Pre-order sales on Steam for the upcoming Assassin's Creed Black Flag remake, titled "Resynced," have already exceeded the total lifetime sales of Assassin's Creed Shadows, the franchise's most recent installment. This projection comes from industry analyst Rhys Elliot of Alinea Analytics, who noted that Resynced's pre-orders are 5.39 times higher than those for Shadows.
Elliot described the situation as a potential "much-needed hit for Ubisoft," which has faced criticism following Shadows' reception and a period of publisher instability marked by layoffs and studio closures. Assassin's Creed Shadows, released in 2025 after a delay and pre-release controversy, failed to fully capitalize on anticipation for its feudal Japan setting. Ubisoft concluded support for Shadows after only 12 months and one expansion, a notably shorter period than for titles like Assassin's Creed Odyssey and Valhalla.
While Ubisoft has not disclosed specific sales figures for Shadows, the company indicated the game had surpassed 5 million players through mid-2025, a figure that includes players accessing the game via subscription services. Elliot estimates that Shadows has sold approximately 5.7 million copies to date, with PC accounting for 23.8% of those sales (around 1.3 million). The PlayStation 5 represented the largest share at 53.6%, followed by Xbox at 23.6%. In comparison, Assassin's Creed Odyssey has sold at least 10 million copies, and Valhalla has generated over $1 billion in revenue, though specific unit sales were not provided.
The Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced remake focuses on the Caribbean-set narrative of the original game, starring Edward Kenway and featuring characters like Blackbeard and Charles Vane. The remake will not include the original's multiplayer or modern-day sections but will expand upon the core story with new content. Elliot suggests that remakes of established, beloved titles represent a lower-risk strategy for Ubisoft. "High-fidelity remakes of beloved legacy titles are the low-risk alternative – and one Ubi hasn’t really leveraged much yet," Elliot stated. "Such remakes reuse a universally praised design blueprint, lowering creative risk while guaranteeing a built-in audience."
Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced is scheduled to launch on Thursday, July 9.