Ubisoft’s technology director Jussi Markkanen has told Games Radar that the update to Assassin’s Creed Black Flag is both faithful to the original and almost like a new game.
The updated version, built with the latest Anvil engine, has been named Resynced and Markkanen says it has been improved even more than Assassin’s Creed Shadows was.
Made from scratch
Markannen said that Resynced was “remade from scratch” using the latest Anvil rendering technologies. The developers used ray tracing, micropolygon, and other technologies to retain the visual identity of the original but give it a 2026 facelift. It was important, Markkanen said, that players would be playing the game that they remember.
Black Flag Resynced is Ubisoft’s first ever remake and it joins a long list of remade games released this year. Nicolas Lopez, the company’s Anvil Engine architect, said there are different expectations for the more RPG Creed games and those more based in action and adventure. That goes for both technology and gameplay, Lopez said. Resynced could be the bridge between the two genres.
Games Radar writer Jasmine Gould-Wilson called the original Black Flag “revolutionary”. On its release 13 years ago (note: the publication made a mistake in suggesting that it was released in 2011), Black Flag was rare for being both an immersive open world exploration game and a stealth-action sandbox. It influenced the following RPGs Assassin’s Creed Valhalla and Odyssey.
Black Flag, being a pirate game, had very different source material to the games that followed. Odyssey featured several historical and mythical locations like the statue of Zeus at Olympia, the Agora of Athens, and Lesbos, as well as characters like Medusa and the Cyclops. Greek mythology has long been a source of inspiration for game developers; casino and slot games regularly feature Greek gods like Zeus. Gates of Olympus is one such game, and those interested in slots can play Gates of Olympus for real money in South Africa. Players should remember to use responsible gambling tools such as time limits and deposit limits.
Combat
Resynced features modernized combat, intended to be more reactive. Markkanen said that Ubisoft wanted to make the combat “more fluid”. While the game is still based on a player’s positioning and timing, it includes more freeform movement. It was built on the fight system used for Assassin’s Creed Shadows.
Players can use their surroundings in a pirate fashion, said the tech director. They can pull enemies from rooftops with rope darts and use other objects to gain an edge in combat.
Adventure and narrative
The update was also intended to keep the original narrative, with Markkanen aware that that was something players enjoyed about the 2013 version that earned an 88/100 score from critics, according to Metacritic. Back in 2013, The Escapist praised the “escapist delight” in sailing wherever a player desired. A recent user of Metacritic recalled that Black Flag was the greatest game they had ever played; they enjoyed the naval battles, storyline, and music.
Markkanen said Edward still has the same narrative arc but new side quests have been added, as well as small secrets that players could find away from the main storyline. Players can choose to diverge from the main quest and do what they like, then come back to Edward’s story.
Ubisoft Montreal built Resynced’s verticality so that players can free dive in underwater environments. The new additions mean that players can spend hundreds of hours in the updated gameworld, said the tech director, but the main story could be completed in around 25 hours.
Pirate games that followed
No pirate games released since have reached the success of Black Flag. Critics have noted the dearth of quality alternatives, which might help explain the hunger for this remake. Ubisoft’s own Skull and Bones received mixed reviews, nothing like the admiration for Black Flag. Certain players and critics enjoyed it; the game was nominated for an outstanding character award at the Visual Effects Society Awards and the visuals made the strongest impression (IGN commented on the extra polish that Ubisoft had given details like waves and cannonfire).
Sea of Thieves, developed by Rare, fared similarly if a bit worse. The player played as a pirate completing voyages and in the multiplayer mode, players roamed the world in a ship from a first-person perspective.
Sid Meier’s Pirates!, released back in 1987, has been compared with Black Flag. It is, in some critics’ eyes, still the pinnacle of pirate games. If Black Flag Resynced lives up to its developers’ hype, the update may take that crown.
