It is to argue that a number of Ubisoft games are increasingly starting to look alike. Not only because all the big titles of the French publisher are open-world games but also because there are multiple elements recurring in different games. If you have played enough of Far Cry 3, you will encounter an occasional déjà vu-moment. Conquer strategic points on a tropical island to discover new activities, wrestle with sharks and of course: pirates!
Dutch Slaver
The very first Assassin’s Creed debuted in 2007 and should have been the revolutionary action game with an emphasis on the presence of platform and stealth elements. But not everyone was convinced yet. Fortunately, the concept of this game has grown, and is now a lot better than it used to be. The last year’s edition, Assassin’s Creed III, was a whole new formula where you were playing in the 18th century United States, all with a more detailed natural landscape and beautiful sights at sea.
Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag still has the same naval elements as the last one. You are stepping in the shoes of pirate Edward Kenway (The grandfather of Assassin’s Creed III protagonist, Connor). The game is set in the Caribbean Sea and the surrounding islands. Thanks to Hollywood, the pirate setting has become one of the most cliché settings that you can think of during the last few years, but nevertheless, you can count on a refreshing and compelling adventure, which for once is not about shoulder parrots, huge octopuses or Johnny Depp.
Furthermore, there is a really thrilling story to witness, which gives a semi-realistic view on the way of life at sea in the West Indies. This is achieved due to extensive descriptions of locations, characters or events. The fact that the only “yarrrr” is said by character in a mocking and sarcastic way goes to show that the pirate setting is taken almost as seriously as Red Dead Redemption’s portrayal of the Wild West.
Leaping sea creatures
In Assassin’s Creed III you could only sail out whenever the game made it possible. This time, you can decide for yourself when you want step behind the helm. Steering your ship (the Jackdaw) is very similar to the way it worked in AC3. Though there are more opportunities to engage enemy boats and forts, something you will do with great regularity in order to loot cargo and money or to ward off attackers. Added to your ship’s firepower, such as cannons and explosive barrels, once you have inflicted sufficient damage, you will have the option to board a ship or infiltrate a fort. This way, you can finish off the remainder of your opponents’ crew yourself, by using the game’s familiar (and improved) combat system. You can start discovering the Caribbean in an early stage of the game and you can return to shore anytime. At some prominent locations you will encounter some loading screens, but the majority of the islands are part of a large, seamless game world, complete with warring ships, sea creatures leaping out of the water and dynamic weather – including tornadoes!
Although the game would be pretty good as a stand-alone naval warfare game, it is still an Assassin’s Creed sequel. A little more than half of the time you will be playing Edward as an assassin with very skilled climbing abilities in different cities and landscapes. In general, you will be using the same weaponry as in the previous parts, and will be completing similar objectives (follow someone, listen to this conversation, kill someone without being seen etc.). It seems that Ubisoft did not invest a lot of effort in mixing these elements up a notch.
Which in itself is fine (after all, why change something that already works), however you will still get frustrated when Edward is climbing trees in a forest and he happens to grab the wrong branch. The artificial intelligence is often lackluster and leaves something to be desired: sprinting through enemy territory and getting noticed is completely logical, but enemies forgetting your location 5 seconds later is not. Fighting against opponents is roughly the same as in the previous AC titles, only this time, it is possible to aim a gun with the press of a button, which makes them a lot more useful.
Earning more money
Comparable to its predecessors, the story is only part of Black Flag. Although it already takes quite some time to finish the main story and a few side quests, you can spend even more time gaming with a huge variety of secondary activities like obtaining shanties and other objects, separate assassin missions, discovering countless amounts of treasures, looting caves and plundering sheds.
Hunting in Assassins Creed IV: Black Flag doesn’t limit you to land only. No, this time you can go hunt sharks and whales. All this with only one goal: more money, raw materials and blueprints to acquire upgrades.
Improving the weaponry and wardrobe of Edward, his ship and your home base will quickly become a priority if you want to stand a chance against the harder battles of the game. Especially with sea battles, you occasionally will have to upgrade armor and weaponry in order to be able to take on the battleships found in later stages of the game. If you are not able to obtain some raw materials yourself, you can always use Edwards’ fleet to get them through barter. What is even more fun is that you can download the Companion App, which provides you with a platform for trading, seeing the document database and a few other handy options. This way, the 2nd player on the couch suddenly has something to do, while you’re left with an app you can use outside the regular gameplay.
OCD-update System
Because there is so much to do and so much to collect, it is not hard to miss out on certain things. Unfortunately, the game is so afraid of this happening that it takes you by the hand with every activity. Treasure found? That’s your sixth out of twenty. Catch a swordfish? You can do that here, here and here. Also, in missions the game tends to help and guide you a little too much. Added to these drawbacks comes the narrative part, which is also not always of the best quality. Sometimes characters in a movie clip are wearing different clothes then they actually wore before, or the game suddenly changes from night to day.
However, the parts in the present time (outside the computer simulation) are pretty humorous. As an anonymous employee of the dubious company Abstergo, you try to gradually figure out the truth in a beautifully designed but lifeless office. These gameplay elements often make you wish you were suddenly back in the historical Caribbean, a period filled with excitement and thrills.
You could say that there are a lot of elements from Far Cry 3 to be found in Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, but only because they provide a rich, varied and universally pleasing experience. So to say that this is a huge loss for the game is nonsense. Besides, Black Flag has its own sensational highlights, such as the moment when you are on the top of a palm tree watching half a dozen ships trying to wreck each other while there is a tornado stirring on the horizon. At this point, you their ships, clear out the remaining crew (Assasin’s Creed style) and walk ways with their riches. Yes, we were waiting for a chance to play pirates on such a scale!