Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag

 Xbox 360
User Score
8.0

Generally favorable reviews- based on 922 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 723 out of 922
  2. Mixed: 96 out of 922
  3. Negative: 103 out of 922
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  1. kingj24
    Oct 29, 2013
    10
    Easily the best entry in the franchise. The scope and depth is unmatched by most games to date. Sunning visuals and and interesting character and engaging if sometimes shaky story make this one of the best games of the year.
  2. BladeStrike
    Oct 29, 2013
    4
    Stop paying full price for minor updates. This is a glorified dlc campaign, nothing more. If you must play it wait for a sale. Ubisoft don't deserve full price for this lazy dlc pack. Whatever you do don't listen to the mindless drones giving this a 10, it does not deserve it. They are just fanboys.

    Btw Metacritic have been deleting user reviews all day that don't think highly of this    Stop paying full price for minor updates. This is a glorified dlc campaign, nothing more. If you must play it wait for a sale. Ubisoft don't deserve full price for this lazy dlc pack. Whatever you do don't listen to the mindless drones giving this a 10, it does not deserve it. They are just fanboys.

    Btw Metacritic have been deleting user reviews all day that don't think highly of this game. Thats just pathetic...    … Expand
  3. LausDaeus
    Dec 7, 2013
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Assassin's Creed 4 is a decent game, although it seems a bit lacking in polish when compared to its predecessors. The main plot is a bit lacking in excitement (both on the Animus and real world side) and somewhat fails to draw one in, the gameplay has gained some features, but on the whole doesn't seem like a major improvement. The only thing really worthy of credit are the graphics, effects and sound, as those are truly beautiful to behold.

    Plot: 4/10
    Without giving too much away, it can be said that the Desmond storyline is over and that our new main protagonist is pretty much without any identity whatsoever. While some of the former characters recur in a couple of scenes and one can tell that there is some connection to what has already happened, it really makes more of an impression as a side story and the initial mystery and showdown of the last games seem to have basically been forgotten about. Abstergo has interest in a device called "The Observatory" that allows one to see people wherever they want, provided they have their blood, which given the modern era of security and that they control most of the world anyway (as is hinted throughout the game) seems pretty obsolete and bland, especially when compared to something like the "Apple" from the last games. The Assassins are playing some role, but ultimately have no influence on what happens, so one again does not have the impression of much plot progression and the actual writers are just biding their time.
    In the actual game, one plays as a notorious pirate, whose whole goal for around 80% of the game is to make money to live a better life and when he hears of the observatory from the templars he plans to use it to rule the ocean and make more money. Apart from this being a rather dull goal, the character does not make a convincing effort to rule or gain anything and just wreaks havoc inbetween his drunk depressions. Finally towards the end of the game, after almost every friend he knows dies for reasons that he is actually not responsible for, the assassins more or less guilt him into joining them and the story ends with him killing the templars and returning home. So while this plot does place him into the AC universe, he really doesn't fit into it very well and is himself not particularly fun to play given his lacking ambition and accordingly little happening.

    Gameplay: 5/10
    The gameplay of AC has expanded in some ways, as the sailing has now become an integral component and has been somewhat revamped and there are some new minigames such as fishing and a fleet. Some assassination techniques, like the double assassination have also been made easier and the controls are more player-friendly (although I myself found some of them more difficult to get used to).
    So in that aspect the game is all well, but there are also some major pitfalls. For instance a huge number of missions involve tailing somebody, then tailing somebody else, then listening to them and then *maybe* killing somebody. This is all fine to do once in a while, but doing this every second mission or so becomes very tedious and ultimately boring.
    Further criticism can be made to the side quests, where one has to complete shape fitting puzzles that require the intelligence of a 3-year-old in order to get an armor, or mindlessly collect 200 animus fragments that do nothing other than get you an achievement. This, in combination with a map/level design of very small cities (with little to do in them) and numerous islands of which many look the exact same does feel very repetitive and takes some of the fun out of the game.
    The array of tools and weapons in the game has also been reduced, allowing for a dozen dual swords/pistols of one type with slightly different skins and stats and no daggers whatsoever. One final aspect that bothered me, was that the enemy AI has taken to a whole new level of disappointingly easy to the extent, that running up to somebody and jumping on them was a substantially easier method of "assassination" than employing stealth and planning. Admittedly, some of these criticisms are a matter of preference, but with others, it's pretty obvious the game developers were just plain lazy, which does not merit a good score.

    Graphics/Effects: 9/10
    So after all this complaining, it can at least be said that the graphics of the actual game are wonderful to the extent that some PC players may experience quite a bit of lag when compared to the predecessors. Is it worth it? Yes, as the game world is very picturesque and a good level of detail has been applied to make it feel real. The combat animations are also smooth and the characters designs have been put together nicely. One can at the very least say that the artists and graphics engineers know what they're doing.

    Anyways, after all this the verdict is 6/10. This doesn't mean it is a great game or a bad game, but rather one to enjoy more for the effects than the story or novelties of game play.    … Expand
  4. joao1198pedro
    Nov 17, 2013
    7
    this game compared to the two last assassin's creed is terrific,the game is good in various things,but it is not as good as the firsts assassin's creed but is still a good game.
  5. Daelus
    Feb 3, 2014
    8
    Broken down by components this game would likely be a 7, however in its entirety it was a very good game.

    Story - always the weakest point of a AC game; story and execution here probably a 6 tops....why they continue to put the lame present-day story in is beyond me....that BS is always a ZERO! Action - the game allowed significant scope in how to approach the objectives; stealth,    Broken down by components this game would likely be a 7, however in its entirety it was a very good game.

    Story - always the weakest point of a AC game; story and execution here probably a 6 tops....why they continue to put the lame present-day story in is beyond me....that BS is always a ZERO!
    Action - the game allowed significant scope in how to approach the objectives; stealth, force or a combination - 8
    World size - It looks bigger than it is; AC3 was actually larger. The only true area to roam is the ocean (which is a lot of fun), with all but a few of the islands very linear (no entering the woods, etc) follow the path stuff. - 7
    Open world - mini games (8), sea roaming & battles/ boarding/ fort battles (9.5 - the shanties are what stick with me from the game), mini-convoy activity (6), looting warehouses (6), underwater exploration (3), chase the courier (0), collectibles (6 - the rewards are not worth the time, but they aren't onerous)
    .    … Expand
  6. callumjsouth
    Nov 8, 2015
    8
    Black Flag takes the freedom of Assassin's Creed III and improves upon it in every way. Naval combat is now fully cemented into the roots of the gameplay and is a joy to behold. Plundering the West Indies makes for fantastic entertainment and combat is rich here too. The multiple settings in Black Flag are the most tropical yet. Havana and Nassau have a distinct beauty and charm and it'sBlack Flag takes the freedom of Assassin's Creed III and improves upon it in every way. Naval combat is now fully cemented into the roots of the gameplay and is a joy to behold. Plundering the West Indies makes for fantastic entertainment and combat is rich here too. The multiple settings in Black Flag are the most tropical yet. Havana and Nassau have a distinct beauty and charm and it's wonderfully refreshing to not be trapped within one city in an AC game, freedom is everything here. However as free as you are, you are not free from yet another tepid story that lacks any really backbone. The playable protagonist is likeable though and this leads to you having some sort of investment in the outcome of his tale. Again I was fascinated to be in the presence of real historical characters. Franklin last year, Blackbeard this year. Not since Brotherhood have I found few flaws with an AC game. Black Flag is a brilliant adventure in the West Indies rich in naval combat which is led by a likeable protagonist who is able to successfully tie up the Kenway story.… Expand
  7. Sneaktastic
    Feb 19, 2014
    8
    Gameplay same old same old Assassin's Creed- Boat combat is on of the best mechanics in gaming of the last couple years- The ability to free roam around in boats, collect buried treasure, fight legendary ships, take on fleets of ships- Story is fantastic- Pirate genre is a PLUS.
    Get this game if:
    1. You love the pirate genre 2. Loved the ship combat in AC3 3. You love history Do not    Gameplay same old same old Assassin's Creed- Boat combat is on of the best mechanics in gaming of the last couple years- The ability to free roam around in boats, collect buried treasure, fight legendary ships, take on fleets of ships- Story is fantastic- Pirate genre is a PLUS.
    Get this game if:
    1. You love the pirate genre
    2. Loved the ship combat in AC3
    3. You love history

    Do not get this game if:
    1. You do not like AC combat    … Expand
  8. Wolverinemetacr
    Nov 19, 2013
    7
    Its an okay game I liked it. Why so many of the bad reviews were taken off metacritic i dont understand. Not cool when we look to you for reviews guys. It is not worth 60 bones though not for what you get. If you are a fan you will like it, I should have waited a little though bit expensive......
  9. StevenJC
    Nov 21, 2013
    7
    Remains a fun game but the game essentially hasn't improved since the first game in this series. Enjoyable but not original. Still worth playing though.
  10. XMagneto
    Jan 11, 2014
    10
    I put a lot of money in this game including paying for the $120 version, so I took a high risk and I don't regret it. I thought the game was really fun and made me want to explore the world and the ship mechanics were better than the last game, and this game had a lot of feel to it. even though I was disappointed in Edwards origin story I still enjoyed it and I will play it again and again.
  11. MrTwicez
    Jan 23, 2014
    9
    I got this game for my birthday, and I was so exited I got this game, I literally craped in my thong. The graphics are personally better than the game the G T A 7 or what ever you call it. Its sad I didn't finish this game because I got a big erection and it hurt so bad, I had to go to the vet.
  12. stvissocoolgive
    Jan 27, 2014
    7
    this game to me is probably the best one in its series yet, with all the shanties, the loot, secrets and even the pirates itself are amazing. the down side to the game is how short the story is but all the secrets and treasures you can find make it more interesting and longer. for me this game gos up into the top of my list for the assassin creed series
  13. YeaBoi
    Jan 28, 2015
    6
    Good game, but gets boring before you finish. It's a good Pirate Sim, definitely the best I've played. But MAN the sea battles get dull. The same 30m by 30m by 40m battle arena every single time. Every-single-time.

    Assassinations aren't special. Land on a guy from a building and run. Or shoot him from a distance. Big whop! Nothing new since the Original Assassins Creed in    Good game, but gets boring before you finish. It's a good Pirate Sim, definitely the best I've played. But MAN the sea battles get dull. The same 30m by 30m by 40m battle arena every single time. Every-single-time.

    Assassinations aren't special. Land on a guy from a building and run. Or shoot him from a distance. Big whop!

    Nothing new since the Original Assassins Creed in terms of land-game play and combat (easy to kill 25 guards, and no real consequence).

    Trade system is terrible, which largely detracts from the Pirate Sim experience.

    Basically be prepared to like this game for the first 10hrs, and then put it down due to boredom after that,    … Expand
  14. PsychoShane
    Apr 27, 2015
    8
    Assassin's Creed 4 may have the most interesting and expansive open world in any Assassin's Creed creed game, but the adventure element of number 2 is missing a little bit because of '100% checklist formula' that plagues it.
  15. AstralAssassin3
    Dec 11, 2016
    7
    Well this is a bit weird. A fan favourite in the series, I personally found it to be the weakest assassin's creed game yet. Did I have fun though? Hell yes:

    Pros: -Beautiful graphics and soundtrack -Awesome kill animations -Naval combat/boarding ships is easily the best part of the game -Good amount of weapons -Cool setting -Good amount of historical characters -Gargantuan sized    Well this is a bit weird. A fan favourite in the series, I personally found it to be the weakest assassin's creed game yet. Did I have fun though? Hell yes:

    Pros:
    -Beautiful graphics and soundtrack
    -Awesome kill animations
    -Naval combat/boarding ships is easily the best part of the game
    -Good amount of weapons
    -Cool setting
    -Good amount of historical characters
    -Gargantuan sized map with heaps of content

    Cons:
    -The story has little to do with assassins
    -Edward is a pretty selfish and weak character, despite having some good moments
    -Too many tailing missions
    -Tailing missions..... in boats. For gods sake no.

    In the end:
    -Story: 6/10
    -Gameplay: 8/10
    Graphics/sound design: 8/10
    Overall: 7/10

    Note: The 7/10 rating is judging it as an assassin's creed game.

    If I was judging it as a pirate game it is an easy 8/10. But as an assassin's creed game, it falls short.    … Expand
  16. Nebraska619
    Feb 27, 2021
    5
    This game is pretty average. I loved the idea of the naval warfare mechanics which made the game sorta fun but the rest of the game just seems like a carbon copy. The combat is extremely easy to the point where i can take out 7 enemies without taking any damage. Then you give me a gun and smoke bombs and the game gets even easier. The bush takedowns and hay bale takedowns are way to cheapThis game is pretty average. I loved the idea of the naval warfare mechanics which made the game sorta fun but the rest of the game just seems like a carbon copy. The combat is extremely easy to the point where i can take out 7 enemies without taking any damage. Then you give me a gun and smoke bombs and the game gets even easier. The bush takedowns and hay bale takedowns are way to cheap because you can just continuously spam them and take out entire compounds in one bush. The story is ok but i got pretty bored of it because it is so stretched out that i lost focus after 20 minutes of playing. Trying to get all the collectibles is a pain cause there are just so many scattered around the 30+ islands. All of the islands kinda look the same but with just minor changes such as the way people talk or the flags on the walls. This game is below average and the only fun part is the naval warfare part.… Expand
  17. OMGtoasty
    Jan 7, 2014
    4
    Here is a brutally honest review by a big fan of the franchise. This game is a wreck. It doesn't feel like any of the other classic Assassin's creed games. You spend most of your time out on the ocean using the only successful mechanic from the third game, the naval warfare. This game resembles nothing but a really cool pirate game, but even that part of the game gets old after so long.Here is a brutally honest review by a big fan of the franchise. This game is a wreck. It doesn't feel like any of the other classic Assassin's creed games. You spend most of your time out on the ocean using the only successful mechanic from the third game, the naval warfare. This game resembles nothing but a really cool pirate game, but even that part of the game gets old after so long. The land combat doesn't improve on that. It is way to easy. After you have taken out one enemy you just have to span the attack button and you will kill everyone. All of the characters (excluding Thatch aka Black Beard) are predictable and uninteresting. Even the main character, Edward Kenway, pales in comparison o the franchises past characters (Ezio Auditore).The missions are all very repetitive and seem to drag on. The stalking missions are pathetic because of the eagle visions change.his is the second worst game in he franchise and sincerely hope that changes are made to ring back the old assassin's creed that I love to play. the only reason im not giving this a 0 is because I atleast has a beautiful world an decent voice acting, but they ned to work on the story.… Expand
  18. 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
  19. officer7161
    Jan 30, 2014
    2
    boycott this franchise please! All assasin's creed has done is just recycle, recycle, recyle. If you compare the characters and maps etc from the previous titles in the franchise, they just take the same stuff and repackage it. I used to be a huge fan of MP of the series, but just got bored after they just repackage the same stuff repeatedly.
    Now I tried out MP in blackflag I can spot    boycott this franchise please! All assasin's creed has done is just recycle, recycle, recyle. If you compare the characters and maps etc from the previous titles in the franchise, they just take the same stuff and repackage it. I used to be a huge fan of MP of the series, but just got bored after they just repackage the same stuff repeatedly.
    Now I tried out MP in blackflag I can spot characters recycled from brotherhood, revelations etc...
    It's just terrible! guys, boycott the franchise so they will actually put some energy into creating new titles instead of recycling old ones!
    don't buy this game if you played previous title/titles!    … Expand
  20. Deusex
    Mar 2, 2014
    2
    I gave AC one last chance..
    But unfountantly they took the Rockstar bridge with gta 5 and made the same s*** as before except ruined every element.
    I want to play as an assassin, not some pirate. Edward is an affront to the creed, and a badly written character. The side missions are horrible, everything is Repititive and the story is now weak. Everything is ruined.. I've played all 6    I gave AC one last chance..
    But unfountantly they took the Rockstar bridge with gta 5 and made the same s*** as before except ruined every element.

    I want to play as an assassin, not some pirate. Edward is an affront to the creed, and a badly written character. The side missions are horrible, everything is Repititive and the story is now weak. Everything is ruined.. I've played all 6 games (the main ones not psp bulls***) and ill play no more.    … Expand
  21. Adamm4231
    Nov 6, 2013
    7
    Much better than AC3 but still lacking in a few departments.First off, I wanted to play Assassin's Creed, not "Pirates of the Caribbean with a slight AC twist". You play as Edward Kenway who is a pirate, he likes to hang out with pirates, and he likes to do pirate things, he likes doing this so much that he literally does them the entire game. Half way through i was getting sick ofMuch better than AC3 but still lacking in a few departments.First off, I wanted to play Assassin's Creed, not "Pirates of the Caribbean with a slight AC twist". You play as Edward Kenway who is a pirate, he likes to hang out with pirates, and he likes to do pirate things, he likes doing this so much that he literally does them the entire game. Half way through i was getting sick of hearing about how he wanted to achieve certain things just for the money, hell even the characters you come across like James Kidd have something to say about his one dimensional attitude to every problem that arises. Finally some form of character development arrives and then BAM!! credit screen. Overall the game play is fun, the combat follows Assassin's Creed protocol but the real improvement lies in the ship combat. Huge amount of ship customization with a hefty amount of new toys to make sure your adversaries sink to the bottom of the ocean. I rate this a 7 because the game play I expected was delivered, I took away points because, like AC3, the main character lacks depth. Maybe one day Ubisoft will realize that is what made Ezio such a great character and such a great enjoyment to play.… Expand
  22. tattoosteve
    Nov 5, 2013
    10
    if you were never into AC games you can get into this one and work your way back to AC1. it's probably the most epic AC game they've made so far. the graphics are unbeatable for current-gen and the plotline is absolutely riveting.
  23. ForeverFalling
    Nov 20, 2013
    10
    The ultimate AC game and the best pirate simulator out there, lol. Great graphics (current gen), great voice acting, great gameplay, and a huge open world that you can explore with your awesome pirate ship called the Jackdaw. Side missions and collectibles galore as well. Obviously any AC fan should pick this up. If you are not an AC fan, then become one.
  24. LanceUpperkill
    Nov 5, 2013
    9
    This game is amazing, it is the game I have been waiting for since Sea Dogs! The only things that annoys me is the forced current day story line. They should have made it a stand alone pirate game.

    The multiplayer is a let down also. No online ship combat or drop in co op help in battles. Overall though the single player more than makes up for it with its incredible scope.
  25. DukeVega
    Nov 22, 2013
    10
    "Ahoy, she blows" The Quartermaster shouts as the hurricane bellows down upon your small craft, the aptly named "Jack-Daw".
    Our Hero, a welsh pirate from Swansea manning the wheel, you push the craft high over the roaring waves, before crashing back down again. The whole motion of the sea seems real, the shouts of your men and the crackling of thunder actually makes me stare onwards,    "Ahoy, she blows" The Quartermaster shouts as the hurricane bellows down upon your small craft, the aptly named "Jack-Daw".
    Our Hero, a welsh pirate from Swansea manning the wheel, you push the craft high over the roaring waves, before crashing back down again. The whole motion of the sea seems real, the shouts of your men and the crackling of thunder actually makes me stare onwards, smiling in amazement;- My wife keeps asking me to make her a cup of tea
    "NO!" i scream at her as another wave tear's over the deck, not only washing my poor crew-men away but damaging the ship as well.

    Like a cake at a fat kids party we battle on through the storm until eventually the storm clear's and the ocean's settle,

    "Neptune be begging our graves, captain" a man shouts,

    "No Davy Jones locker today" another replies

    We sail on towards an island in the distance, this is one of hundreds of locations across the map, as we sail my men begin singing old sea shanty songs, they sing of women and booze and treasure the songs sometimes get lost in the wind as we howl towards the island
    - and as we settle down to make repairs, I slip into the captains quarters to change my outfit back to the nice garments we stole from the stupid assassin.

    As i return moments later, something magical appear's on the GTA like radar?

    The White whale !!!!!!!

    My crew tell me its a beast from hell, urge me to harpoon it.

    Whale Hunting is legal in this century, so I gather some men and a small row boat and we head out to capture the beast,
    White Wale for dinner tonight boys?

    I cant go on writing this review any longer, sorry... I need to get back in what is no doubt THE GAME OF THE YEAR !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    I can only describe this game as "Grand Theft Sid Miers Pirat'rim Creed" (The Rim is from Skyrim btw)

    Buy it buy it NOW     … Expand
  26. FlyinBlind72
    Nov 27, 2013
    8
    Much to my surprise, I'm very much enjoying this game. I personally feel that the last good game in this series was AC2 and have been disappointed by the following chapters prior to AC4. Lots of complaints about the story not being as strong but I'm ok with that...it's toned down a bit and that's good b/c the story sometimes feels overly weighty when all you really want to do is playMuch to my surprise, I'm very much enjoying this game. I personally feel that the last good game in this series was AC2 and have been disappointed by the following chapters prior to AC4. Lots of complaints about the story not being as strong but I'm ok with that...it's toned down a bit and that's good b/c the story sometimes feels overly weighty when all you really want to do is play loose and fast. I will say that the naval battles and such do tend to get a bit monotonous after a bit but the world is quite bit and there are lots of things to explore. haven't tried the MP yet but plan to as soon as single player is complete.… Expand
  27. SirGengar
    Dec 4, 2013
    10
    By far one of my favorite titles this year. The game looks gorgeous, is incredible to explore, the characters are great, and the naval bits are fantastic. I would recommend this game to absolutely anyone. I've been playing nonstop since I purchased it. I was up until 2 AM this morning playing!
  28. MarcusFenix0012
    Nov 5, 2013
    10
    Best of series outside of Assassin's Creed 2. Love the open world combat and I love that they throw you right into the action as opposed to Assassin's Creed 3's five hour long tutorial. I love completing each island in the hope of fully upgrading my ship. Only issue being that Uplay kicked out every once in a while stopping me from playing the Kenway's Fleet minigame.
  29. Cimentoid123
    Dec 6, 2013
    3
    Ubisoft presents: PIRATES OF CARRIBEAN: Assassin's Creed. I liked the AC series, but Black Flag SLAUGHTED it. I like the idea of being stealthy and stab stuff in the back and I HATE the idea of sailing half of the game! I mean srs, the action happens in Carraibe! I don't even want to go in a game shop because of this garbage!
  30. TheCoolester
    Oct 30, 2013
    9
    100 percent completion on AC1,2,Brotherhood, and Revelations. For some reason, AC3 just didn't resonate with me very well. It seemed rushed, had it's fair share of glitches, and was all over the place, if that makes any sense. It is the only AC game I've yet to finish. Don't get me wrong, I liked some aspects of AC3, the fluidity of the running, the environment was sweet, and the Naval100 percent completion on AC1,2,Brotherhood, and Revelations. For some reason, AC3 just didn't resonate with me very well. It seemed rushed, had it's fair share of glitches, and was all over the place, if that makes any sense. It is the only AC game I've yet to finish. Don't get me wrong, I liked some aspects of AC3, the fluidity of the running, the environment was sweet, and the Naval combat was a blast. Which is part of the reason I was intrigued by AC4. I can say, without question, from what I have been witness to thus far, that AC4 takes the best of AC3 and totally improves it. It also takes the worst of AC3 and scraps it, for the most part. They only real downside I have seen so far has been the "tail" missions. So tedious...but once you get past that, the game shines. The open world is absolutely fantastic. The characters are fun to listen to. I haven't really delved too deep yet, so I can't say a whole lot about the story. The controls are WAY better than AC3, in my opinion. I really don't understand the negative feedback some users have placed on this title. Some cry foul that it's not a traditional "Assassin" game. I disagree, I think the formula is still in place, they've just added new tangibles to it. It is evolving into what should be a spectacular next gen experience as well. Some day I may go back and grind through AC3, but for now, I am knee-deep in AC4, and couldn't be happier. Will update score if I encounter any negative glitchy moments ala AC3.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

15
#15 Best Xbox 360 Game of 2013
9
#9 Most Discussed Xbox 360 Game of 2013
12
#12 Most Shared Xbox 360 Game of 2013

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
86

Generally favorable reviews - based on 35 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 33 out of 35
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 35
  3. Negative: 0 out of 35
  1. Pelit (Finland)
    Mar 11, 2014
    92
    The sun, the waves, the smell of salt in the air. Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag offers an amazing pirate adventure experience. [Nov 2013]
  2. Level7.nu
    Jan 3, 2014
    80
    Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag is a game that feels locked between two worlds. Not only between to generations of consoles but between a run of the mill AC-game and an astonishing pirate game. It’s not only a well needed spark to the series as much it’s a redefining of it. Everything that is use is great and everything old feels like it should be thrown overboard. Try it regardless of your thoughts about earlier Assassin’s Creed games.
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  3. X-ONE Magazine UK
    Dec 7, 2013
    80
    Black Flag tightens enough screws and adds enough cool new stuff to make it the best in ages. [Issue#105, p.79]
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