Players attempting to launch Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced over the weekend encountered an infuriating issue: the game was unplayable due to an outage affecting Ubisoft Connect. Despite promises that the game could be played offline after an initial download, legitimate customers found themselves locked out of their purchases when Ubisoft's PC client experienced downtime on Saturday, July 11. The situation was exacerbated by reports that pirated versions of the game, which had their DRM removed, continued to function without interruption.
The problem first surfaced early Saturday morning when players noted they could no longer start the game through Steam. The issue was traced to Ubisoft Connect being temporarily offline, preventing games from launching. This online dependency proved particularly galling for those who had purchased the game legally, especially in light of the game's own FAQ, which stated, "Yes. A one-time internet connection is required to download the game. Once downloaded, the full main campaign of Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced is fully playable offline." The FAQ did note that an online connection would be needed for live content linked to the Animus Hub.
Although the outage was relatively short and occurred during off-peak hours for many in the United States, the incident quickly garnered significant attention. A Reddit thread discussing the matter amassed over 15,000 upvotes, highlighting the immediate consequences of such online-only requirements. Beyond the temporary inconvenience, the event also reignited concerns about long-term game accessibility, particularly regarding the future viability of Ubisoft Connect servers.
This is not the first time Ubisoft's mandatory client has caused frustration. The company's insistence on enforcing Ubisoft Connect (formerly UPlay) even for games purchased through platforms like Steam has been a recurring issue for years. Reports of similar problems date back to the launch of Far Cry 3 in 2012, indicating a persistent and unresolved challenge for players seeking uninterrupted access to their Ubisoft game libraries. Kotaku has reached out to Ubisoft for comment regarding the inaccessibility of games despite the claims made in the Black Flag Resynced FAQ.