Assassin’s Creed remake made a huge mistake cutting the best part of Black Flag
Ubisoft has released Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced, a remake of the 2013 Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag. According to Polygon’s review, the remake takes a respectful approach to modernizing the original, successfully updating core gameplay elements while preserving what made the game compelling.
The reviewer praises the remake’s handling of signature features from the original game, including naval combat and treasure hunting on tropical islands, which remain engaging with modern refinements and gameplay tweaks. The critic notes these mechanics hold up remarkably well after more than a decade.
However, the remake introduces one significant narrative change: the removal of the original game’s present-day storyline. The original Black Flag featured a sci-fi framing narrative centered around Abstergo Industries, a recurring antagonist throughout the Assassin’s Creed series. This present-day segment provided context and sci-fi elements that structured the pirate adventure narrative.
The reviewer, who never played the original 2013 release and is experiencing Black Flag for the first time through this remake, initially proceeded unaware of this omission. However, they report sensing something missing from the overall narrative experience—a nagging feeling that the story lacks a component integral to the original game’s structure. This suggests the present-day storyline played a more significant role in the overall experience than players unfamiliar with the original might expect.
The review raises broader questions about remake design philosophy: whether removing elements, even potentially divisive sci-fi narrative components, improves the experience or diminishes fidelity to the original game’s design.