Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag

Developer: Ubisoft Montreal

Publisher: Ubisoft

Edward Kenway disguises as Duncan Walpole and meets the Templars who are looking for the Sage. The Templars use the excuse of cleaning out of pirates in the Caribbean while they search.

Research cubicle at Abstergo Entertainment

The Story

Edward Kenway woke up to discover that he was shipwrecked near an island and that another survivor, the assassin they faced earlier, was with him. He claims that he needs to get to Havana and tried to negotiate with Edward. The assassin runs off and Edward chases the guy, later discovered to be Duncan Walpole. Edward kills Walpole then decided to take the latter’s place and meet the Templars at Havana. Walpole was a rogue Assassin working for the Templars.

Edward wasn’t aware however that the Assassins were also watching him. They knew about Walpole’s deceit but the Order was put in danger because of Edward’s involvement. He learns that the Templars were looking for the Sage and that they were only using the pretense of eradicating the pirates in Caribbean to aid the search.

As the piracy in the Caribbean grows to unprecedented levels, the pirate leaders want to establish a so-called Republic of Pirates that answer neither to the British nor the Spanish. Havana was largely controlled by the Spanish, Kingston by the British, while Nassau was influenced by the pirates.

The game features historical figures like Edward “Blackbeard” Thatch, Jack Rackham, Anne Bonny, Benjamin Hornigold and Charles Vane.

Adewale and Edward. Adewala was rescued by Edward early in the game.

Look at that view.

Edward explores the wonders of the sea.

The Gameplay

In the modern world, the player controls a new employee of Abstergo Entertainment. The employee is a research analyst. The player learns that the Animus is no longer needed to relive genetic memories.

While in the Animus, the player controls the father of Haytham Kenway and the grandfather of Ratonhnhaké:ton or Connor Kenway, Edward Kenway. Edward’s exploits is set in the 18th century Golden Age of Piracy in the Caribbean. Edward visits Havana, Kingston and Nassau.

Miscellaneous activities include hunting, harpooning, capturing forts, upgrading the hideout, completing naval contracts, collecting all the memories found throughout the office of Abstergo, crafting, trading, fighting ships, exploring shipwrecks, upgrading the Jackdaw and recruiting men, visiting taverns, playing board games, hunting Templars and looking for treasures. The treasures can be found in various locations on the map from sandbanks to villages.

The viewpoints serve as fast-travel locations. Once you synchronize, all the available items and missions are shown on the map. Additional weapons, more types of guns and swords are available. My favorite is the blowpipe. Combat-wise auto-aim is no longer used. Dual-wielding is also possible.

One of the best features of the game are the naval combats. Nearly half the game is spent on the waters. You can board and take ships. You can also choose to add them to your fleet, Edward’s Fleet if you don’t want them destroyed. The ship is upgraded by collecting items and accomplishing missions. The player can use the spyglass to examine a ship or an island. The ship now has more options for combat than in Assassin’s Creed III.

A notoriety system is also employed in the naval adventures much like when you walk around town when you’re wanted. Weather patterns also affect naval combat.

From Left: Jack Rackham, Adewale, Edward, Blackbeard and a crew

Guess who?

I’ve never had so much fun exploring since Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood. There were so many things to do and to discover. The naval combats alone took so much of my time. I didn’t even want to fast-travel because that would take away the enjoyment of fighting and boarding ships. This is the kind of game that could get addictive once you discover how fun it was to be a pirate.

I also enjoyed all the other features of the game like the side missions and collectibles. I easily spent more hours on side missions alone than continuing the main missions. I love that I was able to explore underwater too. The only thing I didn’t like was whaling. I’m not against the idea of introducing the activity in the game, after all it’s still happening today, unfortunately. I tried it once and never bothered again. I just don’t like the activity itself. If showing the player how cruel whaling was was one of their objectives, then it has served its purpose because it had that effect on me. I chose to purchase the needed items instead of obtaining them myself. I’m also a bit uneasy about hunting land animals so sometimes I bought supplies from shops when I needed them.

There were a lot of weapons to choose from, although I enjoyed naval combats more than fighting other characters.

The naval combats were the best part of the game. They were so fun that they were addictive. There was a whole week when I didn’t continue with the main missions because I’d rather go pirating.

And who could ignore the quality of the animation? They were able to capture the feeling whenever you’re near the water. On bright days, the water seemed hot to my eyes. They were even able to capture how the sunlight reflects on the water from different angles.

I was a lot more excited about the story unfolding in the modern world. Granted, the lives of pirates was interesting but I’m still heartbroken with Desmond’s death in AC III. I wanted to know what happened to his companions and his father. Plus hacking Abstergo’s files were fun. I enjoyed the puzzles a lot and being able to learn something more about Desmond also made me happy.

Edward was a fun character but he lacked that tragic aspect that made Ezio and Connor much easier to like.

What else can I say? I enjoyed this game immensely. That’s what really matters after all. It may have been lacking in the story but there were so many things I could do.

Rating: 9 out of 10