Review by Jon Donnis
Assassin's Creed Black Flag has always been a special kind of Assassin's Creed game. When it launched in 2013, its seamless world, naval gameplay and colourful cast of characters felt ahead of its time. Edward Kenway became one of the most memorable characters in the franchise, and Black Flag has remained in many players' top three Assassin's Creed games ever since.
Now, over a decade later, Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced brings the iconic solo pirate adventure back with a full remake built from the ground up using the latest Ubisoft Anvil engine. It remains faithful to the original experience while introducing enhanced graphics, improved stealth, upgraded parkour, refined combat, deeper naval mechanics and new narrative content.
After spending several weeks playing Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced, the overall level of polish has been one of the biggest surprises. Aside from a couple of early graphical glitches, I have experienced no bugs during my time with the game. With a Day One patch planned for July 9th, the release day, it was impressive to see how well the game performed before launch.
Having last played Black Flag more than a decade ago, returning through the Resynced version brought back a lot of memories. The game immediately felt familiar. I started remembering entire areas, characters and the overall feeling of playing the original. This remake succeeds because it does not just update the graphics. It recreates what made Black Flag special while improving many areas that needed attention.
The parkour is one of the biggest improvements. Running around locations, jumping, climbing and moving through the world feels better than ever. Traversal has always been a major part of Assassin's Creed, and Resynced makes simply moving around the world enjoyable.
The map has also been improved significantly. The original game could sometimes feel crowded with icons, but Resynced takes a more natural approach. Areas gradually reveal themselves after synchronising viewpoints, allowing players to discover hidden chests, song sheets, treasure maps and other collectibles without feeling overwhelmed.
Stealth has received a major upgrade too. The system feels much closer to Assassin's Creed Shadows, making sneaking around enemy areas feel more intuitive. The addition of a manual crouch button makes a huge difference, allowing players to hide, move carefully and plan assassinations in a way that feels much more natural.
Visually, Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced is a stunning remake. The use of the same Anvil engine as Assassin's Creed Shadows gives the game an incredible level of detail. The weather effects are particularly impressive. Sailing across the seas as a storm arrives, with lightning hitting the water and dramatic weather changes transforming the environment, creates some of the game's best moments.
The original game's present-day sections were always one of my least favourite parts. Walking around and sabotaging computers interrupted the main experience, so removing those sections is a welcome change. They have been replaced with special "Rift" levels that continue from Assassin's Creed Shadows, where players hear a voice and control a glitched version of their character while solving puzzles to return to the main game.
The Rifts are a fantastic replacement for those older present-day sections. These optional unique quests are stored deep within the Animus and provide additional narrative context, while also exploring "what if" scenarios for Edward Kenway. After getting used to the Animus Hub and its approach in Assassin's Creed Shadows, seeing it return in Black Flag Resynced feels like a natural progression. These missions offer something different from the main adventure and provide a much more enjoyable way to experience the modern-day side of Assassin's Creed.
The Animus Hub itself has also evolved further since its introduction in Assassin's Creed Shadows. It now acts as a central place to explore the Assassin's Creed timeline, access owned games and take part in additional challenges. Through Projects, players can complete missions to unlock exclusive rewards and earn Keys, which can then be exchanged for premium rewards through the Exchange. The Vault also stores collected data files, videos and important pieces of the franchise's ongoing modern-day story. After experiencing the Animus Hub in Shadows, its return here feels like a welcome addition that helps connect the wider Assassin's Creed universe.
The voice acting remains very good, with plenty of local accents adding personality to the world. The characters continue to be one of Black Flag's strongest elements, helping make the pirate setting memorable.
The only real negative is that Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced is a remake rather than a reimagining. Players who have played the original recently may not find enough new content to get the same experience from returning immediately. However, for those who never played Black Flag, or those who have not returned to it for many years, this remake offers a chance to experience the game again with significant improvements.
After completing Assassin's Creed Shadows, I needed a new Assassin's Creed challenge, and Black Flag Resynced was exactly what I was looking for. The main story can be completed in around 30 hours if you focus purely on the main missions, but with side quests, exploration, collectibles and simply enjoying life on the high seas, you can easily get around 70 hours of gameplay, if not more.
One of the things I have always enjoyed about the modern Assassin's Creed games is that you can play them however you want. You can ignore the main story, avoid side quests, explore different locations, collect achievements and trophies, or simply spend time running, climbing and discovering the world. Black Flag Resynced continues that tradition perfectly.
Perhaps the biggest surprise is how much my opinion changed compared to the original. I was one of the rare players who was not a fan of Black Flag the first time around. I never particularly enjoyed the pirate elements, sailing the seas or fighting other ships. Yet in Resynced, those same features have become some of the most enjoyable parts of the game because the improvements have fixed many of the things that frustrated me.
Even smaller changes make a difference. Collecting song sheets, something I always disliked in the original, feels much better now. It feels more natural, less frustrating and easier to enjoy.
Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced has arrived at exactly the right time. Many players will have finished Assassin's Creed Shadows and will be looking for another Assassin's Creed adventure. This remake fills that gap perfectly and brings back one of the franchise's most loved games.
The only question remaining is what happens after completing Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced? Could we get a Assassin's Creed Rogue Resynced? Surely that would be easy to do considering its similarity to Black Flag gameplay wise?
Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced is a top three Assassin's Creed game. It takes a beloved experience, improves the areas that needed attention and delivers an adventure that is easy to recommend.
Score: 9.5 out of 10
Out Now on Xbox
No comments:
Post a Comment