Assassin's Creed: Black Flag Resynced, a modern take on the 2013 open-world pirate adventure, has been released with several gameplay improvements, but a significant narrative omission has drawn criticism. The remake has cut the original game's present-day storyline, a science-fiction framing device that involved the antagonistic Abstergo Industries, which is now viewed as a substantial misstep that detracts from the overall experience.
The original Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag featured a dual narrative. The primary story followed pirate Edward Kenway in the Caribbean during the 18th century, who becomes entangled in a conflict with Templars seeking an observatory to control the world. However, interspersed with this were modern-day segments where players assumed the role of an employee at Abstergo Entertainment, a subsidiary of Abstergo Industries. This division was responsible for using the Animus device to extract ancestral memories, not for advancing the Templars' agenda, but for creating entertainment products.
This meta-narrative served as a layer of satire for the original game. Edward Kenway's adventures were presented as raw data being mined by Abstergo Entertainment to produce films, with corporate executives offering commentary on the historical footage. This satirical element poked fun at the process of big-budget game development and offered a self-aware commentary on Ubisoft's own practices. The humor derived from Abstergo Entertainment's attempts to sanitize and sensationalize historical events, such as suggesting Edward be portrayed as a "ladies man" with a James Bond-like voice, provided a cheeky justification for some of the game's more fantastical pirate tropes.
Without these present-day interludes, Assassin's Creed: Black Flag Resynced is perceived as losing a crucial layer of its identity. The game is now presented as a straightforward pirate tale, missing the wink-and-nod commentary that made the original game's narrative more layered and humorous. Critics suggest that Ubisoft's decision reflects a shift in the company's own trajectory, where it has become the type of massive corporation it once satirized. The implementation of the Animus as an in-game reward system for cosmetic gear in newer titles like Assassin's Creed Shadows further fuels this perception.
Despite the criticism regarding the narrative cuts, the core gameplay of Black Flag Resynced is still praised. The game retains the acclaimed naval battles and island exploration that made the original a standout title. Its scope is considered well-suited for a blockbuster, avoiding the content bloat seen in later installments like Assassin's Creed Valhalla. However, the decision to excise the original's meta-storyline represents a missed opportunity for the remake to fully recapture what made the 2013 release unique.