Stop us if you've heard this one before, but we're deep in an era of remakes, remasters and re-releases. So much so you can really see the spectrum from quick repackaging (or cash grab' as you may feel) right up to 'Woah! This is an entirely different game!'
When Ubisoft announced Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced, we were instantly left wondering where on the scale this might land, and thankfully Ubisoft hasn't just knocked it out of the park in terms of spectacle and level of detail, it's actually crafted something that feels somehow exactly like we remembered and entirely fresh and nothing like it was – arriving as the best Assassin's Creed experience to date.
OK so, the obvious things first. Black Flag Resynced looks downright gorgeous. Built in the modern Anvil engine, as you wash up on beaches, sail the seas and wander through towns, it tricks you into thinking this is exactly what your first playthrough back in 2015 looked like.
The feeling is intact and unbothered but if you dare to take a look back, it's a complete overhaul into something much slicker and more complete. Vibrant colours, denser forestry, an ocean full of rich detail – it's the team's finest work.
This mentality has crossed into the gameplay too though, with so many quality-of-life improvements that have polished Black Flag into its final form, which goes to show the team behind Resynced have a lot of love for the original and want to see it shine as best it can.
View oEmbed on the source websiteRather than going fully into the RPG route like the latest Assassin's Creed titles, it's a more refined version of the original swashbuckling efforts. The Kenway we see in Black Flag Resynced is more ferocious and his fighting style focuses on parries leading to quick and nasty takedowns which you can chain – making for more exciting and pulse racing encounters than the drawn-out battles the original sometimes left you spamming attacks in.
Certain assassination encounters have been evolved into full-on boss fights, which is an interesting choice in one sense as it removes a little bit of that freedom to just air assassinate Duncan Walpole, for example. But having a brutal sword fight feels like the more cinematic approach the pirate tale is leaning into and something we felt really bookended key story beats.
Similarly, the parkour in Black Flag Resynced has been tightened up to make for much faster and more fluid exploration across rooftops and galleons. One of the biggest changes in traversal though – and perhaps a Mandela effect moment for most of us – is the added ability to crouch, making those stealth sections much easier to navigate purposefully.
Meanwhile, eavesdropping and tailing missions have been brought down to a minimum and tweaked so that being spotted just kicks off a sword fight instead of an instant fail.
The stealthier moments aren't perfect – sometimes we still felt the camera wasn't always as quick to adjust as we'd have liked, and often Kenway would snap to the opposite side of a crate we were aiming for, making for some panicked moments as we frantically reorientated ourselves to the danger around us – but for the most part it's a much more refined experience.
Matt Ryan is back again, pulling on the leather boots of Edward Kenway to re-record some moments and even a host of new segments for side missions and quests based around your ship's officers to better flesh out the arc of Kenway's journey. And honestly his performance is so enigmatic who could ever complain about more?
Add Radio Times as a Preferred Source on Google Keep up to date on what’s worth watching with your favourite entertainment news from Radio Times – see more of our exclusive news and interviews featured prominently in Top Stories when using Google.
Perhaps the biggest narrative change comes from the now-removed modern-day segments set in Abstergo. These first-person explorations no longer fill the gaps in between chapters of Kenway's story and while it's a bold move it will for sure be a divisive one.
There's a handful of 'rifts' which are unique side missions that play around with the concept of choices made in the story which Ubisoft sees as a stand-in for the modern-day moments, but as they're optional they don't quite hit the same note. We're not surprised as Ubisoft has been slowly moving away from the modern-day elements in each sequel to the series.
For us though, this choice works in this instance and pulls the focus onto Kenway and his friends, streamlining everything into a less bloated and focused open-world experience at sea. Again it pulls on the thread of what makes an Assassin's Creed game actually an Assassin's Creed game, but we don't think it destroys the experience.
Without resorting to a bullet-point list of what's changed, been removed or tweaked – talking about Black Flag Resynced is an odd task. This is a remake up there with the likes of Resident Evil 2, but not with the goal of creating a ground-up retelling of an old story, this is more of a loving restoration project.
Everything you loved about Black Flag is there but just refined, polished and re-wrapped with the biggest changes coming in the smaller mechanics to make the whole story feel more fluid.
Despite future sequels being a huge success for Ubisoft, Black Flag has remained one of its most iconic entries in the franchise and seeing the reverence put into this remake is heartening – which also leads us to wonder if the direct spin-off Assassin's Creed Rogue will get the same treatment at some stage...
View Green Video on the source websiteAssassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced is released on 9 July 2026.
Check out more of our Gaming coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
Hence then, the article about assassin s creed black flag resynced review edward kenway sets sail again in glorious remake was published today ( ) and is available on Radio Times ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced review: Edward Kenway sets sail again in glorious remake )
Also on site :
- Hot French startup ZML releases free product to speed inference across lots of AI chips
- Lionel Messi ‘match-fixing’ conspiracy is all Fifa’s own fault
- Totally Hitlarious: Chris Murphy Worries About Dem Party’s Credibility If Platner Isn’t Properly Replaced