Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag

 PlayStation 3
User Score
8.2

Generally favorable reviews- based on 1141 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 894 out of 1141
  2. Mixed: 145 out of 1141
  3. Negative: 102 out of 1141
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  1. soomeMafia
    Nov 11, 2013
    9
    This game would've get a 10/10 if it didn't have a certain 'legacy' to protect. As a pirate game this was nearly excellent, but the true beaut is in the pace changing of the game. There are awesome and huge naval battles, but there is also a great stealth system. The greatness is that both of these work well and both of them have their places. The story is something new and the charactersThis game would've get a 10/10 if it didn't have a certain 'legacy' to protect. As a pirate game this was nearly excellent, but the true beaut is in the pace changing of the game. There are awesome and huge naval battles, but there is also a great stealth system. The greatness is that both of these work well and both of them have their places. The story is something new and the characters we're unique and mostly very entertaining.

    But to me, that isn't what the series are all about. To me, it's about the feeling, the spirit! You have to feel that you're the goddamn angel of death. I felt that when running in the roofs of Venice, but since that it has been facing away. Here it has returned, with the feeling of freedom that Caribbean offers. Endless activities and places to visit, the weather simulations, the crew singing, the ocean! All of those are great and they all make this the 2nd best game in the series this far.

    I recommend this game to everyone because of it's versatility. Both new players and long-time AC-fan like me will find something to like in it.    … Expand
  2. Rafalmetacritic
    Nov 16, 2013
    9
    Best assasin's game I have ever played. Climate, graphics, not too much run. Of course ships battles, great pleasure to be on the sail and board some spanish ship
  3. militarynewb
    Nov 17, 2013
    9
    I've just started this great adventure that we call Black Flag, and I have to say plainly and simply. Wow. Just when I thought Assassins Creed was reaching the end of its days, it comes in and brings this next exciting installment to the stage. With this, they have secured the franshises future for years to come, Bravo!!!
  4. fatgamer
    Nov 19, 2013
    9
    This game is amazing The exploration is the best thing. the combat was upgraded and so was the counter system well worth the price. usually i can play AC for an hour at most but with black flag i have to force myself to put the controller down.
  5. Krobolt
    Dec 2, 2013
    9
    After the release of Assassin's Creed II, the series became an annual release franchise. Ubisoft eases inevitable gamer fatigue by making major changes to each new game to come. Brotherhood brought in a well-received ability to create your own Assassin's Order, which the player could call upon in combat. Revelations brought in a less-successful brand of tower defense mini-games and IIIAfter the release of Assassin's Creed II, the series became an annual release franchise. Ubisoft eases inevitable gamer fatigue by making major changes to each new game to come. Brotherhood brought in a well-received ability to create your own Assassin's Order, which the player could call upon in combat. Revelations brought in a less-successful brand of tower defense mini-games and III brought in a new system of homestead missions as well as naval based combat that was highly successful. Black Flag is a bit different in those regards. Black Flag took the naval mechanics of III and expanded on it, creating an open world, and an entire game, in itself. Its the most successful series of mechanics the series has seen in years.

    With a new age comes a new hero; Captain Edward Kenway. This new assassin isn't like
    the previous heroes in the series. Where as our past heroes fought for honor, justice, and freedom, Edward 's motive is pretty straight forward; to make himself some coin. Edward became a pirate so that
    he could get money (a lot of money) and that remains when he enters into the assassin order. Preferring the “everything is permitted” side of the creed, Edward kills and plunders to his heart's content. During the majority of the game, this remains until the last few hours when his character finally develops into a hero fans are willing to root for.

    The story itself is very similar to the character of Edward in fact; straight forward and bland.
    Aside from his search for the “Observatory,” Edward has no real motive, antagonist, even loyalty, making his character arc the weakest in the series so far. The characters you meet can be your friends one scene and your enemies in the next. These transitions are poorly executed and abrupt, leaving only a few characters feeling truly fleshed out. The plot also makes the game feel very separated as an Assassin's Creed game. Considering Edward spends so little time affiliating with the assassins and more with pirates, you'll sometimes think your not playing an Assassin's Creed game. In the end, however when your stabbing, climbing, and eliminating Templars, you'll feel familiarity take you home.

    As for the present day story, I would stay away from it entirely. Following the story of the previous game, you take the role of an Absetergo Entertainment (not Industries) employee who uses the Animus to research the life of Edward for a future Abstergo project. The present day story itself is nonsense and feels separated from the previous entries as if its taking place in another universe entirely. Filled with lame hacking puzzles and little to explore, this is a feature to stay away from as much as possible. I couldn't get into the Animus any faster.

    As for the missions, there is plenty of variety here. The main campaign is filled with lame tail/eavesdrop missions that will keep you sighing every time. The side missions however will keep you
    begging for more. As well as a vast open sea to explore filled with small islands beaming with chests and animus fragments, sunken ships filled with treasures, and massive forts and enemies to plunder.

    On land, familiarity takes over. Edward stabs and climbs as his ancestors before. Straying away from the towering monuments of the previous games, you'll be sticking to smaller cities with a few forts and castles here and there. The environments are all beautifully rendered, from the Caribbean jungles to the towering buildings of Kingston. There is plenty to do in each city, from chests to find, viewpoints and sea shanties, even animals to hunt to upgrade Edward's weapons and pouches. There is also assassin contracts as well as missions tied to collecting five Templar keys to unlock some sweet armor. The combat has been refined from the previous game, making it more comfortable when combating multiple foes. This creates fast high paced action sequences all the more fun with a new weapon selection system, making combat simplified.

    On sea however, you enter a whole new world. The massive scope of the West Indies is exciting to explore, filled with activities to keep the player entertained.

    You take wheel of your ship “The Jackdaw,” armed to the teeth and filled with a crew all your own. The naval gameplay has been modified this time around creating a more flexible way to pilot your ship and combat. Instead of a weapon wheel, the weapon you fire is dictated by the direction the camera’s facing, so looking to the side means that the broadside cannons are active, while looking behind gets the fire barrels ready to drop. This makes the combat simplified and easy to learn. As for the crew, they are my personal favorite element of the game. Your crew takes a major role in plundering as they will help in your success in plundering. As you sail your crew will sing sea shanties (that you can acquire more of through collectibles) as well as comment on your actions such as abandoning ship. It never gets old when you reach for the wheel after a successful looting and your crew cheers for you in your glory and success. The crew is filled with such charm I can't imagine the game without this element. There has been many days where I leave with a shanty or two stuck in my head, constantly humming them throughout my day.

    But the naval gameplay doesn't just end there. To survive out in the West Indies, your going to need a powerful ship capable of making Davy Jones quiver in his boots. You'll need plenty of resources to make The Jackdaw into a force to be reckoned with. All of the ships that explore out on the open sea carry plenty of supplies necessary for upgrading the Jackdaw. You can use the captain's spyglass to see what each ship is leveled and what resources each ship carry. You'll be using this a lot to make sure your next assault will really be worth the hassle. These ships won't go down lightly as they will fire back as well as call for reinforcements, so plan accordingly. Once you've withered the ships health down to red, its time to plunder the ship. I encourage all players to plunder a good majority of ships early on as resources are a necessity. If you just destroy a ship without properly plundering it, you only receive half the resources.

    Once plundering, you are tasked to completing a few objectives before capturing the ship fully, some include killing a certain amount of crew members and destroying the enemy flag. As you jump abroad the enemy ship, this is where things can get a little hectic, as combat can get feel really crammed on the deck of a ship. With enemy soldiers fully surrounding you as well as combating your fellow crew-mates, you be constantly wondering who has their shot aimed at you. As you successfully plunder the ship, you will be given a few as to what to do next, repair the Jackdaw from its previous battle scars, remove your current wanted level, or send the now captured ship into your own fleet.

    Edward's Fleet is a new gameplay element similarly to the Assassins' order mechanics from Brotherhood. You can access your own personal fleet inside the Jackdaw's captain's quarters. Its here where you can manage your ships, access trade routes, and combat other ships to acquire more resources. As you send your ships off to locations, an in-game timer is set often taking a few hours for ships to get there and back. As your fleet returns, fortune follows with treasure maps and outfits, as well as coin and upgrades for the Jackdaw. The experience is completely optional however, but I would suggest using it ever now and again.

    Multiplayer returns once again in as high of quality as ever. It won't knock off Grand Theft Auto Online or Call of Duty off their pedestals but it is definitive an enjoyable experience through and through. Wolfpack returns once again for co-op based missionary where players team up to hunt NPCs as well as a new Game Labs mode. In Game Labs, players can create their own game types and share them with friends and other players. “Pistoleer” was a personal favorite of mine, where a player is given the abilities, shield and disguise, and players can only kill using a pistol. This made matches feel intense, leaving me paranoid and careful of every move I made.

    Despite its story flaws, frustrating stealth gameplay, and sometimes glitchy world, Assassin's Creed 4 is a hard game to put down. Some elements have been crafted to fit for a better experience. You'll notice the lack of tutorial missions as well as a redefined weapon selection system assigned to the d-pad, making the game easier to pick up for new players. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience much more than the last few games in the series, but it still hasn't reached its full potential just yet. Once you get through the few rough tides, its all smooth sailing here on in.    … Expand
  6. XxC_GamingxX
    Jan 9, 2014
    9
    My hopes were Assassin's Creed 4 would be much better than the underwelming, Assssin's Creed 3 (mainly due to the ending).

    The story isn't the best in the franchise but it is well done, For future Assassins Creed games keep The Optional Objectives out of the game, it makes missions more linear if you want that 100%. Naval combat has made a return and better than ever. My favourite    My hopes were Assassin's Creed 4 would be much better than the underwelming, Assssin's Creed 3 (mainly due to the ending).

    The story isn't the best in the franchise but it is well done, For future Assassins Creed games keep The Optional Objectives out of the game, it makes missions more linear if you want that 100%.

    Naval combat has made a return and better than ever.

    My favourite parts of the game were the side missions from Assassin Contracts to simply a game of checkers.

    The Open World is great you can explore the vast sea and access Havana,Nassau and Kingston along with small villages you even get you're own village, you can customize so it has Shops,Taverns etc.

    Despite Assassin's Creed II being the top of the franchise this is my 2nd Favourite Assassin's Creed game

    9/10    … Expand
  7. mr10123
    Dec 8, 2013
    9
    Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag represents new life for the franchise which, just a year ago, seemed to be aging dramatically. Everything about it is like a well-oiled machine, and Ubisoft's experience with the pirate genre shines through. Notable improvements include manual aim for pistols and other weapons, along with a series of noticeable tweaks here and there.
    This is indisputably    Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag represents new life for the franchise which, just a year ago, seemed to be aging dramatically. Everything about it is like a well-oiled machine, and Ubisoft's experience with the pirate genre shines through. Notable improvements include manual aim for pistols and other weapons, along with a series of noticeable tweaks here and there.
    This is indisputably the greatest in the series since Assassin's Creed II.    … Expand
  8. monkeydluffy
    Dec 8, 2013
    9
    this is the best ac game the best part are the fights you can have with your ship the whole pirate theme is really good the online is pretty fun but no one is better than ezio and thats why is not a ten on ten
  9. aGUYtoREMEMBER
    Jan 2, 2014
    9
    For those who do not know this game goes backwards in time, however forward in the story. The main guy is Edward Kennway, father of Haythen in AC3 and Grandfather of Connor. that is all I will say.

    I dont know why people say that AC is dying out. This game is really good. Goes into depth, has good side missions, allows you to really explore a much more realistic world and setting.    For those who do not know this game goes backwards in time, however forward in the story. The main guy is Edward Kennway, father of Haythen in AC3 and Grandfather of Connor. that is all I will say.

    I dont know why people say that AC is dying out. This game is really good. Goes into depth, has good side missions, allows you to really explore a much more realistic world and setting.
    Graphic 9/10
    Story 10/10
    controls 9/10
    online- 7/10
    Smoothness 10/10    … Expand
  10. Vicjo
    Jan 27, 2014
    9
    Assassins creed 4 gets the best the others assassins, the game is very funny, you explore every corner looking all your secrets. Edward kenway is a character with personality (not as connor, assassins 3), but Edward don´t is a assassins only he moves by the money. The gameplay is really fun, climb building never have been so fun, the battles improves respect assassins 3, but far from theAssassins creed 4 gets the best the others assassins, the game is very funny, you explore every corner looking all your secrets. Edward kenway is a character with personality (not as connor, assassins 3), but Edward don´t is a assassins only he moves by the money. The gameplay is really fun, climb building never have been so fun, the battles improves respect assassins 3, but far from the leaders of the genre. The ship battles are something else, very funny but is just doing repetitive. The game has a lot of side quests (follow a guy, kill guy...).

    The main story doesn´t explain anything, if a good game but is a pirates game, not a assassins game.    … Expand
  11. hiwasafari
    Mar 11, 2014
    9
    I feel very happy about ac4 because it is a really good game. I have played every AC even Liberation on Vita, and honestly AC4 is one of the best if not the best AC game ( This or ac2 fighting for nr 1). After ac3 which was a huge dissapointment AC4 brings back what was so great about that game which was naval combat.
    The naval combat feels a lot better and is the best thing that could    I feel very happy about ac4 because it is a really good game. I have played every AC even Liberation on Vita, and honestly AC4 is one of the best if not the best AC game ( This or ac2 fighting for nr 1). After ac3 which was a huge dissapointment AC4 brings back what was so great about that game which was naval combat.
    The naval combat feels a lot better and is the best thing that could happen to the series. The only thing I feel the naval combat needed was more customization for ur ship, sure you can updrage your ship but what about diffrent ships. Like a heavy ship thats slow, or a fast speed sheep, Would be great if you had options like that and hopefully we will either get a fully pirate game from ubisioft or another ac that uses the naval combat.
    The rest of the game besides the naval combat is like every other AC game. Sure the game has new settings but the gameplay feels a lot like the previous games. The story of Edward is good and enjoyable but the Assassins vs templars story starting to get irrating with no end.
    Another thing i want to praise are the sea shanties , a lot of fun and I enjoy hearing them during my playtrough.

    After all this game is really good and every Ac fan should try it. The setting and the naval combat a lone makes it worth the while. I will give this game a 9/10 and hopefully we will a open world pirate game from ubisoft or another ac game likes this with a lot more customization!    … Expand
  12. elmaigoch09
    Mar 27, 2014
    9
    Better the the third game, great story, characteres and also has a better unique gameplay and combat system, definitely worth playing if you're a fan of this saga.
  13. USSRManiac
    Mar 29, 2014
    9
    Awesome game. What Black Flag possibly lacks in the intriguing story some were looking for is fully made up for by the best Assassin's Creed gameplay to date, where piracy and previous Assassin's Creeds nostalgia are integrated flawlessly. I've never played a pirate game before but the way AC4's naval combat and events (harpooning/royal convoys) drew me in from the start, as well asAwesome game. What Black Flag possibly lacks in the intriguing story some were looking for is fully made up for by the best Assassin's Creed gameplay to date, where piracy and previous Assassin's Creeds nostalgia are integrated flawlessly. I've never played a pirate game before but the way AC4's naval combat and events (harpooning/royal convoys) drew me in from the start, as well as Kenway's Fleet, ensured that I couldn't stop playing until I fully upgraded the Jackdaw and destroyed all the legendaries. 9/10 only because of the slightly lacklustre story. With so much to do and such value for money, I would recommend to long-term AC fan and newcomer alike.… Expand
  14. wizered153
    Apr 10, 2014
    9
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Definitely my favorite in the series so far, Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag takes my favorite part of Assassin's Creed III, the naval missions, and builds an entire game around it. While I don't feel like an Assassin when I ram into a British Blockade with a Fire Boat, I feel like I'm a real pirate sailing the open seas, I feel like I can be what I really want to be. This game really promoted the open world experience that I felt other Assassin's Creed games lacked, with a massive world to explore and a bunch of different of things to do, Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag should be treated as one of the best in the Series. (And less being pulled out of game for stupid story, yay)… Expand
  15. Nikos453
    Jun 14, 2014
    9
    the game is awesome!! i thought its graphic will be bad like all the new games which are coming for ps3 and xbox 360 but the game on ps3 is really awesome the story is a little bore like all the time tall this guy tall this ship that is only bad on the game the free roam the new parkour skills the upgrades and you can order your crew your ships to collect money for you i have all the acthe game is awesome!! i thought its graphic will be bad like all the new games which are coming for ps3 and xbox 360 but the game on ps3 is really awesome the story is a little bore like all the time tall this guy tall this ship that is only bad on the game the free roam the new parkour skills the upgrades and you can order your crew your ships to collect money for you i have all the ac but this is the best AND SORRY FOR BAD ENGLISH… Expand
  16. SythusRATINGS
    Oct 19, 2014
    9
    The year is 1715. Pirates rule the waters of the Caribbean and have established a lawless Republic. Among these outlaws is a lethal young captain named Edward Kenway. His notorious exploits earn the respect of legends like Blackbeard, but draw him into an ancient war that may destroy everything the pirates have built for themselves.
  17. maciejkpl
    Nov 16, 2014
    9
    This is not an Assassin's Creed game. This is an pirate game with AC elements. And it is great at it. The sense of adventure, discovering uncharted places, treasure, ship battles, environments. As an AC game it probably deserves 4/10 tops, but as an action-adventure it's an honest 9/10. One of the few games that I rushed from work to play on my PS3, and the only one game that afterThis is not an Assassin's Creed game. This is an pirate game with AC elements. And it is great at it. The sense of adventure, discovering uncharted places, treasure, ship battles, environments. As an AC game it probably deserves 4/10 tops, but as an action-adventure it's an honest 9/10. One of the few games that I rushed from work to play on my PS3, and the only one game that after finishing it I got a feeling similar to finishing a great book - suddenly the whole world is empty and it takes a long time to find something similar. Forget it's an AC game and you'll love it.… Expand
  18. filiperibsantos
    Nov 20, 2014
    9
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The story outside the animus isn´t as great as the previous games. also i miss desmond miles.
    But the animus game as a edward is very good, but the story is just horable comparing to the other games.
    Hope they finish the story soon... because AC it´s starting to loose its magic    … Expand
  19. LatinCritic13
    May 18, 2020
    9
    Forget about the American Revolution, in Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag we are introduced to Connor Kenway's Grandfather, Edward Kenway, a Pirate turned to Assassin fighting and finding his way of life in the notorious times of plunder, rum, and women in which turned out to be very best AC title since AC2. The combat has been vastly improved from the first, the naval combat is exciting,Forget about the American Revolution, in Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag we are introduced to Connor Kenway's Grandfather, Edward Kenway, a Pirate turned to Assassin fighting and finding his way of life in the notorious times of plunder, rum, and women in which turned out to be very best AC title since AC2. The combat has been vastly improved from the first, the naval combat is exciting, and of course, the exploration of the West Indies is astonishing to wonder around on. The real star in ACIV is the history and that makes it one of the best gaming experiences we have ever got. Plus, the voice acting in this game is way sharper than its predecessors and I can see why this game is so good compared to the others. I thought this game would be a tragedy as AC3, then I realized Black Flag is an important piece of relic in AC history.… Expand
  20. pandaholic
    Dec 12, 2014
    9
    At first this game was incredible. The differences it took from the rest of the series, not only in game play but in story line, being non-linear and then sort of misleading to the overall plot was a good experience to play through. I soon become bored though, and took a couple almost a year to pick it back up and beat the game which I was still very happy with the end, as weird as it left off.
  21. Willzilla
    Dec 16, 2014
    9
    Definitely a game worth picking up if you are a veteran Assassin's Creed fan or you are just starting the series. AC Black Flag was my first AC game and after playing it for 20+ hours I went out and bought the Ezio Trilogy to see why it was so hyped. This game is amazing. From the Naval combat to exploring the hundreds of different island ports to fighting jaguars in the jungle, this gameDefinitely a game worth picking up if you are a veteran Assassin's Creed fan or you are just starting the series. AC Black Flag was my first AC game and after playing it for 20+ hours I went out and bought the Ezio Trilogy to see why it was so hyped. This game is amazing. From the Naval combat to exploring the hundreds of different island ports to fighting jaguars in the jungle, this game has enough content to satisfy almost any gamer. I only have one complaint about this game and that is the fire-ant mentality of the enemy ships. there is nothing worse than you being down on supplies and having a damaged ship, going after a small ship to gather supplies and then being attacked by 3 Man o' Wars. Also the real-world quests are nothing short of inconsequential. But other than that there isn't much to complain about. The naval aspect is refreshing and AC4 is the first game to successfully pull off naval combat in a way that doesn't take away from the gameplay itself. Another interesting part of the game is the animals. In previous Assassin's creed games, horses and pigeons were the only animals you could interact with. But now you have rabbits, monkeys, lizards, jaguars, crocodiles, whales, and sharks, all of which can be hunted and stripped down for supplies. Hunting animals was a much needed aspect that just boosted the Assassin's Creed experience.
    Overall this game is the much needed reboot that the Franchise needed. 9/10 This game needs to be in your collection.    … Expand
  22. freakmode
    Jan 16, 2015
    9
    Gorgeous world to explore. Raiding ships. Assaulting forts. Hunting( and being hunted). Harpooning and treasure hunts. Everything you would want in a pirate based game! This game, hands down, has the best water ever rendered. Love watching enemies being mauled by a surprise jaguar attack. Customizing and upgrading the Jackdaw is the fuel for daring to raid a "hard" level ship when you knowGorgeous world to explore. Raiding ships. Assaulting forts. Hunting( and being hunted). Harpooning and treasure hunts. Everything you would want in a pirate based game! This game, hands down, has the best water ever rendered. Love watching enemies being mauled by a surprise jaguar attack. Customizing and upgrading the Jackdaw is the fuel for daring to raid a "hard" level ship when you know you're biting off more than you can chew.
    Got it late, so couldn't get access to other elements of play. Hate withheld content.
    Anytime a game has me playing at ten hour stretches (last time was Skyrim and Far Cry 3) I know it's a keeper.    … Expand
  23. Thebasstard
    Aug 26, 2015
    9
    The greater focus on stealth as well as improved combat and an awesome setting make this the best asassins creed in years. Also worth mentioning, the game thankfully doesn´t have a 3 HOUR tutorial (I´m looking at you, AC3) and lets you run completely free pretty early.
  24. DanishGamingGuy
    Apr 11, 2016
    9
    worse story then AC 3 but amazing gameplay but if you want to use the Brotherhood system this time around called the navy you have to be online witch **** sucks
  25. Empyrea
    Sep 17, 2017
    9
    This is more a game of pirates and ships than an AC game. If you plan to play other earlier games of this serie you should play them before start with Black Flag because there is an spoiler (from AC III). This is a good game with great graphics and very colourful. In my opinion I think they could have made a new game with a completely different story instead of extend the Assassin's CreedThis is more a game of pirates and ships than an AC game. If you plan to play other earlier games of this serie you should play them before start with Black Flag because there is an spoiler (from AC III). This is a good game with great graphics and very colourful. In my opinion I think they could have made a new game with a completely different story instead of extend the Assassin's Creed saga. This game is longer than the last AC games. It took me 28 hours to beat (including some extras, although if you want to do all of them you can easily spend many hours). In this game the naval battle is more complex than in AC III. An advise: make sure you have mortar's ammo when you attack fortresses.… Expand
  26. indigobeast
    Jul 10, 2017
    9
    This in my opinion is the greatest assassins creed game of all time. I know most of the fans prefer the second one and I also love that game. But this game is practically a masterpiece and it's also way better then assassins creed 3 which i was very disappointed with. There is so much to do in this game that you'll be playing for hours outside the story to do everything there is to do onThis in my opinion is the greatest assassins creed game of all time. I know most of the fans prefer the second one and I also love that game. But this game is practically a masterpiece and it's also way better then assassins creed 3 which i was very disappointed with. There is so much to do in this game that you'll be playing for hours outside the story to do everything there is to do on the map. Lets get to the story. I'll be honest it doesn't feel right for an AC game. it's more pirate based but that's kinda the whole point. Edward kenway was a great protagonist and he's also very relatable as he's had a tough life and once to become rich through piracy to have an easier life with his wife. Now the naval combat, it was absolutely brilliant. Boarding and sinking ships has never been so much fine in a pirate game, it felt rewarding and badass and it was controlled perfectly and never gets old. The abstergo nonsense is unfortunately still in the game but it' still not as bad as it was in the past. I also got 100% on this game recently. Unfortunately there's only one thing I dislike about it. Kenways Fleet. It's basically a mobile game and a crap one. You have to wait at least 18 hours to get all the stuff you want and you can't speed it up and gets old. Luckily it's not required to have a great experience in possibly the greatest pirate game to date. Get it if you haven't already!… Expand
  27. joe_g7
    Oct 31, 2018
    9
    The best Assassin's Creed game since Assassin's Creed 2. LOVED the sea battles.
  28. FranciscoM
    Nov 23, 2018
    9
    Unlike some of my friends of praise AC 1 and 2 and the best games of the series, Black Flag was actually the first time I was in contact in the series and I loved it! It doesn't really feel like an AC game, to be honest, it focuses more on the historical events than anything else but that's why I loved it! Couldn't recommend it enough!
  29. drongodan
    Feb 27, 2020
    9
    Good graphics, great exploration. Fun missions. Story was a bit naff tho. Definite improvement over III
  30. ente2ente
    May 26, 2021
    9
    Good mix of seawar, 3rd person fight games, stealth game, action adventure, diving, RPG and a lot of beach and sun. I love freeing slaves and cooperating with female pirates. And those great ideas with the sleeping and berserker arrows for the blowtube, the treasure hunting and gathering. It's not perfect (after 70 hours I won't replay that much) but very very great. One of my favouriteGood mix of seawar, 3rd person fight games, stealth game, action adventure, diving, RPG and a lot of beach and sun. I love freeing slaves and cooperating with female pirates. And those great ideas with the sleeping and berserker arrows for the blowtube, the treasure hunting and gathering. It's not perfect (after 70 hours I won't replay that much) but very very great. One of my favourite games with Red Dead Redemption!… Expand
  31. Simoss13
    Aug 25, 2023
    9
    After many years I tried Black Flag as I was interested in the pirate theme. Luckily I was impressed.
    Coming into the franchise fresh I feel I'm missing some key points in the story that would of been through the games library arc but the main story of Edward was easy to understand and surprisingly interesting.
    I liked the open world nature of the game. Being so vast at the time would of    After many years I tried Black Flag as I was interested in the pirate theme. Luckily I was impressed.
    Coming into the franchise fresh I feel I'm missing some key points in the story that would of been through the games library arc but the main story of Edward was easy to understand and surprisingly interesting.
    I liked the open world nature of the game. Being so vast at the time would of been novel as only few games achieved this on 7th Gen hardware. The graphics are beautiful, except for the characters face, still hold up today. There are some minor frame drops, it's as bad as other titles with less impressive graphics.
    Music is fitting. My favourite is being on your ship sailing in the seas hearing your crew sing shanties, really builds the mood of pirate theme. I just find blending assassins/templars with pirates in the Caribbean a little jarring.
    The upgrade system is fair. However, I did find I had to do some grinding for the resources needed at times.
    The game is worth your time clocking about 45hours on the main story and extras. There is some critiques I have though:
    - The platforming can be janky causing some frustration. I did die a few times where the character was climbing instead of running (or vice versa)
    - The open world is refreshing, I didn't feel the world was exactly "alive" compared to games like GTA. So travelling to islands seem like "copy-paste" and takes some immersion away
    - Post the 3/4 mark, the games missions tends to repeat themselves too often    … Expand
  32. Ardho
    Feb 8, 2022
    9
    I don't like naval battles, but this game is amazingly good, one of the best in the AC series
  33. Arw2231
    Aug 20, 2022
    9
    o blackflag foi minha primeira experiência com ac, eu amei esse jogo, a história é legal, os gráficos me surpreenderam pois na época do PS3 só tinham jogos cinzas que não me agrada já o ac4 e colorido, tem ótimos gráficos, a gameplay e viciante, o mapa é gigante e vivo com vários baús e fragmentos que faz o jogador explorar cada pedacinho do mapa, a minha experiência com ac4 foi incrível,o blackflag foi minha primeira experiência com ac, eu amei esse jogo, a história é legal, os gráficos me surpreenderam pois na época do PS3 só tinham jogos cinzas que não me agrada já o ac4 e colorido, tem ótimos gráficos, a gameplay e viciante, o mapa é gigante e vivo com vários baús e fragmentos que faz o jogador explorar cada pedacinho do mapa, a minha experiência com ac4 foi incrível, e fiquei com sentimento de culpa por ter pirateado esse jogo… Expand
  34. guihooded
    Jan 31, 2023
    9
    uma das melhores criações da equipe responsável pela franquia Assassin's Creed. vale o replay!
  35. Snjake
    Mar 18, 2023
    9
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. One of the best Assassin's Creed games not bc of gameplay bc your basically invincible if you just time your counters right even 10 ppl can't kill you, the story is absolutely amazing and the end had me in tears looking back at the friends that died bc of their and your own selfish pursuit of money and fame that towards the end of the story made Edward realize that there is more to life than just money and became one of the assassin's… Expand
  36. mixxalot
    Mar 31, 2017
    8
    Not the best AC game but a fun pirate type game.

    The Good Great naval combat so much fun attacking ships and boarding battles very exciting! Nice tropical graphics and animation very detailed clouds, weather, even the towels are detailed on land. Music was nice touch loved the singing while sailing HUGE open world lots to do and explore The Bad The Abstergo corporate    Not the best AC game but a fun pirate type game.

    The Good

    Great naval combat so much fun attacking ships and boarding battles very exciting!

    Nice tropical graphics and animation very detailed clouds, weather, even the towels are detailed on land.

    Music was nice touch loved the singing while sailing

    HUGE open world lots to do and explore

    The Bad

    The Abstergo corporate missions SUCKED BAD. Please get rid of this crap nonsense in future or just use a few cutscenes. Was boring and STUPID.

    I hated the tailing missions waste of time and boring
    Disliked the poor jump and climb mechanics

    Definitely worth buying used for cheap. I liked this and AC2 the best in the series so far but have not played Syndicate yet.    … Expand
  37. Sceptic
    Nov 2, 2013
    8
    Imagine if Rockstar Games made a Pirate-themed,open world adventure.Now imagine that AC 4 was its second rate cousin....Another year of development time could have made this one of the finest games of all time.But nope,quarterly reports are this games studios main reason to exist and they'll obviously already be working on AC4,BF2 right now.Expect it in 12 months time.The game itself isImagine if Rockstar Games made a Pirate-themed,open world adventure.Now imagine that AC 4 was its second rate cousin....Another year of development time could have made this one of the finest games of all time.But nope,quarterly reports are this games studios main reason to exist and they'll obviously already be working on AC4,BF2 right now.Expect it in 12 months time.The game itself is quite good,acceptable even,but with a massive team and budget,it should have been amazing.In its defense,there's tons to do and at least it's easily better than the last 3 AC titles.The animus is less intrusive this time,though being taken out of the adventure still annoys no end.That said,it was worth a $2 hire.… Expand
  38. Joss
    Nov 3, 2013
    8
    Very interesting open world with excellent Naval navigation and boat fight. A lot of frustration from ACIII disapear with smart upgrades like economic system, hunting, and it's bug free On the ground, Parkour and jumping aren't precise enough for me, and AI is so dumb. But sword fight and assassinate is always the force of the game (more and more brutal). The Story is good withVery interesting open world with excellent Naval navigation and boat fight. A lot of frustration from ACIII disapear with smart upgrades like economic system, hunting, and it's bug free On the ground, Parkour and jumping aren't precise enough for me, and AI is so dumb. But sword fight and assassinate is always the force of the game (more and more brutal). The Story is good with charismatic pirates, and a good evolution. but like in every open world, it's sometime difficult to maintain the rythm. Seemless transitions between cinematic and gameplay are on the good way. To be honest, it's a good opus (more pirate than assassin and you could appreciate the multiplayer upgrade too.… Expand
  39. tombo
    Nov 6, 2013
    8
    Beautiful as Renaissance paintings, Assassin Creed games are also incredibly fun,i.e., acrobatic
    maneuvering; exploration and discovery, thrill of the kill, etc. For all the greatness, I can't help
    but wish that Ubisoft would invest more time in refining stealth and combat. All too often, the enemy AI is repetitive, dumb, and oblivious. Combat doesn't approach the challenge, diversity,    Beautiful as Renaissance paintings, Assassin Creed games are also incredibly fun,i.e., acrobatic
    maneuvering; exploration and discovery, thrill of the kill, etc. For all the greatness, I can't help
    but wish that Ubisoft would invest more time in refining stealth and combat. All too often, the
    enemy AI is repetitive, dumb, and oblivious. Combat doesn't approach the challenge, diversity,
    and joy of say a "Demon's Souls" or "Witcher 2". Still, with winter fast approaching, it's great
    being in the Caribbean!    … Expand
  40. julius98
    Jan 2, 2014
    8
    The game itself deserves a 10/10. The limitations on the PS3 result in framerate issues are problematic. I would recommend it for the PC instead......
  41. Cmcolin
    Jan 22, 2014
    8
    Another winner in the ASSASSIN'S CREED series. A sprawling, open world experience that is as fascinating as it is fun. The graphics, sound, and acting are, perfect and the missions are well designed and interesting. The naval combat has been vastly expanded and is so amazing, it would be easy to simply discard following the story and just pillage on the high seas all day. The game'sAnother winner in the ASSASSIN'S CREED series. A sprawling, open world experience that is as fascinating as it is fun. The graphics, sound, and acting are, perfect and the missions are well designed and interesting. The naval combat has been vastly expanded and is so amazing, it would be easy to simply discard following the story and just pillage on the high seas all day. The game's balance is fantastic, too - never letting the various treasure hunts and side missions muddy the flow.

    The only real problems the game has are in the main storyline. Pirates are simply not as interesting historical figures as those we find in Renaissance Italy or Colonial America. The Templar/Assassin conflict is treated as almost an afterthought and the game does not further the mythology of the AC universe very much. Also, Edward Kenway didn't really do it for me as a main character. His eventual conversion and redemption with the Assassins feels perfunctory and happens far to late in the game to really believe it. I find myself far more interested and engaged in the Black Flag characters when I play as Adawale.

    If you like ASSASSIN'S CREED, you will love this game. It is one that will keep you happy for a good long time.    … Expand
  42. somethingguy912
    May 13, 2014
    8
    As I said in my AC3 review, I would eventually come to my senses to make a review on AC4. While I am unfortunate not to catch the series right from the start, I will say that any game that requires the player to play the previous games to grasp the story might as well just give up trying to do so. What does that say for AC4? Well, surprisingly enough in the span of sequelitis, AC4As I said in my AC3 review, I would eventually come to my senses to make a review on AC4. While I am unfortunate not to catch the series right from the start, I will say that any game that requires the player to play the previous games to grasp the story might as well just give up trying to do so. What does that say for AC4? Well, surprisingly enough in the span of sequelitis, AC4 actually fares much better than AC3, not only in gameplay aspects or HUD gimmicks but also trying to get more newcomers invested in the story of before, as being out of the animus I got a more thematic glimpse of the late Desmond Miles (although he won't be missed) in a way that made me feel more compelled to play the previous games. Now, pushing that aside apart from the awkward First-Person animation and the 'silent protagonist gutting' they decided to do apart from the usual 3rd person perspective, the true fun and experience is inside the animus itself.

    The pirate life shines fully in this so to say 'simulation', as you get to feel the aesthetic, the glory, the triumph, and even the failures of the golden age of piracy. You get to meet many of the infamous pirates such as Edward Teach, Calico Jack, Black Bart, and a load more whom have such invigorating personality that they have you hugged into the pirate life. The naval exploration has vastly improved from it's predecessor, and while the previous alone was great, they made that aspect even greater. Sea Shanties, sunken ships, intense naval battles and boarding ships, and even fighting mother nature itself all prove to satisfy the excitement and luster of that romanticized pirate age. Not only that, but ship customization has been expanded greatly, now much more visual and more indepth, with what I have to say is some of the finer qualities of water physics out there apart from others. Unfortunately, all this pirate theming has greatly taken away the aspect of the Templars and the Assassin's, in a way sort of taking a backseat to all the pirate booty and treasure. Besides that, visuals have greatly improved, even the parkor tree climbing is now much more dynamic than it's predecessor with few repeat ferns. The HUD is also a lot less confusing, and while I have to complain why they always have to change the HUD every bloody time they make a game, I still find this one a lot less teeth-grinding than in AC3. Gameplay, well hasn't really changed all that much, although now bushes can be more greatly used to keep yourself hidden. The few new weapons that you can use are the sleep darts and berserk darts, which help since now enemies have individual stealth indicators ala Far Cry 3, which also makes the game less of a chore. Also, crafting in the game is also a lot less confusing from it's predecessor as well, taking inspiration from Far Cry 3 (as a matter of fact, a lotof different aspects from here take what worked well in FC3). But most importantly of all improvements is the story and characters, with Edward Kenway being a much more capable and charismatic figure rather than the lifeless Connor (or his native american name, which I won't even try to spell). The characters around him also spur a variety of colors, rather than blending into one another per scene. You even get to see a relatively accurate portrayal of the exploits of those aforementioned pirate captains, such as Teach's bombardment of camps for medicine, or Mary Read's crossdressing (that was the most disturbing part of this game for me), and they all do it with enough spirit that I could tell that the actors were having a lot of fun voicing these characters, ESPECIALLY Blackbeard, who is the best out of all of them. The story also improves the idea of the First Civilization and of what happened after Desmond's ultimate fate, as I said before making me more interested in the AC Lore than I was before. I will end this review with saying that typically, sequels only get worse from their original or predecessor and only few times do they get better, but I have to say that Assassin's Creed Four actually manages to do the impossible and be better than AC3 and possibly as good as AC2 (I wouldn't know, since I haven't played it) While I can't give it a perfect rating, since there is still some gameplay exploits not fixed in AC3 and still quite a few stealth syntax errors, AC4 puts the AC franchise back in with the big guns.    … Expand
  43. UserScore
    Feb 15, 2014
    8
    Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag Review.
    Pros/ Good Points:
    + A beautiful, detailed yet enourmous open world to explore. Ship controls and mechanics much more simplified for a better experience. Emotional moments in the story (all I can say without spoiling). It isn't as bugged/glitched as Assassin's Creed III. The sense of verticality everywhere you go, from jungles, to cities and    Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag Review.
    Pros/ Good Points:
    + A beautiful, detailed yet enourmous open world to explore. Ship controls and mechanics much more simplified for a better experience. Emotional moments in the story (all I can say without spoiling). It isn't as bugged/glitched as Assassin's Creed III. The sense of verticality everywhere you go, from jungles, to cities and islands. The game doesn't restrict you from exploring the world, you can explore it from the get-go. Full of enjoyable side content. Dumber AI that motivate the use of stealth. 100% completition of missions is simplified and the side-objectives aren't as specific as to how to engage the mission. Enjoyable underwater segments. Things to spend your money in, unlike it's predecessors. Strong characters and character development. Impressive graphics. Soundtrack hasn't dropped quality since the first game, this is not the exception. Simple and smooth menus that makes navigating through really easy. There's ambient/background music while you're just playing around, which is a nice little touch.
    Cons/ Bad Points:
    -Way too long and weak story, both in the present day and golden age of piracy, that doesn't add much to the AC universe. Multiplayer needs reinvention and quickly, gamelab wasn't enough. Only the two swords and fists as the game mele weapons. It's difficult to control the character, mainly in the JackDaw and when you're trying to board, considering the tight spaces and that the character usually goes where he wants to go, and not where I want him to. Boarding turns really quickly into something repetitive and boring. The game cannot be completed at a 100% without using Kenway's Fleet (for which you need to be online) and it's really not a very nice change. Though it doesn't have as much bugs/glitches as ACIII, it still have some few game-breaking problems. Aveline missions don't stand on it's own and don't even add anything more to what has been already seen in Liberation. It's a silly thing but, you can't run while using your eagle vission, it's really annoying. Frame rate drops many times when you are running through rooftops in big cities.
    Final thoughts and score:
    Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag tries to innovate as much as it can, but the game never managed to stood out from ACII and Brotherhood. Still, it is somewhat refreshing and it is by far the best AC game since Brotherhood.
    Average Score: 8.6/10
    For more Assasssin's Creed Reviews go to:
    http://www.metacritic.com/user/UserScore    … Expand
  44. kev_i_n
    May 24, 2014
    8
    Summary Review
    Just a disclaimer, I have only played Assassin Creed 1; so I can’t comment on the rest of the series. Likewise I cannot comment on the online gameplay cause my internet is bad.
    +Good visuals +Very good combat system with a good variety of weapons and upgrades, and good stealth mechanics +Excellent sea battle mechanics which is a tonne of fun and is refreshing +Great    Summary Review
    Just a disclaimer, I have only played Assassin Creed 1; so I can’t comment on the rest of the series. Likewise I cannot comment on the online gameplay cause my internet is bad.

    +Good visuals
    +Very good combat system with a good variety of weapons and upgrades, and good stealth mechanics
    +Excellent sea battle mechanics which is a tonne of fun and is refreshing
    +Great side-activities which I often found to be more fun than the main missions.
    ? I found the story to be very confusing despite its strengths
    -I hated the use of Abstergo Entertainment, which killed the level of emotion that the game can believer.

    In brief it is a must buy

    Full Review
    While Assassin Creed Blackflag, takes a while to get into the first thing that you will notice is that the visuals are great, with good frame rates and textures, and help increase the level of emotion that the game believers. Likewise I found very few bugs within the game. However what matters to me is the gameplay.
    With regards to the gameplay, it is great. The combat is very easy to master, while at the same time has enough variety to reduce the repetitiveness of the combat. This can be seen with the variety of weapons, in particularly the use of combining swords and pistols, which encourages you to mix up combat, because pistols take a while to reload and are actually not that powerful until you unlock new ones. Likewise the introduction of new weapons, like the darts (which you unlock roughly half way through the game), in particular the berserk dart which makes sneaking so much more entertaining, as it seems enemies to attack each other. Such variety of weapons in combination with Assassin Creed’s solid sneaking system, and the variety of enemies from brutes to grunts, help make combat very entertaining. However one of the common complaints I have found about Assassin Creed, that the combat is too easy, I found is still present especially when you unlock upgrades.
    However Assassin Creed Blackflag, makes up for the how easy its combat is, with the ship mechanics. This feels fresh and exciting, and is something that I have always wanted in a game. The naval combat was fantastic, especially with how the unlocking of improvements for you ship which mean that you really feel a sense of progression, while at the same time not finding the enemies to be too easy, especially when you fight multiple ships at the same time. I especially like the fact that your ship takes damage and that will affect how well it performs in combat, but don’t worry because you can use boarded ships to repair your own, making naval combat more accessible, as you don’t have to keep going back to land to repair your ship. The only major annoyance of the naval combat is how the boarding of ships can get repetitive because you need resources to unlock improvements, and boarding ships and taking their crew is the quickest way to get such resources.
    The finally major thing I have to say about Assassin’s Creed is the side activities which are for the most part a lot of fun. In particular though a bit repetitive I found the diving sections which are needed to unlock the best upgrades for your ship, the assassin contracts both on and off land (what kind of assassin game would not have such contracts) where you get rewarded for killing your target for killing him without being detected, the naval contracts which are surprisingly challenging especially when you have to protect other ships, whaling which was surprisingly engaging and the robbing of safe house which require the use of skill, and are challenging. Such side activities are awesome for the most part, though a lot of the collectables are pretty pointless, beyond the Mayan stones these keys, and some shanty sheets that allow your crew to learn another sea shanty to sing on your behalf. But the other collectables are rather pointless. Likewise the hunting is undeveloped I find because for the most part it is way too easy, it is certainly not as good as Far Cry 3’s hunting mechanic.
    The first thing I have about Assassin Creed 4 is that I found the story to be a bit confusing at times, but that is probably because I did not pay that much attention. I will not spoil anything but I found the going back between the Matrix like thing, and being a badass pirate (Edward, who is an awesome character btw) and how such events were interlinked to be poorly explained. That said though the introduction of excellent character like Blackbeard and William Kidd; help make the story not so much a snooze fest.
    The final complaint I have is the having this Matrix like system within the game, which put me off Assassin Creed series on the whole, because I hate the idea of at key moments within the story, being pulled out of the historical setting and into a different game which is not a good. This effect is present within Assassin Creed Blackflag, and I wish Ubisoft for Assassin Creed 5 remove this Matrix like thing entirely.    … Expand
  45. eimajamie
    Dec 18, 2013
    8
    Black Flag has greatly improved on the previous installments of Assassin's Creed, for the most part... First of all there is a huge, beautifully detailed open world for you to explore, with dozens of islands and secrets to uncover. Riding around as the captain of your own ship plundering booty and recruiting crew has never been so much fun. Battles are well done and the cannon mechanicsBlack Flag has greatly improved on the previous installments of Assassin's Creed, for the most part... First of all there is a huge, beautifully detailed open world for you to explore, with dozens of islands and secrets to uncover. Riding around as the captain of your own ship plundering booty and recruiting crew has never been so much fun. Battles are well done and the cannon mechanics have been polished, you can can customize your ship with new sails and other decorations. The combat is sharp and the stealth has been improved upon, however, the selection of weapons available to you has actually been reduced, which I found unimpressive. The story, while taken in a different direction from past games, is very compelling and will draw you into the world. The soundtrack is wonderful, being appropriately powerful or tense in given situations. The multiplayer is nicely presented though I thought some of the modes could have been done better, especially "Wolfpack" where you find yourself in a team with other online players constantly running to targets assassinating them and protecting chests, this felt rather cluttered and the narrating woman's voice was quite annoying after repeating the same phrase 20 times in 2 minutes. Black Flag still suffers from numerous glitches, repetitve missions and frustrating moments where free running doesn't work as well as it should, but this is without a doubt still a very enjoyable, beautiful game with tons to do.… Expand
  46. akman
    Nov 11, 2013
    8
    I love this game really.The naval combat, the regular combat, the environments the gameplay(for the most part) and i dare say the story is pretty good.And the meld between assassins and pirates is excellent.But i have 2 main problems that really annoyed me.First the stealth mechanics are poor, basicly the only thing you are worrying about is that the enemy doesn't see you, other thanI love this game really.The naval combat, the regular combat, the environments the gameplay(for the most part) and i dare say the story is pretty good.And the meld between assassins and pirates is excellent.But i have 2 main problems that really annoyed me.First the stealth mechanics are poor, basicly the only thing you are worrying about is that the enemy doesn't see you, other than that you can just freerun behind them and they wont even know a thing(before you backstab them hehe), so basicly sound stealth mechanics are missing from the game.The second problem i have is with the missions, they are dull as f*ck Edward go stalk those guys, Edward go eavesdrop on those guys, Edward go assassinate those guys, Edward sneakingly infiltrate a base but you are not actually going to do that you will just kill everyone with the first chance you get then get to a checkpoint.That pretty much sums up 50% of the missions.Over all a great game, whether you have ps3 xbox 360 pc ps4 xbox one you should buy this game.… Expand
  47. The_Crusader
    Nov 17, 2013
    8
    In AC4, you follow the life of a privateer turned pirate turned assassin, Edward Kenway. This game, however, mostly ignores the conflict between Assassins and Templars.
  48. LegacyFlareGame
    Dec 26, 2013
    8
    So the assassin's creed franchise continues to amaze gamers with this game being set it the pirate time era it calls for great pirate gameplay,fun and shenanigans. You play the role of Edward Kenway farther to Haythem Kenway [Charter from AC3]. I played this on ps3 and the game looks good for how a PS3 game also on next gen game should be. It brings over the naval combat from AC3 and isSo the assassin's creed franchise continues to amaze gamers with this game being set it the pirate time era it calls for great pirate gameplay,fun and shenanigans. You play the role of Edward Kenway farther to Haythem Kenway [Charter from AC3]. I played this on ps3 and the game looks good for how a PS3 game also on next gen game should be. It brings over the naval combat from AC3 and is stella the naval combat is definitely the best bit of the game. Where the naval combat is great the hand to hand combat really sucks press square to attack and press circle to counter in coming attacks adding pistol and other weapons to the combat that have other effects. The stealth feels really lame in this game with it being used less and less from other assassin's creed games. The charters such as Edward and your pirate crew are really awesome but you never feel like a pirate your crew always loves you and nothing really fell as your a pirate. The world in this game is amazing from the giant open ocean and vass epic landscapes are great to play in felt as a massive expanded far cry 3. The Desmond story dosen't continue
    in this game [thankfully] instead you play as you and go into the animus to play as Edward and do all the epic pirate snazz. The misson types are great ranging from a wide range of activates to do and plenty of side quest, hunting and plenty more. Assassin's Creed 4 black flag is my favourite assassin's creed game ever the pirate theme is great its well packed with a great open world but it still lacks in the combat which lets the game down for they really need to fix this in the instalment of the franchise The final verdict is a 8.5 a Great game and this defiantly one not to miss this holiday season    … Expand
  49. diogomendes
    Dec 28, 2014
    8
    Thanks to its well-crafted storytelling and addictive hunting/combat system, "Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag" triumphs, despite its somewhat clumsy controls.
  50. lukevandam
    May 19, 2014
    8
    best game in the series since brotherhood few problems with it though number one edward kenway seems a bit stupid at times as to what is going on and two some of the on land missions are boring other than that fantastic game can't wait for unity
  51. NCarolinian
    Jul 15, 2014
    8
    I own all the AC games thus far. Big fan, can you tell? My rating echoes others I have read - (1) story-line outside the animus stinks and (2) the repetitive mini-movies or sayings is annoying. I have managed to overlook these shortcomings and played through the game some 5 times now. Looking forward to "Unity".
  52. tommyboy247
    Oct 15, 2014
    8
    Assassins creed 4 black flag is an awesome game with its huge open world with tones of islands and a lively ocean, amazing combat in ships or on land, great visuals and a awesome soundtrack that makes you feel like a badass, the only problem I have with the single player captain edward kenway's story isnt that interesting and i spent most of the game exploring.

    Next is the multiplayer    Assassins creed 4 black flag is an awesome game with its huge open world with tones of islands and a lively ocean, amazing combat in ships or on land, great visuals and a awesome soundtrack that makes you feel like a badass, the only problem I have with the single player captain edward kenway's story isnt that interesting and i spent most of the game exploring.

    Next is the multiplayer that is the games weakest part, you wold team up with other players to hunt or flee the other team, its god at first but after 2 or 3 play throughs u stop playin it.

    Now here's a part in the game where in other reviews i looked at wasn't mentioned and that was kenways fleet where you capture ships you fought and send them to your fleet and do jobs for you across the atlantic ocean by doing delivaries from coast to coast, and the only problem I have with it is that you need to b connected to the internet to youse it.

    Thats my review for Black Flag. Does it hold up, absolutly.    … Expand
  53. AssassinsCreed1
    Nov 7, 2014
    8
    I have been a fan since the beginning. Assassins Creed 4 Black Flag has many improvements over AC3 and is largely a great game with a few missteps like repetitive missions and uneven story issues. I think this is honestly the best pirate game ever made it hits the nail on the head for the pirate theme in fact it focuses more on pirates than assassins and gels them both togetherI have been a fan since the beginning. Assassins Creed 4 Black Flag has many improvements over AC3 and is largely a great game with a few missteps like repetitive missions and uneven story issues. I think this is honestly the best pirate game ever made it hits the nail on the head for the pirate theme in fact it focuses more on pirates than assassins and gels them both together convincingly.

    Side activities - The things to do outside the story missions are incredible, assassin contracts, sneaking into enemy islands or caves to loot treasure, freeing captured pirates, many things gives you money, loot, territory and crew members. With loot you can built your ship, your character and it allows you to tackle bigger challenges, there is always something that engages you and makes you feel like you’re doing something new. The Templar hunt quests are awesome and do an amazing job of expanding the world in which you live in. You can tackle all side missions in whatever way you want.
    This game has hunting and it is quite fun you can shoot predators down from a distance hidden in bushes or in trees or you can confront them using quick time events to kill them. Using their pelts to upgrade your ship, weapons, tools and character. Another great side activity is the underwater sections where you swim in shipwrecks looking for loot, treasure and ship blueprints. The funnest thing about this is the way you can hide from sharks in reeds and always have to go back to air pockets for an extra breath; you feel very vulnerable which an exciting rush is.

    Naval combat - Very fun and satisfying, you could bored other ships for literally hours without getting bored there is just SO MANY different ways to approach other ships. You can attack and conquer other forts which is addictive first using your naval combat from a distance to destroy their canons while attacking/dodging other ships near and far, then jumping straight into the chaos on the fort ground to cut through the enemies utilizing the ground combat then finally assassinating the captain.

    Mission structure and gameplay - Okay for allot of the missions they are very open and let you tackle them in whatever way you wish with little handholding, which is very important, however this is one of the real lacking parts of the game the overall repetitiveness of the main missions. WAY too many missions you will find yourself doing the exact same thing over and over again whether it is eavesdropping, tailing someone or something in-between. The parkour and freedom of movement is great but can be tricky and pretty much is the same as in AC3 but tree running ans siling is smooth and works very well. The way you can go from running to sailing in seconds is really special.

    Story - The story is very well thought out and lasts about 22 hours or so, as you follow Edward through his personal journey and experience the historic moments of the period is great and participating in them is amazing, something that makes all AC games truly special. All the main characters are convincingly accurate especially Black Beard he is SO WELL DONE. You start to feel attached to the main character especially in the later missions. However it is not without its downsides some missions are not very well explained and you will wonder how you got there and why you are really doing it.

    Combat - The combat is fun at first and there are some really cool kill animations but largely it stays the same as AC3 just counter the incoming enemies attacks and they die or just keep tapping attack to kill the weaker guys. But it’s not horrible, a good side is there are different enemy types that require different means to kill them like you will have to counter with a different weapon such as a gun or requiring you to break their defense before striking, this keeps combat away from being too repetitive.

    One thing I just have to say is that for us hardcore fans we have noticed that the AC games have gotten less about the assassin way of life and has focused more on the theme. Such as in AC3 where Connor was more of a warrior than an assassin and was not fully dedicated to the order. Similarities can be seen here. The stealth and eavesdropping has not really evolved much, there needs to be more assassinating and stealthy upgrades.

    So to round Assassins Creed 4 Black Flag up most side activities are engaging and enjoyable, the naval combat is the best part of the game and is one all in its self, the theme of pirates is done exquisitely, the main missions can get old but they are not terrible, combat is over familiar, decent but nothing special, story is great but can seem random sometimes, music is amazing, parkour and gameplay is still upheld, and last but not least the landscapes are absolutely beautiful and stunning to observe.    … Expand
  54. MyTopREVIEWS_LV
    Jan 15, 2015
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Finally some major new content for us to enjoy. But does it all stick togeather....yes!

    First of all, AC4 takes place in the Carribean islands, you are a pirate named Edward Kenway who is the father of AC3 main antagonist Haytham. This is the first AC game that is a prequel to another game.
    The story takes you through a real rollercoaster. Edwards character is fresh and his reasons for doing most of the things in the game are........money and more of it.
    The combat felt the same ad AC3, but the edition of 4 pistols and two swords made for some intense battles. The map is filled with many islands for you to explore at your will, because soon after 1 or 2 hours into the game you can sail across the ocean with your ship, The Jackdaw.

    The graphics look fenomenal on the PS3 and even better on PS4. The whole map looks huge. It takes some time for you to get from one place to another. The vibrant nature of the islands and the animation of the weather and the sea was awesome. Although I did run into some bugs but they were a lot smaller than AC3.

    Overall the game is great and i would recoment it to peaple not only interested in the AC franchise, but for pirating favorites as well. The soundtrack is great, the characters also. Some minor bugs. AC4 is one of the best entries in the franchise.    … Expand
  55. ACGAMESOP
    Jan 18, 2015
    8
    It is one of my favourite games for ps3.I loved the side quest and Edward is a badass.I loved naval but i prefered to pass the most time out of the ship,inside the sea or on land.The only bad thing is that Edward is neither an assassin nor a templar and he moves between the both sides but i didn't really care about that
  56. Aky03gamer
    Jun 13, 2015
    8
    I KNOW A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT HATES THIS EXCELENT TITLE, but is an excelent game, but with some details that are not very good, like that the game is very easy, you dont need practice like the assassins creed's of Ezio, you only need to press 2 buttons in a normal combat, and this can turn boring.
    Graphically the game is good, and I didn't feel loses of FPS like in other games, the story is    I KNOW A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT HATES THIS EXCELENT TITLE, but is an excelent game, but with some details that are not very good, like that the game is very easy, you dont need practice like the assassins creed's of Ezio, you only need to press 2 buttons in a normal combat, and this can turn boring.
    Graphically the game is good, and I didn't feel loses of FPS like in other games, the story is very simple, but is not bad, is not in the level of the past games of the saga, but you can enjoy it, is very hard to get bored in this game (probably in combat, but making parkour or reaching the 100% is very fun) IS FAR TO BE THE BEST GAME IN THE SAGA, BUT IS A GAME THAT YOU CAN'T SAY THAT IS "TRASH"    … Expand
  57. SrPepe
    Oct 29, 2017
    8
    Me gusto mucho este Assasin's Creed. Me daba miedo ver como quedaba la saga después de la trilogía, pero este no me decepcionó, un mundo abierto increíble, se le puede exprimir muchísimas horas al juego.
  58. mentalmannie
    Apr 13, 2016
    8
    I loved this game so much! The characters were complex and the story was interesting. The only thing that let it down for me was, I wasn't quite sure what was happening during some points of the story. I tried to keep up with it, but it was just too hard to follow. The look of this game is beautiful and I enjoyed the fact that the character was more a pirate than an assassin, which made itI loved this game so much! The characters were complex and the story was interesting. The only thing that let it down for me was, I wasn't quite sure what was happening during some points of the story. I tried to keep up with it, but it was just too hard to follow. The look of this game is beautiful and I enjoyed the fact that the character was more a pirate than an assassin, which made it a little different.… Expand
  59. Jyadaus
    May 6, 2020
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. If you think its a pirate game, its 10/10. If you think its a Assassin's Creed game, its 6/10.

    Main scenario is very bad. You are just following mans. Edward Kenway is sometimes copy of Ezio, sometimes Altair. And other characters are very bad. I don't remember any single of them. (Before finish the review i remember Adewale lmao)

    Also, we arent Assassin. And on last 2 sequence, we are playing as an Assassin. Funny fact?

    Openworld? Its really good. We can travel freely, we can fight freely. We can conquest castles, we can find treasures, we can do Assassin contracts. Best openworld on the AC series.

    Combat and parkour is really bad. We are killing an Assassin without any train of Assassin. Its like game is fighting and climbing automatic. Ubisoft thinks gamers are stupid. I really miss AC(I)'s combat and parkour systems.    … Expand
  60. Kvantaliani03
    Nov 20, 2021
    8
    rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
  61. Ashtar124
    Jun 23, 2019
    8
    Fantastic visuals and fun gameplay mechanics for the playstation 3 but a lot of glitches
  62. genarkandur
    Dec 2, 2020
    8
    If you want to travel in a big open world, participate in ship wars and assassinate some people this game is just awesome. I didnt have big expectations and now i am happy with what i get.
  63. FidelGastro
    May 16, 2020
    8
    This game looks perfect. A freedom of moving, lot of sandbox things. But i feeled a bittersweet taste from this.
    I was dissapointed that its didnt continue in story of Desmond.
    Good humor in game.
    It could be way worse ... so 8/10
  64. YigidOx2
    Feb 12, 2021
    8
    I guess Ubisoft didn't know that its engine was not suitable for multi-person battles at the time. There are a lot of bugs in the board thing, but it does. Also, Edward's story about going on this journey is ridiculous. Then they rescued it again with the events that developed. Also, did BlackBeard, a guest of legends, die this way? However, it is really a legend to drive a ship as youI guess Ubisoft didn't know that its engine was not suitable for multi-person battles at the time. There are a lot of bugs in the board thing, but it does. Also, Edward's story about going on this journey is ridiculous. Then they rescued it again with the events that developed. Also, did BlackBeard, a guest of legends, die this way? However, it is really a legend to drive a ship as you want on this large map.… Expand
  65. PatitoCosmico67
    Jul 29, 2020
    8
    Buen juego de piratas, con protagonista carismatico y juego de assassin's creed bastante correcto
  66. V7q
    Jun 19, 2022
    8
    I recommend playing and familiarizing yourself with this game. I had fun playing this game.
  67. Domdom21br
    Nov 9, 2021
    8
    é o melhor jogo dem questão de dublagem brasileira? não; é o melhor jogo em graficos no ps3? não, é a melhor historia do ps3? também não, mas o jogo é extremamente divertido e o kenway é muito interessante, embora os inimigos não sejam burros e as partes da abstergo sejam , vale a pena jogar
  68. Dinerofresco
    May 5, 2021
    8
    This game was great I never got to play the next gen version of this game but its a solid assassin's creed game with a good setting and story but not the best game in my opinion but possibly the last good assassin's creed game , that could be controversial but I dont care
  69. Saadthelegend
    Sep 26, 2022
    8
    لعبة ممتازة لعبتها حوالي ال200 ساعة في البلايستيشن 3
    وال25 ساعة في الكمبيوتر

    لكن للأسف من الجزء الذي بعده المسمى روق هو نسخ لصق من هذا الجزء
  70. MitoX
    Feb 28, 2023
    8
    O jogo está muito bom independente da plataforma que vc jogue, a dublagem está aceitável e as missões são bem elaboradas e criativas a história consegue te prender,a vegetação e densa os cenários são ricos em detalhes a água e espetácular uma das melhores águas que eu já vi em jogos de vídeo game, eu só n do uma nota maior por que o jogo tem muitos bugs chatos e estressante o combate ficaO jogo está muito bom independente da plataforma que vc jogue, a dublagem está aceitável e as missões são bem elaboradas e criativas a história consegue te prender,a vegetação e densa os cenários são ricos em detalhes a água e espetácular uma das melhores águas que eu já vi em jogos de vídeo game, eu só n do uma nota maior por que o jogo tem muitos bugs chatos e estressante o combate fica muito repetitivo e as vezes não funciona bem sem contar os bugs que acabam com sua experiência como em uma cutscene que um personagens mata vários NPCs com uma pistola só que quando ele faz isso ele atira em direções opostas quebrando todo o realismo do jogo… Expand
  71. Spidertime99
    Jun 17, 2023
    8
    Assassin's Creed Black Flag invites players to embark on an immersive pirate odyssey that's brimming with adventure. The game's open-world Caribbean setting is a sight to behold, with its stunning landscapes and vast seas. However, while the naval battles and exploration are thrilling, some players may find the land-based missions and repetitive side activities to be a tad lackluster.Assassin's Creed Black Flag invites players to embark on an immersive pirate odyssey that's brimming with adventure. The game's open-world Caribbean setting is a sight to behold, with its stunning landscapes and vast seas. However, while the naval battles and exploration are thrilling, some players may find the land-based missions and repetitive side activities to be a tad lackluster. Additionally, the story, while enjoyable, occasionally loses focus and fails to deliver on its full potential. Despite these minor gripes, Assassin's Creed Black Flag remains a swashbuckling experience that successfully captures the essence of piracy and offers plenty of excitement for fans of the franchise.… Expand
  72. FrankCreeper
    Jul 28, 2023
    8
    A beatiful sequel of Assassin's Creed 3 with a fantastic free roaming style....and a great setting of atmosphere and a beatiful story.Still worth it to play after a decade only one thing is bad the repetitive of combat system style P.S. (I Played both version of the game PS3/PS4 and XBOX360)
  73. Dartza
    Jul 21, 2023
    8
    Ship combat and exploration are the highlight in this entry. If not for some of the stealth missions and subsidiary game systems, this would be a masterpiece.
  74. mrnice
    Mar 20, 2014
    7
    The non-campaign content redeems this action title that otherwise wouldn't have stood out from the crowd. If you stick around and beat the forts and the legendary ships, and seek out ship upgrades, you'll see plenty of novel gameplay. But the campaign itself has few, if any, missions that amazed me. The transportation by ship or by foot can feel slow if not to fast-travel locations. I wasThe non-campaign content redeems this action title that otherwise wouldn't have stood out from the crowd. If you stick around and beat the forts and the legendary ships, and seek out ship upgrades, you'll see plenty of novel gameplay. But the campaign itself has few, if any, missions that amazed me. The transportation by ship or by foot can feel slow if not to fast-travel locations. I was frustrated dozens of times by the controls (when climbing, your character is 'glued' to his position, so the input will sometimes not be clear enough for him to move in the right direction from the 'glued' position). The 3rd person gameplay has been seen elsewhere before, and I saw no need for the the violence (cutting through people with swords like it was nothing, while the character seems to have conscience outside of combat). Aside from the action and the transportation, for which I give it 5/10, the setting has not been used much in games, much less in AAA 3d games, and it is modelled with lively detail and extreme variety. I could not have expected it to deliver so much graphical content, and compared to GTA V, this game had a lot more "Wow, there's THIS" moments. I could give it an 8/10 but then I remember the many similar missions and the repeating ship fights. Recommended if you're intrigued by the setting and you can see past the fights.… Expand
  75. vixvicco
    Aug 13, 2014
    7
    This is a good game but I don't like the grinding aspect of it. Not something I expect from an assassin's creed title. I have played all the other games (that are available on console), and I have found them improving the games with each installment, but this was too different for me. If I had looked at more reviews I would have had fair warning about how much time is actually spent onThis is a good game but I don't like the grinding aspect of it. Not something I expect from an assassin's creed title. I have played all the other games (that are available on console), and I have found them improving the games with each installment, but this was too different for me. If I had looked at more reviews I would have had fair warning about how much time is actually spent on ships rather than on land. It doesn't feel like a real assassin game, more about ship battles and full combat battles, lot less stealth and lot less about assassin's, more about pirates, treasure and ships. The much complained about AC 3 was much better.… Expand
  76. Johng4
    Jan 9, 2014
    7
    First off this shouldnt have been called assassins creed 4 because it does not feel like a sequal to ac 3. It does not move the plot along what so ever seriously. I see it as some people like the ships in 3 they were going to make a new ac the next year anyway so they figured wtf they like ships lets give em ships. This is a pirate game with ac gameplay. Asside from that the story is notFirst off this shouldnt have been called assassins creed 4 because it does not feel like a sequal to ac 3. It does not move the plot along what so ever seriously. I see it as some people like the ships in 3 they were going to make a new ac the next year anyway so they figured wtf they like ships lets give em ships. This is a pirate game with ac gameplay. Asside from that the story is not very good tbh, its about connors grandfather . He is a man aspiring to be a very weathly pirate. Thats all he wants is money and fame and hell do whatever it takes to acheive that. He helps both the templars and assassins in this game for his own personal wants. He is not an aassassin, he is a pirate. A **** pirate. Really it all comes down to if you like pirates. If you do then get this game. If you wanted a true sequal to ac 3 in terms of story you **** out of luck they dont adress the the **** that happened at the end of 3 at all. Im bein dead serious. They turned the modern day segments into bull**** people complained before about the desmond segments sucking. HAHA at least they had a purpose the modern day segments in this game have no purpose what so ever. You are an employee at absturgo entertainment goin into the animus to collect research to create a game about pirates. I mean the real issues with the game are its plot. The good gameplay is all still here but that doesnt mean much when you dont give a **** about what your doing or why. Also i didnt like the ships in 3 so playin this game is a chore at times, becuase once you get into the game where it really opens up the ships take center stage you will be sailing for most of the time in this game and to some thats not a bad thing, but i bought this cuz i like assassins creed not **** pirates. There are some minor improvments like there are actually things worth buying in this game. You get different weapons sort of there really jus new sword skins cuz they all do the same **** Im dissapointed in this game and if your getting this game hoping for a sequal to 3 im sorry but dont get this at full price. Its not a sequel to 3 at all its more of an offshoot like brotherhood but hell tht game was like a full on sequel it moved the plot along as well as the gameplay this game does neither youve done all of this before and probabbly had more fun doing it then cuz u jus dont care about the story in this game so what is the motivation to play it. The tedious side quests? The mediocore story ? The combat you have seen many times before in better installments? Point is if your an ac fan dont pay sixty bucks. If you just want a pirate game, go ahead your probablly not gonna regret your purchase.… Expand
  77. Prometheus_ts
    Dec 30, 2013
    7
    The game started as if it was a previous version of the AC3 with the usual bugs, and strange animations, not the ACII that one was the best) But after you discover the ship and you get to own it the game changes and becomes quite entertaining and fun, much better than the previous.

    Though the annoying part is the Bastergo where every dependant there treats you like a 10 years old    The game started as if it was a previous version of the AC3 with the usual bugs, and strange animations, not the ACII that one was the best) But after you discover the ship and you get to own it the game changes and becomes quite entertaining and fun, much better than the previous.

    Though the annoying part is the Bastergo where every dependant there treats you like a 10 years old kid making funny faces and talking of pirates of carribean arrr and other stupid voices....

    They should just have dropped the assassin creed story and make a pure piratesque game!    … Expand
  78. AuroMarin93
    Oct 29, 2013
    7
    First off, if we were to review the game as a separate title from the series ACIV is amazing.If we are going to review the game based on the previous games then it's far away from what Assassin's Creed 2 offered us. Edward is clearly a PIRATE not an assassin. The real world missions are not so good. The yearly releases are ''killing'' this game.Even though Ubisoft said that each game hasFirst off, if we were to review the game as a separate title from the series ACIV is amazing.If we are going to review the game based on the previous games then it's far away from what Assassin's Creed 2 offered us. Edward is clearly a PIRATE not an assassin. The real world missions are not so good. The yearly releases are ''killing'' this game.Even though Ubisoft said that each game has been developed by a separate team, the game lacks quality.Look at GTA V,they spend 5 years developing the game and the game is SUPERB in every aspect.5 years is too much, but a new game should be released every two years and it must be done by a full team.Nevertheless the game is way better than AC3 but apparently the experience of AC2 won't be repeated again :(.....Also the game misses a main plot. The main plot ended in AC3. Ubi released AC:Revelations and especially AC4 just for profit ,'cause their initial ideas for the game, when they didn't know it would have become so successful ,ended a year ago with the release of AC3. AC4 is a new game and part of a new series and that ''IV'' after Assassin's Creed is ''useless'' and inappropriate, it can be a spiritual successor but not a real sequel.I'd give it a 9/10 ,if not related to the other games and 5/10 as part of the series, 'cause the game focuses on pirates and hackers and not assassins,characters are weak and the main character,Edward doesn't establish that connection between players and him.As I previously said,the game hasn't a ''Real'' Main plot.....… Expand
  79. FWordFizz
    Nov 8, 2013
    7
    Did you play Assassins Creed 2? Did you like it? Did you play Assassins creed three? Were you disappointed? If you answered yes to all of these questions you are like me. I had fun with it. Check it out if you arent getting GTA 5. Its better than ghosts but if you want something new and fresh skip it.
  80. Connorsauras
    Nov 12, 2013
    7
    It is in the amazing visuals, vicious combat and smooth free-running that Assassin's Creed IV truly shines. Unfortunately, a disappointing storyline and two-dimensional characters make this one of the weakest additions to the AC franchise, story-wise. Like the other games in the series, the story is set both in the Animus and out of it. While outside of the Animus, you will see someIt is in the amazing visuals, vicious combat and smooth free-running that Assassin's Creed IV truly shines. Unfortunately, a disappointing storyline and two-dimensional characters make this one of the weakest additions to the AC franchise, story-wise. Like the other games in the series, the story is set both in the Animus and out of it. While outside of the Animus, you will see some familiar faces however their appearance is short and unimportant to the overall story, their inclusion in the game feels forced as if to make a connection between this game and the events at the climax of Assassin's Creed III.

    Despite the lacklustre story, there is still a lot of fun to be had with this game. The naval combat from ACIII is back and improved upon in many ways, the "Jackdaw", Kenway's ship. Is fully upgradable, from the power of the cannons to the strength of the hull. You can also customize your ship aesthetically, by changing the colour of the sails and the figurehead on the front of The Jackdaw. The customization is limited but it is still enjoyable. Despite being disappointing in certain areas, as a whole it is still an enjoyable game.    … Expand
  81. ACFAN
    Nov 18, 2013
    7
    First of all, the graphics & the story telling has definitely been improved. The game itselfs lacks mystery and assassins creed spirit. It's too much "Yarr I'm a pirate" and what most players know as Assassins Creed has been toned down heavily.

    I love Assassins Creed and I really enjoyed this game but I was quite let down by the story. Pros: * Great improvement in storytelling and    First of all, the graphics & the story telling has definitely been improved. The game itselfs lacks mystery and assassins creed spirit. It's too much "Yarr I'm a pirate" and what most players know as Assassins Creed has been toned down heavily.

    I love Assassins Creed and I really enjoyed this game but I was quite let down by the story.

    Pros:

    * Great improvement in storytelling and graphics

    Cons:

    * Doesnt quite feel like Assassins Creed
    * Nothing new when it comes to combat and missions

    Overall: Enjoyable game but has lost the Assassins Creed spirit, please go back to it or lose the Assassins Creed name.    … Expand
  82. awsom
    Dec 31, 2013
    7
    Assassin's Creed 4 is kind of a disappointment to me. Don't get me wrong it's still good but it does a lot of things wrong. Money has some use now considering the main gimmick is the Jackdaw and upgrades for it cost a lot. So it has improved a bit gameplay wise but combat is as boring as ever with only the big brutes to make it bit challenging. Then the story takes a big flop with theAssassin's Creed 4 is kind of a disappointment to me. Don't get me wrong it's still good but it does a lot of things wrong. Money has some use now considering the main gimmick is the Jackdaw and upgrades for it cost a lot. So it has improved a bit gameplay wise but combat is as boring as ever with only the big brutes to make it bit challenging. Then the story takes a big flop with the present day being a first person office simulator with only a hacking mini game to keep you occupied. Most of the quests in the animus on land are tailing missions which is stupid. So in short, AC4 is a good stand alone game. Better than AC1+3 at least but compared to others it's not that good.… Expand
  83. TrackkSixx
    Dec 10, 2013
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This game is one of the first that really gives you a sense of what sailing is. Personally I enjoyed AC3 ONLY for the sailing parts. That being said, this is AC, not a pirate sim. I didn't play the main story line until I had to, which means immediately. If you want to upgrade your ship at all, you have to play the main story. That would work if the main story was actually engaging. To me it was all the same: Find this guy; follow this guy through all kinds of ridiculous obstacles (groups of 20 guards); eavesdrop on this guy while he wanders through more hordes of guards; DON'T KILL HIM YET!!!; watch from the shadows as he wanders very slowly into a guarded fort; now you can kill him. I don't understand why they do this, why must I follow him for so long? As he's wandering the streets, I'm on a building ready and able to drop onto him and rain down awesomeness, but no, I have to wait for what seems like hours until he gets to a fortified location. Edward Kenway must be the worst Assassin of all time. Or he's a masochist and enjoys torturing himself assaulting a fort by himself. Overall the game was great, but for the wrong reasons. I loved the freedom of sailing all over the map and pirating with no sense of urgency. But when your main story line is so tedious and annoying, it reduces the good parts of the game.

    GOOD
    Great pirating and ship mechanics.
    LOVE the sea shanties the crew sings!
    Graphically beautiful, bought it on the 360 and it's the best looking game I've ever seen.
    Ship customization options were good, not great.
    Much better character in Edward Kenway rather than Conner.
    Huge map, and fun to sail across.

    BAD
    Boring Main Story, made it feel like the main story was a side mission.
    Tedious repeating missions (WHY EAVESDROPPING!?!?!?).
    Mute, Formless, and Clunky character during play outside the animus, AC Revelations did just fine without having much of a part for Desmond, I understand the reason to remind people they're in the animus, but I hate mute main characters, just a pet peeve.
    The story animus/real doesn't give anything new to the series which makes me think it's more of a really big expansion to AC3 along with the $60 pricetag.
    Uplay You'd think by now Ubisoft would have made Uplay seamless... They haven't, it interferes just about every time I turn it on.
    Took me a few upgrades to realize buying sails has no effect other than visually, kind of disappointing. Leather sails are quite different from canvas, just sayin.
    Kenway's fleet... minigames were dumb turn based ship to ship, and the biggest problem I had: You only ever control the Jackdaw! With the exception of 2 missions I can remember, all you have is a comparably small brig with a maximum of 23 guns.

    Overall: Mediocre (Pretty much what I've come to expect from an AC, but I keep buying them for some reason)    … Expand
  84. AllThingTrivial
    Dec 31, 2013
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. AC4 is a stark detraction for the series, it takes the Assassins Vs Templars conflict that has all but defined the previous games by heavily intertwining actual historical elements with a clever and innovative if somewhat contrived narrative of greater conflict and throws it out of the window in favour of committing acts of Piracy and watching Blackbeard intimidate random people. Whilst the assassins and Templars are involved, the new protagonist Edward Kenway, is very clear in his objectives. Make money, get drunk and generally be very stereotypically pirate-y. If it didn’t draw such stark similarities to the known mantra of the AC games it could be justified as an entirely separate release.
    Unfortunately this is where the main problem lies. AC4 seems like a case of going through the motions, endlessly trudging through supposedly intertwining plots that have no relevance to each other and begin to make no sense as Kenway shows up, courtesy of the mission marker, to do something that was never alluded to beforehand and trying to follow his desperate attempts to be pirate like as most if not all consumers expect before running off for no reason to help the assassins because its an assassins creed game and they have to be there. The narrative quickly becomes lost during the two polar opposite behaviours with the only focal point being a contrived pursuit of one obscure target which almost every character tells him to forget about and quite frankly I’m with them. It seems if it wasn’t for Abstergo being so desperate to see what’s inside then there would be no reason for Kenway to even bother. That’s not to say however that the story doesn’t have it moments where occasionally all the contrived nonsense can be forgotten in the face of pure unadulterated joy or the beautiful moment where the well set out missions allow for an incredible flow of play that is endlessly satisfying.
    This turns out to be the truth of AC4, the real fun is not made by the narrative rather by the player themselves which is no bad thing. Cruising the enormous and visually stunning Caribbean aboard a ship which can be directed to any corner of the map, or indeed anywhere inside the largest map ever seen, to commit acts of piracy that are incredible fun. There are few experiences more satisfying than utilising overwhelming force with a sea-tank loaded to the brim with broadside cannons capable of obliterating the enemy leaving them dead in the water as easy pickings or antagonising a brutally powerful man o war into a delicate dance requiring timing and genuine tactics to overcome. This is followed by a sublime boarding experience which really accentuates what the game seeks to encapsulate, swinging from the rigging to assassinate from above and massacring the individuals aboard until their surrender at which point resources are gained and these feed into a well thought out trade and economy system whereby collecting resources allows the ship to be improved so more piracy gives the potential for better upgrades to facilitate targeting higher ranked ships in a perpetual motion. Similarly the sea forts are enormous fun, obliterating towers and fighting to achieve control whilst the warehouses offer a fun and different challenge using assassin skills to sneakily if possible requisition useful items although thankfully the frustrating ‘do not be detected’ sequences have been dropped in a refreshing update of the series which makes the gameplay far more accessable.
    However not all of the creases are ironed out, the game too frequently sinks the immersion to davy jones locker by shoehorning in following characters whilst they spout exposition or eavesdropping sections even if there is no point. I literally found myself following a guy through about three guarded settlements only to drop down from a tree and slash his throat in full view of about twenty other soldiers after he talked about being drunk and other such irrelevant drivel. In an age where computing is so powerful and developed such simple filler seems anachronistic particularly so when the point of its inception is not at its core logical anyway and these blemishes on AC4’s appearances are not the only ones to remain. The navigation is still a bit clunky having Edward sprint up walls, launch himself off buildings or change orientation entirely without any input to suggest that’s what he should be doing with enough frequency it becomes annoying particularly after seamlessly taking out six guards on an immensely fun attack only to throw a smoke bomb to escape their colleagues except when it clears they see you desperately clinging to a roof dangling within sword range like a deranged puppet. The combat also has its problems, the camera does not give a wide enough FOV to parry incoming attacks particularly on ships and suchlike potentially being so close the only solution is to mash counter, some enemies predict what you do before you do it to annoying effect and fighting one enemy who can only be killed by following up an initial counter becomes tiresome when he stands there like an idiot abjectly refusing to attack. Yet the combat ultimately, as is now commonplace, is not that hard and the lack of enemy variety and weapons (Edward can now only wield dual swords) means after a while a certain level of boredom begins to dominate what is arguably one of the best visual melee spectacles in any game series even despite some strange bugs both with targeting and ragdoll animations.
    The characters who are for their part well played feel fleeting cameos purely there for atmosphere and to drive the story forwards being paper thin representations of exactly what is expected of the era. Whilst they deliver appropriately with Blackbeard being a particular highlight there is no humanity, no individualism which knits the characters together and that feels very much like the mantra of the game. It is incredibly enjoyable on its surface, a commit piracy and murder people in an open world with plenty to do setup that gives you a surface on which to operate. Try to read in to it, to go deeper, to spend time to get to know it remains far from the rewarding experience it should be, I spent hours pursuing short term goals of profit for certain expenditure being rewarded quite happily by the game frequently enough to remain invested yet when I took a step back at three o clock in the morning I felt deflated realising the past twelve hours had been used up on menial tasks with no overarching purpose. The superficial very much dominates here, the game expects you to play it obediently and not to question how its numerous well made parts function together as at that instant it begins to fall apart.
    That being said these individual parts cannot be understated in terms of how much they can be enjoyed but as a whole the game feels empty. A story going nowhere much like the character. Yet despite all this there is fun to be had if all pretences of logical story or a reason to keep massacring people for next to no reason can be thrown aside and for that reason it isn’t a bad game with enough entertainment to keep you going provided you do so with independent aims in mind rather than expecting the story to rope you in by itself.    … Expand
  85. GamergodsFail
    Apr 29, 2014
    7
    Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag was a rather mixed bag for me. On the upside...it was fun as hell! I don't think I've ever had more fun in an Assassin's Creed game! The exploration, ship plundering and the minigames, Abstergo hacking, etc. All of that felt splendid!
    On the downside...I felt the story was incredibly weak for an Assassin's Creed game. Especially the present-day Abstergo    Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag was a rather mixed bag for me. On the upside...it was fun as hell! I don't think I've ever had more fun in an Assassin's Creed game! The exploration, ship plundering and the minigames, Abstergo hacking, etc. All of that felt splendid!
    On the downside...I felt the story was incredibly weak for an Assassin's Creed game. Especially the present-day Abstergo story, or lack thereof. It's practically cut off from the rest of the series. Also, the controls were very unresponsive or inaccurate to which the direction I turned a lot of the time. This included me jumping to my death when I meant to perform a leap of faith. Among the other complaints include several bugs, one of them which was a game-breaker that required me to restart a checkpoint. Did I already mention a disconnected storyline?
    With all things considered, this is a decent game, but I wouldn't consider it a good Assassin's Creed game. I think the Ezio ones are still better. If you've played all the previous entries or are looking for more closure after the disappointing ending that Assassin's Creed III delivered, I'd pass. However, if you're a newcomer to the series, now would probably be the perfect time to start.

    7/10 - Decent    … Expand
  86. BenHazelden
    Oct 13, 2014
    7
    A bigger improvement since the last two installments, Black Flag has regained the former strength of the originals, even though it seems more like 'Pirate's Code' than 'Assassin's Creed'.
    7/10 - Ben Hazelden
  87. TheEliteGamer
    Nov 28, 2014
    7
    This game is a good game overall. The biggest addition that makes this game great is the Naval gameplay. In AC3 naval gameplay was very minimal. In AC4 the whole game is based on sailing to different locations around the map. Another thing that makes this game great is the collectibles. Bottles, Mayan Stelle, Animus Fragments, and chests all add extra time to your free roam expereince.This game is a good game overall. The biggest addition that makes this game great is the Naval gameplay. In AC3 naval gameplay was very minimal. In AC4 the whole game is based on sailing to different locations around the map. Another thing that makes this game great is the collectibles. Bottles, Mayan Stelle, Animus Fragments, and chests all add extra time to your free roam expereince. Also the crafting and upgrades for Edward and the Jackdaw {the name of your pirate ship in the game} make it really fun to take down ships and go hunting. I can't say much about the story but so far what i have finished was really great. The combat is a little better with new weapons and the amount of weapons you can carry. You can have up to 4 pistols! This game is not a must buy, but is worth 30 dollars at least with the game and add-on's. Thanks for reading!… Expand
  88. PZJ
    Nov 29, 2014
    7
    Very fun game. Great sailing mechanics and pirating. Ground fighting is the same as all these games so you probably know what you're getting. Only real downside was that the plot was linear and pretty boring. Boring characters, same old cut scenes when you assassinate them, same old mission types. If you like pirate games you''ll enjoy this.
  89. Asgard-Sama
    Aug 28, 2018
    7
    • Historia: 6/10
    • Personajes: 8/10
    • GamePlay: 8/10 • Gráficos: 9/10 • Sonido: 10/10 • Música: 10/10 • Longitud: 9/10 • Valor de repetición: 1/10 • Valor del jugador: 7/10 Un gran juego increíble de batallas navales pero un mal Assasin Creeds. - El Protagonista mas soso e insustancial de la saga hasta el momento, aunque me parece un buen detalle que sea el abuelo de Connor    • Historia: 6/10
    • Personajes: 8/10
    • GamePlay: 8/10
    • Gráficos: 9/10
    • Sonido: 10/10
    • Música: 10/10
    • Longitud: 9/10
    • Valor de repetición: 1/10
    • Valor del jugador: 7/10

    Un gran juego increíble de batallas navales pero un mal Assasin Creeds.

    - El Protagonista mas soso e insustancial de la saga hasta el momento, aunque me parece un buen detalle que sea el abuelo de Connor del Assasins Creed 3 enlazando ambos títulos y personajes.

    - La jugabilidad sigue siendo tan buena como en el titulo anterior, no tiene peros.

    - El Combate es aun mas fácil que en los anteriores, simplón y aburrido.

    - La Banda sonora sigue siendo excelente y el detalle de que tu tripulación pirata cante canciones mientras navegan es una gran puntazo.

    - La historia esta bastante bien si nos enfocamos en la parte de la piratería y sus historia, pero como Assasins Creed es bastante floja.

    - Su mundo abierto naval es espectacular, puedes pasarte horas y horas navegando, combatiendo y cazando en el mar, para mi el barco, el combate naval y la jugabilidad del mismo es lo mejor y mas divertido de este titulo y donde personalmente invertí mas horas por pura diversión.

    - Las ciudades, islas y ambientación están muy logradas y gráficamente luce genial

    Para mi una mala continuación de la Saga Assasins Creed aunque como titulo Naval es excelente, el Assasins mas flojo hasta la fecha, con un protagonista soso, historia pirata interesante aunque no tenga nada que ver con los Asesinos, el barco y su jugabilidad lo mas divertido, le doy un 7 a este titulo.    … Expand
  90. syandicate
    Jan 11, 2020
    7
    +Ship battles and boarding +Open world is huge
    +Story is medicore.
    +Characters are medicore -Side activities
    -Combat -Enemy AI
  91. Berik
    Jan 21, 2019
    7
    You remember when the best parts of Assassin's Creed 3 were the naval contracts instead of the story, missions, and you know... what makes it an Assassin's Creed game? Well it's kinda the same this time, only now we can explore and forget about the story all together.

    By surprise Ubisoft was already working on a game take incorporated the naval missions in a full blown game. Needless to    You remember when the best parts of Assassin's Creed 3 were the naval contracts instead of the story, missions, and you know... what makes it an Assassin's Creed game? Well it's kinda the same this time, only now we can explore and forget about the story all together.

    By surprise Ubisoft was already working on a game take incorporated the naval missions in a full blown game. Needless to say the reactions were very positive. But now with over 80 hours in the game, did it deliver on expectations?

    First off, this game shouldn't have been called Assassins Creed: Black Flag. All the Assassin story line missions are a big fat stain on the game. It would have been better if this was a stand alone pirate game. And unfortunately some content you need to upgrade your ship is locked in the story missions, so that's a bummer.

    But when you just go plunder ships, upgrade your ship and take forts you are going to have an awesome time! I highly recommend you completely ignore the story and just start shooting ships to become stronger and stronger.

    So all and all it is a good game. It's a shame the Assassin's Creed content taints it. I give it a 7/10.    … Expand
  92. Tarihcigamer
    Jul 3, 2020
    7
    Suikastçiler ve korsanlar kesinlikle birbirine zıt iki tema ve ne yazık ki Ubisoft bu iki zıt temayı birbirine uygun hale getirememiş. Zaten Assasin's Creed 3'ten sonra seriye son vermeleri uygun olurdu. Neyse, uzun lafın kısası: OLMAMIŞ.
  93. martinho_99
    Mar 11, 2022
    7
    I know everyone really likes Part 4 but there were so many aspects I did not like. For me this is the part where I started to be unable to retrace why someone must be killed.
  94. rhuapZ
    Dec 12, 2020
    7
    nossa mano seis tem problema o jogo e um minecraft de pirata porra seu quissese joga assasins creed eu ia pro xvideos
  95. bianweiqu123
    Mar 4, 2023
    7
    This is, by far, one of the best entries in the series. It feels fresh and different. And you know that feeling? Yeah, the one you have when playing AC2 and that was missing from AC3? It's back.
  96. DrPebba
    May 14, 2021
    7
    I may say this is a really good game and i had my fun with it, but i think it isnt as good as people make it to be, some good things are the world, its huge and interesting to explore, some missions when you are underwater and enter a cave were there are enemies its preety fun, the way you kill with the gun its great, i have to say that the story is really good too, but here is the thing,I may say this is a really good game and i had my fun with it, but i think it isnt as good as people make it to be, some good things are the world, its huge and interesting to explore, some missions when you are underwater and enter a cave were there are enemies its preety fun, the way you kill with the gun its great, i have to say that the story is really good too, but here is the thing, the graphics dont look as good as AC3, it looks so yellow and just not as great, it doesnt feel like assassins creed in some way like the cities, they arent big enough to mess around, and most of the places are islands, the worst part of the game are the naval missions, if in AC3 were bad, at least there they were side missions, here they force them in your throat and they arent fun, some ships are way to hard and unfair, other bad thing is the gameplay, i love AC3 gameplay and this is somewhat the same gameplay... but they made a manner to make it worse, i dont know i just dont feel the same fun doing parkour or killing enemies like in the last games, the sound effects are awful, the way edward runs, the fighting its just not fun, and the missions in the last games were great and unique, here... all the missions are to damn similar and ununique, its just follow this guy without him noticing, kill him, now do this awful naval mission, and again and again and again. i dont like the word overrated but i think this describes the game well.… Expand
  97. Kwstis_Sidi
    May 14, 2023
    7
    The story is average at best, created in a true Ubisoft spirit. The graphics and the sound are good for an initial xbox 360 / PS3 title. The gameplay is quite good, with some more work needed related to the melee combat. All in all, it could have been a far better game if it was created by another company and not by Ubisoft which in her effort to deliver a game to liked by everybody, endsThe story is average at best, created in a true Ubisoft spirit. The graphics and the sound are good for an initial xbox 360 / PS3 title. The gameplay is quite good, with some more work needed related to the melee combat. All in all, it could have been a far better game if it was created by another company and not by Ubisoft which in her effort to deliver a game to liked by everybody, ends up making it average and bland. It is worthing 10 USD / EUR if you wanna buy it now and play it, but not more.… Expand
  98. Leandro36
    Dec 1, 2013
    6
    Story is weak and hard to follow at times, too many ship and tailing missions, but other than that it easily improves vastly from the other games and does everything other than the story much better.
  99. McSkittle
    Nov 3, 2013
    6
    On the positive this game looks the best on the Wii U. My overall problem is there is no online and the game needs it because this still looks like assassins Creed 3 with pirate DLC.
  100. DanielCorfour
    Nov 26, 2013
    6
    Assassin's Creed 4: 90% pirate, 10% assassin. To see a summary of this review scroll to the end.

    Ubisoft went ahead and did the obvious. They took, the best part of Assassin's Creed 3, really the only really good part, and made a game out of it. Literally, they retrofitted the game engine used in the previous title into this a new game, while barely adding or changing anything. This    Assassin's Creed 4: 90% pirate, 10% assassin. To see a summary of this review scroll to the end.

    Ubisoft went ahead and did the obvious. They took, the best part of Assassin's Creed 3, really the only really good part, and made a game out of it. Literally, they retrofitted the game engine used in the previous title into this a new game, while barely adding or changing anything. This whole game felt like an AC 3.1, rather than a new title.. which, I wouldn't have had a problem with, if they would have fixed the problems that plagued AC3, or actually gave us a good, satisfying story, like AC2, but they didn't.

    Assassin's Creed wasn't particularly good when it came to game mechanics, AC1 and 2 were kind of bad actually, instead, it was built by it's amazing storytelling, beautiful setting, and wonderful soundtrack. I still listen to Ezio's Family by Jesper Kyd from AC2. That song brings back a kind of emotions that I rarely feel with games. AC4, however delivers only one of these, the setting. I'm going to start by criticizing the story itself. It's terrible. First off, it has nothing to do with Assassins, they barely make a cameo appearance, both inside and outside the Animus. The whole game revolves around pirates, and that wouldn't be a problem, if it was a good story. And it starts out good, but then it gets riddled with plot holes, poor writing, scenes that don't make sense, and although they stayed away from the obvious parrot cliches, they added a bunch of them story-wise. The story does make a few twists, but most of them you'll see coming a mily away, and most of them don't make sense. There is no main enemy in the game, and most of the things that happen in the game make no sense. And if you were expecting a great ending.. don't.. it is terrible. The only plot-twist you won't see coming in this game is the ending.. they drop it on you out of nowhere, just when you were expecting the game would truly begin, and then they hit you in the face with a poorly done cutscene, and leave you confused.

    Here's a tip, dear Ubisoft. A story, every story, follows 5 basic steps, not necessarily in this order: Exposition, Rising Action, Progression, Climax, Ending. The 4th is completely missing, and the fifth leaves you confused, when it should leave you satisfied.

    Then there are the actual missions in the story. Boring, repetitive and most of them don't make sense. All you do is follow this guy, eavesdrop on that guy. And on rare occasions you kill someone. Missions involving ships can be interesting, but at times they are the same boring "follow that ship" nonsense. In comparison with GTA 5, or Red Dead Redemption, where every mission was unique and intriguing, here they are boring, unimaginative and repetitive. The same goes for side missions. Assassinations, Naval Missions and Templar Hunts. All of them are basically the same. If you did one then you did all, there's no point in continuing. You play through it once, but you won't want to play through it a second time.

    What saves the game is the beautiful and huge open world game, the side activities(not missions) and the naval combat. The setting is really amazing, although some fans of the series will find it irritating that you won't visit cities that much, only a couple times, and they are small with not a lot of things to do, the setting just didn't allow for that. Most of the time you will do what the game is all about: pirating. Naval combat is really fun, and it's been expanded upon a lot.: you can board ships, capture them, steal their cargo and send them to your fleet, you can attack naval forts and capture them. You can use those resources to upgrade your ship and so on. There are also underwater places you can explore, but there are limited, and in comparison with GTAV, where there was an entire open-world you could explore, here there are only ten locations, but it still looks great, and avoiding sharks and medusas is great fun. You can also raid plantations, which are a ton of fun... basically the side activities are really great, and make this game enjoyable, even though the story brings it down.

    In summary, it looks like this game was made just so Ubisoft can make more money off of the ship mechanics in AC3. Combat and land based mechanics are basically the same as the previous game, although they did need changing and improving. The game engine is the same as it was in the third title, with very little improvement, or change, when it, again needed it. And all of this would not be a problem if the game offered a good story, but it doesn't. The story seems like an excuse to sell an adapted version of AC3, and the story is driven by the game mechanics, and not vice versa. Luckily the beautiful setting, graphics and excellent pirate game save the game and prop up the rating to a 6/10. You can't help but feel, if they only spent a little bit more time, and wouldn't pump out a game every year, it could've been an amazing game.    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

5
#5 Best PS3 Game of 2013
11
#11 Most Discussed PS3 Game of 2013
15
#15 Most Shared PS3 Game of 2013

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
88

Generally favorable reviews - based on 36 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 35 out of 36
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 36
  3. Negative: 0 out of 36
  1. CD-Action
    Dec 13, 2013
    90
    All the distinguishing features of the series – the Templars, parkour and brutal assassinations – are here, but now they are not the core, they are just elements of the best pirate game ever, of a Red Dead Redemption at sea. [13/2013, p.52]
  2. Impulsegamer
    Nov 16, 2013
    90
    Black Flag is a remarkably new take on the series, and I would go as far to say it’s the finest entry we’ve seen to date.
    Read full review
  3. XGN
    Nov 15, 2013
    85
    With the new Assassin’s Creed we find ourselves in the Caribbean with a new main character called Edward Kenway. Black Flag focuses on the sea battles we saw in the third game and continues with this, with some new additions. Overall, you’ll be busy for a while – 40 hours, give or take – but the story isn’t that compelling.
    Read full review
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