
Ship combat is the highlight of Black Flag, giving you full control of your ship’s offensive systems in high-intensity battles that see you maneuvering for position against the enemy ship, and looking for the perfect opening.

You can recruit new crewmembers to bolster your combat abilities, and improve the armor and cannons of the Jackdaw. Your ship and crew become a vital part of the experience, and Black Flag provides a robust set of options for upgrading both. In true pirate fashion, there’s an almost limitless number of things to discover in the world of Black Flag, from small pieces of treasure hidden underwater, to massive ancient ruins propped up on forgotten islands. The core gameplay loop is heavily influenced by the stealth action of previous Assassin’s Creed games, but this is where the series really started to invest more in exploration.Įarly on in the story, players get control of the Jackdawn, used to travel the open sea and a smattering of islands, large and small. Nearly every gameplay element in Black Flag is designed to reinforce the idea of being a “free” pirate. Instead, the narrative is more focused on exploring the people and places of the Caribbean, displaying the ever-growing enmity between pirates and the military forces of the British and Spanish.


So when the Assassin’s Brotherhood comes into the picture, Edward only participates begrudgingly. UbisoftĮdward simply wants to live free from the shackles of society. Black Flag’s story sees Edward meet an array of colorful historical characters, like Blackbeard and Anne Bonny, but the game’s biggest strength is not tying most of these characters to the series’ two organizations.īlack Flag embraces exploration more than any other entry in the series. The main character, Edward Kenway, doesn’t start out as an assassin, but rather a privateer-turned-pirate. Like every other Assassin’s Creed game, Black Flag takes place in a historical setting against the backdrop of the eternal conflict between the Assassins and Templars.

Ironically, Black Flag manages to be so good because it tones down all the Assassin’s Creed elements, and instead focuses on providing a story and gameplay experience built around the idea of piracy. Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag is easily the best pirate game ever made, giving players a vast world to explore and plunder. Video games arguably have an even stronger obsession, and nine years ago Ubisoft released one game that manages to perfectly tap into that pirate fantasy. There are few time periods more romanticized than the Age of Piracy, and all forms of entertainment have long been obsessed with the freedom-loving pirates who sail the open seas.
