Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced is better than the original in almost every way
Topics: Assassin's Creed, Reviews, Ubisoft
Featured Image Credit: Ubisoft
Topics: Assassin's Creed, Reviews, Ubisoft
Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag is one of the most popular entries in the Ubisoft series, and 13 years on from its original release, it’s now been remade from the ground up for the modern era.
With lush new visuals, improved animations, combat, exploration, stealth and more, Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced should be the definitive way to experience this beloved classic, so let’s find out.
The story of Black Flag follows Edward Kenway, an adventurous man who takes on the pirate life in the hope of returning to his wife, Caroline, with endless riches to live a blissful and relaxing life. However, destiny would have plans for the charismatic Welshman after finding himself entangled in the centuries-old war between the Assassins and the Templars. What started as a selfish voyage in the hope of unimaginable riches, Edward would soon discover that he had a more meaningful purpose in life.
Anyone who is familiar with the 2013 original will know that it’s a gorgeous game, even to this day. I recently fired it up on my PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch, and it still holds up, to an extent. However, built from the ground up using the latest version of Ubisoft’s Anvil engine, Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced is an instant eye pleaser. The details on Edward and the supporting main cast, their animations, and the crisp voice audio make it feel like a brand new game. It’s perhaps not quite as visually pleasing as Assassin’s Creed Shadows, especially when the seasons change, but this remake isn't too far off.
The cities of Havana, Kingston, Nassau and more are vibrant with NPC life, with more active, life-like crowds. The sun shining on the stunning architecture, the vibrant jungle with dense foliage, the crashing waves on the Jackdown, with the sun reflecting off the sea, is a sight to behold. The lighting and shadows have also been greatly improved. Trust me, you’ll soon be spanning the photo mode to create some stunning screenshots to share with the community. I must also mention the dynamic weather. It’s quite a sight to be walking in a sunny Havana, to then face tropical rain. However, it's more than just a visual change, because when out at sea on the Jackdaw, you’ll be feeling the power of the wind as you fight against the elements, while frantically trying to avoid the approaching tornadoes during an intense thunderstorm.
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In terms of gameplay, this is quite possibly where Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced shines the most. Combat feels more free-flowing, and you’ll have more of a reliance on parrying and dodging attacks. Much like Dark Souls, enemies will have a sub-metre that will break down their defence the more you hammer them. But be warned, if you spam an attack, the enemy will soon counter you with ease.
Other than a well-timed parry, which can result in an instant-kill depending on the enemy type, successfully killing a sequence of foes will trigger a satisfactory chain of attacks. Furthermore, if you successfully parry an attack, you’ll be able to unleash a deadly execution, which will soon have the enemy regretting coming after you, because you dared put a foot on its turf.
However, it’s the stealth that has improved most of all in this remake. For starters, there appears to be more foliage to hide in, and while purely aesthetic, it actually looks like you're hidden, instead of worrying how on earth the enemy can't see your backside sticking out of the bush. In the original game, the stealth missions were rather annoying, in respect of receiving an instant game over if the enemy saw you. Now, instead of that, when the enemy spots you, it will trigger combat, instead of restarting the checkpoint.
Edward can now crouch at any point; he can pretty much lean against all walls and boxes. There’s no set path when tailing enemies. He can easily tag enemies when using eagle vision, and it's easier to keep track of enemies when they walk around a corner or run away. Yet, while Edward has more stealth abilities, enemies appear to be more alert and will often suspect your presence.
If I had one criticism with the stealth, it is not being able to move to a prone position, an ability that was available in 2025’s Assassin’s Creed Shadows. So, having just finished that game recently, it feels odd not being able to do this in the remake. I’m hoping Ubisoft adds this ability sooner rather than later. Oh, you can also jump on the spot, but I’ve never used this ability once. It feels out of place, which is odd to say for a parkour game. But, that’s probably since it never existed in the original and exists here for reasons unknown.
While not perfect, as you will find yourself accidentally jumping in the wrong direction from time to time, the parkour in the remake is far more precise than in the original. It feels like you have more freedom and control when it comes to scaling structures.
Edward can leap in more directions when scaling, running across rooftops has more flow, and Edward's parkour animations look more natural. That being said, there doesn't appear to be as much freedom in the number of natural environments that you can climb, such as a rockface. While this wasn't perfect in Assassin’s Creed Shadows, it certainly has greater variety than this remake, at this time. It can just feel a bit off-putting trying to climb a rock wall that Edward should be able to scale, only for him to get invisible wall syndrome.
Without giving too much away, while much of the remake remains very faithful to the original game, it does have new content not in the 2013 game. There are new missions for the new NPCs, Lucy Baldwin, the Padre and Deadman, all of which can become officers on the Jackdaw, once you’ve completed their story missions. When completed, Lucy will add a new defensive brace ability. The Padre will add a new ram dash, and Deadman will improve the canons. So, it’s well worth taking the time to hire these recruits.
What’s more, there are also new missions for existing fan-favourite characters, namely Blackbeard, James Kidd, Stede Bonnet, and Edward’s wife, Caroline. There are also eight endgame missions involving Blackbeard, which adds some intriguing lore for the infamous pirate in the world of Assassin’s Creed. I must say that all this new content helps make up for the absence of the Freedom Cry expansion to an extent. But those Abstergo, modern-day office missions, perhaps I won't miss those quite as much. Though I suppose you can recruit cute cats and monkeys to chill on your Jackdaw, which cushions the blow.
When Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced was officially announced, it had some fair criticism, debating whether or not it really needed to exist. After all, it was only released during the early days of the last generation in 2013. However, this is arguably the best game in the series, perhaps only topped by Assassin’s Creed II and Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood.
The developers at Ubisoft have clearly gone to great lengths to ensure that this remake deserves to exist, and it’s very clear after spending many hours with the game that it’s a love letter to the fans and the developers. The folks at Ubisoft have made one of the best games ever, even better. Whether you’re a returning veteran or a newbie, Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced is the definitive way to experience this all-time classic.
Pros: Gorgeous visuals, improved combat and stealth, lots of new meaningful missions
Cons: No prone ability, no Freedom Cry expansion
For fans of: Assassin’s Creed III, Skull & Bones, Sea of Thieves
Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced will be released on 9 July 2026 on PC, PlayStation 5 (version tested) and Xbox Series X/S. A review code was provided by the publisher. Read a guide to our review scores here.