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced is a great remake of the 2013 classic, presenting players with improved visuals, smoother gameplay mechanics, additional content, and a more user-friendly experience. We loved replaying Edward Kenway’s adventure, as well as delving into the side content before the credits rolled. For those who haven’t played the original, this is a title we can easily recommend. Even those who have great memories of the 2013 version should consider checking this one out, as it’s a totally new experience thanks to all the improvements and modern technology under the hood.
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