Assassin’s Creed

We sit down and review Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced. The classic pirate game is sailing the high seas again. Here is our review of Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced.

It is time to raise the sails and the flag, as Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced is sailing onto the PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. A new version of one of the most beloved titles in the line that Ubisoft has given us, along with a few new things added in. I know that I enjoyed the game when it first came out, so getting a newer version of Assassin’s Creed Black Flag has had me excited. Excited and a little cautious given the way that the IP has ebbed and flowed over the years. It is starting from a solid base, so we already know that the review that we have is going to be able to have a great leaping-off point. That said, will a remaster of a game be enough to sell us all? Well, that is what we are here to let you all know, along with many hours of gameplay for you to help make your choices.

Story

Just as we have experienced in the original Assassin’s Creed Black Flag, we take on the role of Edward Kenway. A Welsh privateer who is out there just trying to make a life for himself and his loved ones. As was the case in history, that did not always turn out as great or as profitable. For Edward, that is about the same as his ship is attacked, he is the lone survivor, and needs to take up a life of piracy to try to get back to the status quo. Unfortunately for Edward, he masquerades as the wrong pirate out of the gate and is swept up into a global conspiracy. All ending with him hitting the high seas, again, and taking up a role in the order of assassins. You know, as one would normally do under these circumstances.

Hated

It feels weird to say, but after thirteen years since Assassin’s Creed Black Flag first dropped, and there being two console cycles since, I was expecting a little more when it came to the visuals of the game. They are not bad by any means, but they do not fully feel as if the game would have been made in the modern day. Especially when the teams have had the time and skill to bring the Assassin’s Creed IP to a solid state out there with the various others that have released over the years. Having a few immersive things, like the characters actually moving their lips when dialog is playing out, would have shown that there was more effort put in beyond upscaling the visuals to the greater details. It seems so small, but once you notice it in the game, it will throw you off and make you look for more of it. Especially when the character models have more detail and life added in, it just feels like a lower effort was put into that, and more on the memeable things like shanties had more attention.

Visuals out of the way, and another missed opportunity to make Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced the best version of the game, comes down to the parkour and other "assassin" elements in the game. There have been so many innovations and updates to those systems over the years that a modern title in the IP feels like it all should flow just as smoothly. Sadly, that was not the case when I did my run through the game. Many times, Edward would get caught on random parkour paths or randomly take the wrong turn, even when just pushing forward on the path that I was already set on. It was never to the point of game-breaking, but Assassin’s Creed has made massive leaps and bounds, and this truly felt as if I was playing the game from over a decade ago when it came to the controls. This could be a case of being used to Odyssey or Mirage when it comes to the flow, but for me, it felt as if there was very little to get this system up to the same level as the latest titles have been. Even if it had been just quality-of-life tweaks and not replacing the older system with the newer one.

Lastly, and I know this is more of a me thing than a general rule out there for Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced, the combat in the game felt as if it was loosened and not tightened up here. This could be due to being used to the way things flow now, but the fluidity I remembered in the original game felt as if it was missing. Missing and simplified down for some reason. To the point where I was able to swing wildly once or twice, and then just move in for the instant takedown of the enemies. Not just for the lower-level ones, but for all of the characters in the game. It felt odd and as if there was an attempt to make the combat system in Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced flow as we have in a newer game, but it was only completed half the way through. I want to have epic sword fights on pirate ships in this game, and it turned into just slicing and stabbing with the greatest of ease. And not on the easiest difficulty that the game had to offer. I specifically shifted back into the stealth aspect to give myself a challenge, as the combat in the game never felt as if it would.

Loved

While I was never any good at it in the original Assassin’s Creed Black Flag, that naval combat system that they made for the game is still king around here. Even though I have my own personal skill issues with it, it is so much fun to have on the high seas. There is a great reason that it was carried on into the various other outings of the IP that housed it. This feels like the one system in the game that Ubisoft took the lessons from the other improvements over the years, and added them right in to make for a perfect blending. Even in the footage that I was able to capture for it, I show how even someone who is terrible at it can still get the job done and have fun while doing it. I was glad to have it as such a huge part in the original Assassin’s Creed Black Flag, and glad to see that the teams made sure that it was just as optimized as possible in the latest release for it. Even if it was not the main point of the whole game, it is something that I know fans of the IP will be ready to sail into and spend so much time enjoying out there.

The next thing I originally thought I was going to hate about Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced, oddly became something that I began to love again. That would be the classic Eagle Vision that felt like it was made almost useless as the games progressed out there. I forgot how it both helped and gave a challenge to the game when we did not have a bird's-eye view to report to us the location of everything. That was never present in Assassin’s Creed Black Flag, and we just had to go with a basic "detective" kind of vision in the game. At first, it was a little annoying, given how useful the upgraded system has been. Once I was resigned to not having that method to stalk everything in the world, even if it would have been easy to add in, I actually felt the true challenge of the games coming back in. Then I could further appreciate the slight updates and changes that came with it in this version of the game. It is by no means perfect, but it did have me planning and getting further engaged in the game than I have been in the more recent modern titles. It is weird to think that something so basic would have been able to do that.

Finally, and this should come as little surprise, the story and character elements of Assassin’s Creed Black Flag shine just as bright as ever. Sure, there was not much that needed to be altered or changed about it, but this version of the game does allow not only me to experience it all again, but many others to actually be able to enjoy it as well. This was always my second favorite in the whole Assassin’s Creed line, and I was starting to forget what had me in love with the IP after the last few titles. While it may not push the IP forward by leaps and bounds, it is a solid reminder to the older gamers of how special it all was. Also, a solid entry point for those just now getting into the IP and want to have one of those iconic stories to play out. It is where it felt, to me, where real history and the fictional one started to perfectly cross. This new experience had me pulled back in and loving the IP once more, and for that, I needed to leave the best for last in all of the loved category.

Overview

Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced is not going to make you feel like you have a modern title from the IP in your hand by much of a stretch. In fact, I know that many who still own the original versions of the game might want to hold off on snagging this one, as the changes and updates do not feel as if it warrants another purchase. If you have never played Assassin’s Creed Black Flag before, or have lost access to all of your older versions of the game, this truly is a definitive version of it to experience. While it would have been nice to have some of the modern changes to combat and parkour in the mix, seeing the updates for the bigger gameplay aspects, like ship combat, was a nice addition. All of that is to say, definitely pick this one up if it is not in your current library. This is one of the biggest titles in the IP, and so many should enjoy it. If it is still in your library, take this as a sign to give the game another play; there is just no need to buy the newer version with how little that seems to be in there as an upgrade.

I give Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced 40 Shanties on the Shanty scale.

Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced was developed and published by Ubisoft for the PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC on July 9^th, 2026. A PlayStation copy of the game was provided by the publisher for reviewing purposes.