I’m only three hours into Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced, and I’m having a blast. I did play the original Black Flag back in 2013, but my memory of the game is very fuzzy. I don’t remember much of it.
So, this Resynced version is right up my street because the game feels familiar, but at the same time, it feels so fresh because I don’t remember much of the original experience.
Ubisoft has struggled a lot in recent years with the Assassin’s Creed franchise. While games like Odyssey and Valhalla have certainly been successful, they never really felt like classic Assassin’s Creed games. Besides Mirage, we’ve spent a long time away from the Assassins themselves, and Black Flag Resynced feels like a huge breath of fresh air.
Just three hours in, I’ve genuinely had a blast. I like the combat, I like how the naval elements feel, and Matt Ryan is always a delight as Edward Kenway. More than anything, the game simply feels fresh. Ubisoft deserves a rare W on this one.
So, what’s next?
We know the next mainline title for Assassin’s Creed is Hexe. The rumour is that it will focus on witches and have a much darker, eerier atmosphere than we’ve seen before. If that’s true, I’m all for it. My only stipulation is that Assassin’s Creed remains the main focus, as it should be.
Then we come back to Black Flag Resynced.
If this game proves to be a huge success for Ubisoft, it suddenly opens a lot of doors. They’ve already shown they can modernise one of the franchise’s most beloved entries while keeping the soul of what made it so special in the first place. If players continue to embrace it, why stop here?
Do they opt for a remake of the first Assassin’s Creed? It’s the game that started this entire journey, and despite its importance, it’s often overlooked when fans discuss the best entries in the series.
Or do they go with the obvious choice?
Ezio is easily the most popular character across the entire franchise. Assassin’s Creed 2, Brotherhood, and Revelations are still considered by many to be the peak of the series, and it’s not hard to imagine Ubisoft giving those games the Resynced treatment over the next few years. Personally, I’d buy every single one of them without hesitation.
Maybe Ubisoft even surprises everyone and decides to revisit Black Flag again with a direct sequel. The possibilities suddenly feel a lot more exciting if this remake performs as well as many of us hope it will.
I hope Black Flag Resynced isn’t the last time we see Ubisoft revisit one of its older projects. I’m not usually someone who wants companies to constantly release remakes, but Assassin’s Creed has been searching for that magic again for quite some time. If going back to some of the franchise’s greatest hits helps rediscover that, then I’m all for it.
I also hope this journey with Black Flag continues to blow me away because, after just a few hours, it’s reminded me why so many people still regard it as one of the greatest Assassin’s Creed games ever made.
And if its success eventually leads to the return of Ezio?
I don’t think many Assassin’s Creed fans would complain about that.
